<p>I was accepted to MIT, Princeton and Cornell! Woot woot!</p>
<p>I'm planning to major in mechanical engineering, and each of these three schools have phenomenal engineering programs. Now I have to choose, which is extremely difficult.</p>
<p>I love MIT-- best program, my favorite culture, and an awesome city. Unfortunately, it is the most expensive school to attend. If I aggressively pursued internships, jobs, and frugality, I would graduate with around 50k in student debts. Icky, but it won't ruin my life. My parents are appealing their financial aid office to see what we can negotiate.</p>
<p>Princeton is 25k less each year, meaning I can graduate without debt if I attend. There are a lot of things I like about Princeton: the meal plan, the campus size, the generous project funding, and the connections/networking opportunities. Out of these three schools, it's engineering program is ranked the lowest. Top 20 in the country, however, isn't exactly "low," so it's still high on my list.</p>
<p>Cornell is the school with which I am the least familiar. I haven't toured or met with any students. So far, it seems like a nice medium to MIT and Princeton, both cost- and engineering-wise. I haven't heard about financial aid from Cornell yet, as my parents forgot to turn in our tax returns. I'm expecting Cornell to cost somewhere between MIT and Princeton, meaning I'd eliminate my student debt shortly after graduating.</p>
<p>So, all you lovely people on CC, which school should I attend and why (the "why" is more important to me than the "which one")?</p>
<p>Well ****. Wouldn’t it be awful to attend one of the lower-tiered top-20 engineering schools?</p>
<p>Don’t go to Cornell. Great school, but you don’t have enough interest.</p>
<p>Honestly, I’d tell you to go to Princeton because of the $$$. The difference in quality of education between the two institutions is truly infinitesimal. don’t get me wrong, MIT is awesome. Princeton, however, is just as awesome and, in your case, cheaper.</p>
<p>Believe me, Princeton is still not exactly as good as MIT’s engineering, but for an undergrad you’ll never feel the difference. Plus, there are so many perks in doing Engineering in Princeton (small size, undergrad focus).
Finally, I know SO MANY engineers who got into both and chose Princeton (mostly because of financial aid but a good portion did it for the campus/atmosphere/undergrad focus)
Finally, qualitatively speaking : Princeton is way up there (better than the 10th rank in some other ranking: it is 3-6th in others)</p>
<p>MIT is in a large urban city, Princeton is in a quiet suburb, Cornell is in a hard to get to rural area.</p>
<p>Visit both MIT and Princeton if you can. Both universities have good admitted students weekends. By reputation MIT’s weekend is fun; the Princeton Preview will give you a taste of student life.</p>
<p>Be careful when making a decision based upon the strength of an individual major at a school. An admissions officer told me that, nationally, 70% of college students change their majors.</p>
<p>Personal fit is critical. If you like the location and the school and the type of kids who go there, I would go to that school (pending money). You really will notice little difference in the quality and caliber of the engineering schools at Princeton and MIT, unless you don’t feel like you fit.</p>
<p>With a $25K difference, I wouldn’t even think twice about choosing Princeton, despite its weak (sarcasm intended) ranking for engineering. Princeton’s ME department will have far more offerings than you’ll be able to take advantage of in four years. If MIT meets Princeton’s price, then figure out which school will fit you better, and also think about what your options are at each school if you change your mind about your major. Then choose one of the two (or Cornell, if you like it).</p>
<p>PS: I indicated on my application form that chemistry was my number one preference for a major. I never took a chem course in college, and graduated with a degree in psychology. The number of engineers who graduated with degrees in philosophy or economics is endless, and they all wound up making somewhere between a good living and millions a year.</p>
<p>Thank you guys a lot for the input.
At this point, I think I will go to CPW and Princeton Preview, check out the culture and atmosphere, and let that help me decide. If the financial situation stays the same, Princeton. If it changes, I’ll base it off the impression the previews give me.</p>
<p>Sounds like a good idea! I’d definitely say that your choice is probably between Princeton and MIT. Beyond that, I’d recommend thinking about non-engineering factors, since we’re pretty comparable in that respect. Atmosphere, finances, well-roundedness, study abroad, etc. (I made a similar choice a few years ago; Princeton won b/c of finances and general culture.)</p>
<p>CPW and Preview are both a lot of fun. Enjoy!</p>
<p>I didn’t read the whole thing, but if no one has pointed it out yet, Cornell will meet all ivies financial aid + MIT and Stanford. So cost shouldn’t be a factor for them.</p>