<p>Like many of you, I have to make a tough decision soon, and I have it narrowed down to only a couple schools. I got into CMU and was extremely excited, but I was only offered half of the huge $52,000 expenses to attend. I've been offered a full ride at Michigan State, and I'm beginning to doubt that the better education or overall experience at CMU is worth the much higher cost ($26,000 a year, $104,000 total).</p>
<p>Will an engineering degree from CMU offer me so much more than one from MSU that the cost will be worth it? Will I have a better experience at CMU?</p>
<p>To graduate from college with no debt (for either you or your parents) is an incredible gift! I think that you’ll get a good education at Michigan State and - while it might not come with the ‘prestige’ of CMU - you’re going to do great when you graduate! Congrats on the scholarship.</p>
<p>arob28, congratulations on the full ride to Michigan State! I as a parent am struggling with a similar situation. My D was accepted into Tepper as well as Michigan State as you are. My D received a financial offer of about $23,500 of the cost of CMU attendance of $53,800 (not $52,000). Although she wasn’t offered a full ride from Michigan State (she didn’t go to the ADS weekend), my D’s scholarships add up to be about $5,000 short of a full ride. That is Michigan State would cost her $20,000 for 4 years without any loans or work study as opposed to CMU would cost $120,000 for 4 years plus the loans of $24,000 and work study of about $8,000. The total actual cost difference of about $132,000. </p>
<p>My problem is not that CMU costs more than Michigan State, the problem is that CMU’s financial offer is $10,000 short of my D’s (hence my) EFC. It is beyond what I can financially support my D since I will have my two kids in private colleges next year if my D were to go to CMU. At this point, it is much more likely that my D will go to Michigan State unless CMU’s financial gap narrows significantly. </p>
<p>By the way, what is your EFC? The reason I am asking this is that, I as a parent would support my D’s choice of CMU (if she indeed chooses CMU over Michigan State) if CMU’s financial offer covers the difference of my D’s EFC and CMU’s cost of attendance.</p>
<p>arob28, I would be very interested in knowing which school you finally decide to go. Good luck with your decision.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that you shouldn’t take on debt if it is more than what you are going to earn when you graduate. In this rough economy, your interest rates will also be much higher now than they may be four years from now. Think about the interest on loans approximating over 70,000 dollars. This could mean payments of up to 900 dollars a month if the economy does not improve. Add this in with projected cost of living per month.</p>
<p>An entry-level engineering job pays about 50,000/year. If you get the job, you would eventually break even in a few years. If you come out of CMU and look for an engineering job (assuming you study and do well) you could make 70,000 a year. </p>
<p>It’s a gamble, but personally I would go for the no-debt possibility. I love my undergrad institution and would not trade my experience at CMU for anything else, but it is a much heavier burden to attend school with so much debt hanging over your head. I took out loans for part of my undergrad, but was mostly covered by scholarships. In the excellent economy when I attended, an education that cost roughly 42,000/year, now costs me only two payments of 75 dollars per MONTH. That shows you how much things have changed.</p>
<p>My opinion, it is better to live without debt and more options, and you can still distinguish yourself at Michigan State. Employers care about the degree, the institution is a nice bonus but not the end of the world.</p>
<p>We have a similar choice and the debt MUST be considered in the decision making process. I try to remember that my s will be in a great position to consider CMU for grad school and walk in debt free.</p>