<p>Okay, so here's my dilemma. I am interested in being a foreign correspondent or working in international affairs and journalism. I have the grades/extra curriculars and test scores to get into some fairly competitive schools. It has been my dream to attend a school like G-town or Tufts to study IR. But, I live in Missouri, and I could get in-state tuition to one of the best journalism schools in the country, and I could get my masters degree in journalism in 5 years for basically no money. If I went to Mizzou I would have zero debt through a master's degree. If I went to a school like G-town for undergrad I would have about $20,000 in debt after undergrad and a lot more after graduate study. Is it worth it to hold off on studying IR until after I get an advanced degree in journalism? Should I get my degree first from Mizzou and then apply to grad schools like Georgetown for an IR masters? Would it be difficult for me to get into schools like Georgetown and Johns Hopkins after studying at Mizzou? Also, how well respected is a journalism degree from Mizzou? </p>
<p>I don't want college to be like high school again, which may be a problem at Mizzou because about half my high school's graduating class goes there each year. </p>
<p>Any advice/opinions would be appreciated. :-)</p>
<p>I wouldn't worry about college being like high school. A bunch kids from my high school attend U of I each year but since the school is so big they make lots of new friends. State schools are usually big so that shouldn't be a problem.</p>
<p>Why don't you apply to all three and see how the financial picture looks? $20K for undergraduate is not unreasonable if it's an experience you really want. There is something to be said for seeing a new part of the world.</p>
<p>I fear, however, that the cost difference may be more than you anticipate. Do GTown and Tufts guarantee 100% of need? Have you factored in the Profile? If these schools gap, and the difference goes much past $20K, you have a great opportunity in state.</p>
<p>my family has no demonstrated need (according to the finaid calculator-thingy) so we will be basically be paying sticker price for any non-merit aid school. My parents said that they could afford to pay about 35k a year for undergrad and they aren't planning on paying anything for grad school. so I took the roughly 5k difference in tuition and what we could pay x 4 years and at the end I will have about 20k in loans.</p>
<p>Ah, so the finances, when yours and your parents are combined, mean full pay. A free ride must be very attractive. It is a special gift for your parents to offer you the school of your choice. If it's comfortable for them, it's OK to accept the gift.</p>
<p>It shouldn't be too hard to earn at least a couple of thousand a year at a part-time job, even if you're taking unpaid internships in the summer.</p>
<p>IMO, having a journalism degree at Mizzou is just as good as having a IR degree from GT or Tufts. Yeah, Mizzou may not be as prestigeous as the other schools, but their journalism program is up there with their programs.</p>
<p>for $20,000? i mean if it was like $80,000 thats a different story...but $20k is very doable and Northwestern and Georgetown are THE BEST in their fields.</p>
<p>Thats like turning down Wharton for a mediocre business school for $20k.</p>
<p>Mizzou journalism is extremely well-thought of by anyone in the business! Going there through a masters for very low cost would allow you to pursue another masters in IR after that (if you were interested at that point!) </p>
<p>I went to Mizzou for undergrad and grad (in secondary ed, MA in history) because of finances and loved it--no regrets!! I've never had a problem getting a job with my degrees from Mizzou!</p>
<p>Mizzou is good for journalism...but will anyone here think that it is better than Northwestern? I mean Northwestern is undoubtedly the best for undergrad journalism, just like Wharton is undoubtedly the best for undergrad business and such. You dont turn down the best school in your field for $20k. Its like turning down Harvard for a school like Emory or Tufts.</p>
<p>Mizzou is probably #3 or 4 in Journalism. I just cannot imagine that there is THAT much difference between the programs to warrant going into debt $20k. Especially not if they are planning to go onto get further education that assuredly will put them into debt.</p>
<p>I don't personally know J schools very well, but I do have a friend from Oregon who went to Mizzou on the strength of its journalism program. And it seems to have worked out well for her. She is now an on-air TV news reporter, working in small markets and working her way up to the big time. I'm sure she would tell you that Mizzou is the way to go.</p>