I’m so torn between these two schools. I really like Penn State’s environment and Computer science department which I have heard high praises of. Penn State’s CS ranking is also a lot larger than Temple’s. However, to go to Penn state, I would have to pay 20,000 a year… whereas for Temple Honors, I would only need to pay 2700 as I live in Philly and am close enough to not need to room or board at temple. For me, I wouldn’t mind going to Temple, but my parents apparently think it would be best to just pay the $20,000 as Temple Computer science isn’t noteworthy. Personally, I think Penn State costs too much for my family, yet at the same time, I kinda like it and my parents are really trying to get me to go there.
So, here I come, in search for some advice
Is Penn State worth 20,000 per year? Or should I just got to Temple Honors which costs 2700 a year? I’m going to major in computer science.
The schools are really quite different, but if your parents are ok with PSU, and if you getting a PSU education for $20K a year? Wow. That’s an incredible deal. For us, PSU was the obvious choice, the environment was so warm and welcoming and mine loved the town. Temple is fantastic academically, but mine said it had ‘too many fences’ that made her feel ‘closed in’. It really comes down to whether you like a city school? Mine loves the excitement of a city but didn’t want to deal with the day-to-day hassles of city life while attending school. She preferred a more relaxed environment. The natural beauty of the area surrounding Penn State is a welcome stress reliever for her.
If Temple and PSU are your choices, you really can’t go wrong, it’s just personal preference! Worry less about ‘reputation’ and just go with your gut…where do you want to call home for 4 years?
Would you also be in honors at psu?
Do your parents have that 20k for each year sitting in a college savings account just waiting to be spent? Will they have to live on one parent’s income and sent the other parent’s income straight to PSU? Will they have to borrow money through PLUS or in private loans?
It is reasonable for you to be concerned about the costs. Talk things over with them. If this will put them into 80k of debt, it probably isn’t worth it to you. You could study at Temple instead, and then when you are working, take on your own debt for grad school if you need to.
You may want to ask inadvertently what your parents have saved to date for your college fund. If they say little or close to nothing, they cannot afford the 80,000 unless they get hit with a financial windfall. Also, you may be required to take out loans. Good advice above to have the money talk with your parents.
Two great choices. Good luck.