<p>I am having a hard time making a choice between attending Penn (which will cost me 24k more for the whole 4 years) or go to UT Austin or U of Miami (Florida) or Tulane (all three offer a full ride)</p>
<p>I don't really know if 24k more is worth it for an Ivy school, so I would love to have your advices.</p>
<p>I will be double majoring in communications and economics. I've visited all of the schools already. I generally like all of them with Miami slightly more but not significant. However my family is in Dallas, TX so if I go to UT it will be very convenient for me to get back home from time to time. And Tulane is far enough for a sense of freedom & independence yet close enough for an easy trip back home.</p>
<p>If I go with Penn, do you think it will financially benefit me in the future on my paychecks or it will just be 24k for a purchase of prestige?</p>
<p>Summary, I don't have a firm choice at the moment, can anyone please provide advice :( ?</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for advices. And yes, it’s upenn. I know it’s kinda silly but most my friends are going to UT and they keep telling me “you gonna waste 24k? Come on 24k = new shiny Chevy Camaro. Plus UT is only half a step down from Penn. Just go with us and take your student loan out for a down and you will be a longhorn guy with a shiny Chevy! Or you wanna be a walking Philly Eagle? That sounds very Rio, man. Unkool!”</p>
<p>I know that’s flawed reasoning but we are human after all :(</p>
<p>So, Penn is worth it, right? Seriously, it’s a whole new level up from UT (or U of Miami, or Tulane,) isn’t it? Coz most Texans are heavily biased and think that UT is probably the best school on earth (indeed my parents will be very unhappy if I turn down UT, I tried to explain to them but they just don’t care about the Ivies n stuff. I have the final decision but it’s still hard to see my parents waving goodbye to me with long faces)</p>
<p>So, just to confirm; in the eyes of non-texans, is Penn way better than UT?</p>
<p>UPenn without a doubt. The opportunities for internships and jobs from an Ivy in the Northeast region of the country will be far superior. Outside of Texas, UT is respected but does not compare with an Ivy.</p>
<p>If that 24k is all the debt you will have, then Penn is a good choice. If you are talking about adding an additional 24k on top of 20-30k then it is not a good choice.</p>
<p>It looks like Penn’s offer will leave you with no more than the Stafford loan maximum. That would be OK.</p>
<p>I would say go with UPENN it’s only 6 grand more a year that than UT I mean 6 grand isn’t a small amount of money but more than worth it for the education and prestige.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for your inputs! And yeah it was actually pretty much only Penn & UT although I put Tulane & Miami in just in case someone has some special thing to say about the two.</p>
<p>@happymomof1: fortunately that 24k will be all the debt I help.</p>
<p>… well … not really. Coz I just found out that Penn also requires student health insurance that cost $2,800 annually. And it doesn’t look like they will accept my current health insurance policy so that will be an unofficial expense which wasn’t budgeted in my financial aid package at all.</p>
<p>Bottom line: it will cost me around $8,800/year => $35,200 total if I decide to go with Penn. I am ready to make the choice. Will everyone agree that even at 35k extra Penn is still worth it?</p>
<p>Also, do you HAVE to take their insurance? The school my daughter goes to technically does not accept our insurance but we just checked a box saying our insurance met their requirements and that was the end of it.</p>
<p>I’d also go will Penn only IF it’s a place you’d be happy. Penn should pay off in multiples after graduating, though no guarantees. If Philly is too far from home, just too northern in culture and climate, stay in Texas. UT is a great place. Most states only dream of having a flagship the likes of Austin.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. It’s true. Either Penn or UT. I leaning to Penn now.</p>
<p>@SVMMom: I am unsure but according to what they say, it sounds like I have to submit my insurance policy to them and they will review it and will only accept it if all requirements are met. If not they will bill me for their health insurance. Of course I will submit my current policy for review but I don’t think I can escape that toll. I really wish they were as flexible as your D’s school :(</p>
<p>Agree with the others that $24K to $35K is a modest additional charge to go to Penn. I would be surprised if you are required to take Penn’s insurance while covered under your family policy. That is definitely not the case at a peer institution Yale.</p>