Hey guys!
I’ve been a lurker on this site for a while, and this site has been so helpful. I’m creating this thread because I need help for my particular situation.
The first thing to note is that I’m a United States citizen living outside the US. I’ve not lived in the US for the past five or six years. Unfortunately, this means that I do not qualify as a resident for any state. So if by the end of reading this post you are wondering why I did not apply to public schools as an In-state student, that is why.
My family income is really low, my parents cannot afford to pay ANYTHING for my college education. I have to get a loan for any money that is not convered by scholarships and grants.
After applications and acceptances, these are my two most affordable choices:
- University of Rochester: 18k loans per year
- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: 16k loans per year
I’m in the process of appealing for more aid at both schools
I plan to major in Computer Science.
After doing a lot of research, these are the pros and cons of each school that I have compiled.
1.University of Rochester:
Pros:
+Awesome and super friendly community
- Everybody is very involved on campus
- Opportunities for participating in research with professors is very abundant
- Student body is smart AND social… Like ‘social nerds’
- No compulsory classes
- It has a good GENERAL reputation
Cons
- Their computer science department is not that reputable. I’m afraid it won’t be very good or be too theoretical.
-Maybe too research oriented and not enough co-op oriented.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Pros
- Has a very good reputation in the tech industry and has a great computer science department
- AWESOME job prospects after graduation. I think I saw a statistic that 95% of computer science students graduated with jobs already lined up… Wow
Cons
-The city it’s in (Troy) is a subject of many bad opinions.
-Social life there is questionable. It is said that many people just stay in their rooms playing video games. While I am very comfortable with playing video games, I want to move out of my comfort zone and be a more outgoing and involved person. I believe that the University of Rochester community would help influence me to be that kind of person, much more than Rensselaer’s community can.
- Very rigorous. (Not sure if this is really a con) If you search on Google for the ‘Top Hardest Colleges in the USA’ Rensselaer would be there.
I think that I’m leaning towards University of Rochester for a good campus experience.
But if I go there I’ll be missing out on Rensselaer’s computer science program and job prospects. This goes ESPECIALLY because I’ll have a lot of loans to pay off when I graduate. RPI’s computer science graduates had a very high median salary.
I really wish I could enjoy the ‘best of both worlds’.
Please give me your advice on what college to choose, or even if you see ‘another path’ feel free to suggest it. I’ll appreciate any help!
$16,000 of loans means that most of it will require a cosigner.
Could you take a year off school and apply to a large merit seeking list that will be more affordable?
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
http://competitivefulltuition.yolasite.com/
Thanks for the fast reply!
I don’t think taking a year off school is an option. My parents wouldn’t like the sound of that and would simply insist that I attend school in my current country…
And I don’t think that’s the best for me.
I am making appeals though (Family income dropped by $13,000 from year 2015 to 2016) and things are looking positive, especially with University of Rochester. RPI has yet to reply.
Rochester will serve you fine for CS, but it will take more initiative to work on practical things outside of classes and find internships over the summer. I think that’s a good tradeoff for being happier in the social environment at UR. I love RPI’s curriculum myself but didn’t even apply there because of the social scene, while I applied to UR. I ended up choosing another school with a more balanced social scene and the CS strength and practicality, but between UR and RPI, for me, I would go UR all the way. It sounds like you would be in a similar boat, so I’d recommend U of Rochester.
Well, it’s good to know that it’s reasonable that I’m considering UR over RPI.
Practising practical stuff outside classes and getting internships is definitely a good idea, especially when attending a non co-op school.
I guess I was just a little worried because I’ve heard very little about computer science at UR. I’ve been searching past threads but most of the little info about it is very vague.
Of course I know that in the end, the program is what I make of it.
The reputation of RPI as being a college without a social life is way overblown. My D goes there and she says there is plenty to do socially there, clubs, parties, sports, events, etc. Of course there are the unsocial types who just stay in their rooms but there are plenty who don’t and you don’t have to either.
A lot of the negative stuff about Troy you’ll find online is from years ago when it seems it was pretty run-down. In the past decade the downtown area (walking distance of campus) have been revitalized and is now by all accounts quite nice, with plenty of places to go and a nice river walk. Granted there are sketchy parts of town (as with many town) but you just don’t go there.
I can’t compared with UR’s campus life as I don’t know much about UR. All I know is that my D is pretty happy with the campus life at RPI. (She, like you, is a US citizen who grew up overseas.) And academically it’s rigorous - which is good because you come out knowing your stuff, and the job prospects are very good. UR has an excellent overall reputation and is more balanced in terms of humanities (and med school), but for CS (and engineering), I’d probably pick RPI.
Getting a job with a CS degree is a very low bar in 2017. It should not be a consideration. You WILL get a job.
These are both good schools and for CS neither will hold you back in any way. Rochester CS department IS very reputable.
These schools are very different as you have identified. This is a very personal choice IMHO. What I mean by that is you have to ask yourself who YOU want to be and which school will provide YOU the better opportunity to be that person. You will learn a lot about yourself in making this decision.
Congrats. I know it’s a difficult decision but if you make it carefully, neither would be a mistake. Enjoy this opportunity to grapple, but you will be happier in the end if YOU make the decision yourself.
I really like the advice I’ve been given here.
Pengsphil recommended UR.
Insanedreamer recommended RPI and has corrected the negative reviews of social life at RPI. Yes, I’ve heard that it has improved in the past years.
And ClassicRockerDad gave the reminder that in the end this is a personal decision that only I can make!
This has been an ideal thread for someone like me who needs advice on which school to choose. The info here has helped me to look at things from all angles.
I feel more confident making my decision already!