<p>Hi y’all! Having a dilemma between deciding these two universities. </p>
<p>I really want to major in political science/international studies (which is what I am going to do at Emory), but for Ohio State, I just put in Fisher because I didn’t know any better. I’m okay with majoring in business related majors, but my passion lies in politics. </p>
<p>That being said, Emory offered me a good amount of grant money, but that will still put me at around <70k in debt (4 years). Ohio State, <20k (4 years), but I’m pretty confident that I can get a lot of scholarships by keeping up my grades. </p>
<p>Parents can pay for both undergrad.</p>
<p>Which one, considering the fact that I want to go to grad school too?</p>
<p>149 views and no answer? :(</p>
<p>Perhaps many on this on this board don’t really know about Emory, which might explain why you have no responses after just a few hours. If your interest is in political science, I am puzzled why wouldn’t select that as your major at Ohio State? If you want to study politics/international studies, you might not be happy taking all of the courses that are required for a business major. Maybe a minor in int’l business would be better suited for you?
Some questions for you to think about: Campuses/locations/sizes are completely different. Have you visited both? Do you favor the 5,000-student school over one 10 times its size? Do you like being in the South vs being in the Midwest? The South can be a culture shock if you aren’t from there.
The $50,000 price difference is huge. Scholarships might only be available in small increments, and competition for scholarships is fierce wherever you go – usually it’s not just enough to have good grades. Have you had a serious discussion with your parents where you weigh the pros and cons and talk about whether the checkbook will still be open for grad school if they shell out the money for Emory? Because if you KNOW you want to go to grad school you have to weigh that debt question very seriously. You might have to wait a long time to even start grad school if you have $50,000 in debts you have to pay after graduation.
Emory has the prestige factor, no doubt, but you might be better trying for the prestigious grad school. Good luck, you are fortunate to have 2 great schools to choose from!</p>
<p>Will you be graduating with the amounts of debt you estimated, or are your parents able to pay for you to attend either school? If you are actually taking on debt, I would seriously consider attending the school which leaves you the least in debt. A political science or business degree is not worth ten years of student loan repayment. </p>
<p>I am a finance major at Fisher, and business students don’t generally take political science classes, although there are plenty of opportunities to get involved with the Fisher student government, if you would be happy with pursuing political science more as a hobby.</p>
<p>What kind of job do you want when you graduate? Business grads tend to get different jobs than do political science majors, so I would carefully consider what you’d like to do with your career before you choose your major.</p>
<p>As far as comparing OSU with Emory, they are completely different schools, and I can’t imagine you wouldn’t have some preference for one or the other-- small vs. big, Columbus vs. Atlanta, etc. I love OSU, but not everyone wants that kind of experience.</p>
<p>OScarlett, maybell, thank you so much for replying. </p>
<p>@OScarlett: When I applied for OSU, I didn’t put much effort into it. I also thought that it was possible to double major across schools, but it was too late to change after I found out.
I like big schools and small colleges.
I’ve lived in the South and Midwest for a little while. Atlanta is different from where I live, of course; more liberal, which suits me fine.
I’ve spoken to parents about undergraduate, but my father is telling me that graduate school is cheap if your professor is paying for your tuition. Then again, his experience could differ from mine since he was a TA for the sciences decades ago. Thank you for your helpful reply. I will speak to him about grad school today. </p>
<p>@maybell: Parents will be able to pay for my college tuition on the spot. No outside loans besides stafford loans. It may backbreaking for them, though. They’re going to do everything to pay off my tuition and board. 
Idealistically, I would love to work for the US Foreign Service. </p>
<p>What I really would like to now is how different OSU is from other state universities. State universities are fine for me, but I’m not a huge sports enthusiast, and it seems that everyone unites during these games.</p>
<p>As much as I love OSU, I’m a GA native. Emory. OSU can’t compare.</p>
<p>I don’t know a thing about Emory but my neighbor’s son sounds a bit like you. He started at OSU in business and changed his major to political science and philosophy after the first year. Then he started working on the state senator’s campaign and ended up taking a year off to do that. After he graduated, he went off to China to teach English for a year. I believe he is now pursuing an MBA at Cornell and hopes to work in international business or politics after he finishes. There are many paths to a career and I know that OSU could provide a good start. Oh- and you don’t have to be into sports to enjoy life at OSU although there is a lot a Buckeye spirit on campus.</p>
<p>Ohio State’s Political Science department is ranked 13th in the country by US News & World Report in 2010, with the American Politics 5th, International Politics 12th and Political Methodology 10th.</p>
<p>Study by Simon Hix of The London School of Economics ranked it as the 4th best Political Science department in the world.</p>
<p>Foreign Policy Magazine ranked it as the 15th best program in the world for the study of International Relations.</p>
<p>Professor Alexander Wendt was ranked the most influential scholar of International Relations in the world in survey of American professors of International Relations.</p>
<p>Ohio State Global Gateway Offices</p>
<ul>
<li>China - Shanghai 2010</li>
<li>India - Mumbai 2012</li>
<li>Brazil - Sao Paulo 2014</li>
<li>England - London 2015</li>
<li>Belgium 2015</li>
<li>Turkey 2017</li>
<li>Uganda 2018</li>
<li>Russia 2020</li>
</ul>
<p>Excerpt:</p>
<p>“The Office of International Affairs cultivates and nurtures the growth of global perspectives at The Ohio State University. As Ohio State enhances its mission for high distinction in international education, scholarship, and public service, the Office of International Affairs provides leadership and innovation to facilitate international opportunities for our students and faculty, and makes educational resources accessible for the campus, our international guests, and the community beyond. We also stimulate activities that celebrate diverse cultures, foster the exchange of ideas, serve as the central information hub for international activities, and support the growing international dimension of Ohio State.”</p>
<p>Source: [Office</a> of International Affairs - About Us](<a href=“http://oia.osu.edu/about-us.html]Office”>About Us | Office of International Affairs | The Ohio State University)</p>
<p>U.S. Presidents from Ohio</p>
<pre><code>* Ulysses Grant
- Rutherford Hayes
- James Garfield
- Benjamin Harrison
- William McKinley
- William Taft
- Warren Harding
</code></pre>
<p>*In short, TOSU Poli Sci Dept. is truly world-class and consistently ranked ahead of Cornell and Northwestern. Emory simply can’t compare.</p>
<p>[Best</a> Political Science Programs | Top Political Science Schools | US News Best Graduate Schools](<a href=“http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/political-science-rankings/page+2]Best”>http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-humanities-schools/political-science-rankings/page+2)</p>
<p>TOSU Student in the Statehouse</p>
<p>[“Buckeyes</a> in the Statehouse” - YouTube](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube)</p>
<p>Go Bucks!! :)</p>
<p>If you’re going to be putting your parents in huge amounts of debt and they will struggle as you suggest, I don’t even know why Emory is an option if it will accumulate $50,000 more debt over 4 years compared to Ohio State. </p>
<p>Something that may make your experience slightly better vs. extreme hardships for your family, seems like an easy decision.</p>
<p>Just my $0.02</p>
<p>Definitely OSU. Don’t put your family into such a huge amount of debt. There are lots of opportunities at Ohio, just seek them out. Do internships, research, clubs, get leadership, and you will get into a top grad school. </p>
<p>Remember, grad school is only paid for PhDs. If you pursue an MBA or masters, you will go into more debt. By keeping undergrad debt small, you will have more opportunities for grad school, which is what really matters.</p>
<p>Thank y’all so much for replying! You don’t know how much it means to me, seriously. </p>
<p>@Sparkeye7: I know! Ohio State has a pretty amazing political science department. But, would it matter for undergraduate? Also, will I get that exposure by being enrolled in Fisher College? </p>
<p>@RMGsmom Congratz on your S! omg I hope I become like him. How hard did he have to work, and what did he like and not like about OSU? (Such as what was available for him, what were the professors like, etc)</p>
<p>@OSULolz @alwaysleah See, my parents don’t mind paying at all. But, yes, I do not want the burden of debt to oppress my family’s happiness. </p>
<p>@OSULolz Emory is an option because it’s close to home, the classes are smaller (more one-on-one time with professors), ATL, overall well-rounded academics, etc. Also, I’m enrolled in Fisher at OSU. Education is worth the money too (although I am sure I can achieve the same quality of education if I work myself to death with the professors). </p>
<p>@alwaysleah Well, the option for PhD is open. I don’t mind becoming a TA. What do you mean by “by keeping undergrad debt small, you will have more opportunities for grad school”? I would definitely go to OSU for the money, but subtracting that factor out, Emory would provide a plethora of gateways to different top-tier grad schools. Not saying that OSU won’t, but grad schools will take into account of the amount of work that I put into + the prestige. </p>
<p>I’m not trying to go against y’all! I really want to scope out the facts from genuine OSU students. 
</p>
<p>tl’dr sorry</p>
<p>The less money you spend now, the more you have to spend on grad school.</p>
<p>Hi @Vanechka! I know, haha, but my parents are okay with spending a lot for my education. I’m not sure of a possibility: if I go to Emory, will grad school professors will look at the amount of work and my undergraduate school? If I apply to be a TA and, say, am up against a person from Emory who has just as many (or maybe a couple less) experiences/internships etc. as I do, will grad school professors choose the one from Emory, just because of the school?</p>
<p>They will primarily be concerned with what you accomplished. Perhaps your school name will give you a minor boost, but it’s mostly about what you do. </p>
<p>And, if you were to go to OSU now and save that 50k, would your parents be willing to put it towards grad school?</p>
<p>I have a feeling that my parents would pay for grad school.
At OSU, would it be harder to find opportunities due to the numerous amount of people seeking for the same things than if I was in Emory? I’m thinking of what the uni would offer and what the cities would as well.</p>
<p>I think you may still be confused about where OSU’s political science program is based- it isn’t in Fisher. If you are intending to switch colleges within Ohio State, you would go from the Fisher College of Business to the College of Arts and Sciences. You could easily double major in business, but business majors don’t generally take political science classes.</p>
<p>No, I know that OSU’s political science program is the College of Arts and Sciences. I don’t mind about other business majors and what classes they take, even if it’s not “the norm.”</p>
<p>If you want to do Political Science… then why not do that instead of business if you were going to go to OSU?</p>
<p>As stated in my first post, “I really want to major in political science/international studies (which is what I am going to do at Emory), but for Ohio State, I just put in Fisher because I didn’t know any better.” I had done zero research on OSU (it was my safety school)</p>
<p>Yes, I saw that. However, from your posts, you seem to be acting as if you would still be remaining in Fisher and in business. That is what I do not understand if you actually want to do political science.</p>