<p>My S wants to major in CPE. His 2 choices were PSU and Vtech. Both schools have been in the press lately for obvious reasons. We realize that violence is certainly not anyone's fault at VT and PSU administration was at fault but this has left us feeling sick about his choices. PSU was in state and VTech OOS was basically same price. Other schools he applied to but didnt seem to like as much were Boston U, Purdue, Lehigh, Drexel, UVA (but may be reach -he did like it alot) , Clemson. What would you advise your S or D to do? PSU and VTech education is not the question .. would he stay clear of these schools because of the recent issues? Do you have any other advice regarding schools?</p>
<p>I don’t think you should worry about these recent events. You could send your kid anywhere and something like this could happen. If anything, these things having happened recently will raise awareness on campus, and make it safer. The event, while tragic, is not a common occurrence, and the probability of your child’s being directly (or even indirectly) affected if such a scenario were to occur is low - like flipping three heads in a row, based on the number of killed/injured, assumed 50 real friends per person directly affected, and the 2006 VaTech population of > 22,000.</p>
<p>You take a risk waking up in the morning. Most risks aren’t worth worrying about, and this is one of them.</p>
<p>As a parent who just launched their student this year I can fully understand and appreciate your apprehension. I am not as familiar with PSU, so I will not speak to that (however I would assume some of the same would be true). </p>
<p>We are instate for VT and it was one of my son’s top choices last year. As Va residents we all remember the terrible events of four years ago and knowing so many kids who were on campus, worrying about them, and the aftermath. I can tell you the Hokie Nation is like no other and the pride they feel is amazing. The university and community came together and supported each other through those events and no one has forgotten. This week is clearly evident of that. The lightning fast response of not only VT Police but surrounding/supporting agencies were truly amazing. I can only hope that if my student (who eventually chose another university) were in a crisis situation at his university they would respond as well as VT did this week. From the terrible events four years ago has obviously come an amazing system to alert the students/faculty, and respond to a crisis.</p>
<p>I have a current high school sophomore who will look first to the many fine universities we have here in Virginia. I would not HESITATE, and would be very proud, to send him to VT.</p>
<p>I’m going to take a little bit of a different approach:</p>
<p>Something like the VT massacre could happen on any campus. Anywhere you go there are unstable people that could do something like this. Does anything specific to VT make it more likely to happen there? Yes.</p>
<p>The fact that such a public event happened at VT means that others who wish to copy the incident in a deranged attempt at similar notoriety are more likely to go to VT to commit such an event. Take a look at the recent campus shooting at VT for evidence. This person traveled to VT to kill someone and the police are unsure why, but I think it’s pretty clear why he chose VT over another school or city. </p>
<p>That said, the VT police and campus have been through a shooting in the past and know they are more likely to be targeted. This means that they are more prepared to react to such an event. The end result is that VT is more likely to have an event in the future, but such an event will likely to be less severe (fewer people killed) than another campus. It’s not a politically correct statement to make, but it’s the truth.</p>
<p>Penn State is a little bit of a different issue. I don’t think you’re likely to see a copy cat at PSU. I assume child molesters try to avoid the spotlight, so such a high profile case will discourage others from going to PSU. That said, you have to evaluate your opinion of the administration regarding what they knew and what they did. If they removed all responsible from their positions and took adequate safeguards to prevent it from happening in the future, then maybe it’s not an issue anymore. If you feel that they tries to evade the issue, then maybe not. But that’s up to your interpretation.</p>
<p>I would not hesitate to send my S to VT for Engineering but I would have some concerns sending him to PSU due to the perceptions that others would have about the school. I’m sorry if this offends any past or current Nittany Lions.</p>
<p>As long as the student has a firm understanding of CPE fundamentals and if you go into software engineering can “create solutions”, engineering/I.T. recruiters could care less. Remember, CPE (especially with a software slant) has more job openings that the colleges can spit out grads.</p>
<p>If my child has to decide between Penn State and VaTech…consider that a good thing.</p>
<p>I agree with all of your responses and I thank you for the well thought out opinions. This really is an issue for a parent to decide between 2 schools that are currently in the media for sad reasons. Global Traveler …thanks for making us feel good … because in the end it is about obtaining an education and getting a job. My S loves V tech and we do know they are a tight community, but he cant help but feel apprehensive. PSU is really big (but in state) and it’s new reputation could deter some higher level students from attending. I dont know if it’s worth looking closer at Purdue (recently accepted) just because of what has happened. This is not easy. </p>
<p>Thanks to all of you parents for responding</p>