My son was admitted to both Pitt and UMD College Park Engineering, he likes them both but his heart leans to UMD. UMD’s Engineering program seems to have a better reputation, but it has less emphasis on coops. They seem to be just starting to integrate coops in the curriculum. Pitt has a better emphasis on hands on and a more established coop program. The major difference though is cost, Pitt would come out 12K cheaper a year. Is it worth to get into debt to make my son happier at UMD? Will his degree at UMD earn him a better paying job? I would appreciate any help and insight. Thanks!
Personally, I wouldn’t go into debt for a school like UMD. It makes no sense from a practical standpoint. Whether your son’s happiness is worth an extra 12k is something only you can decide.
A piece of paper from UMD will not get your son a better job than one from Pitt. Is the 12k a year all going to be debt, totaling 48k total? Or are you able to pay for a portion of that up front?
Thank you for both replies, albertsax and Jennifer Clint. It’s 12K per year unless he gets some other scholarship, 48K a year is the payment for another year of college! Financially is a no brainer, Pitt is more affordable, but academically UMD is better.
Personally, I don’t think department specific rankings matter at the undergraduate level. No one is going to hire an engineer from Penn State over one from Harvard merely because Penn State has a better ranking in some engineering speciality.
First, congrats to your son! Great choices! But in what way is UMD better than Pitt in Chem Eng? Your son will have opportunities to get co-ops and internships at both, but it will depend a lot on his own ability to “hustle”- keep his GPA up, approach professors for research opportunities, look for internship, etc. Now, was he accepted into Honors at either university?
Pitt is attractive for co-ops & internships because it’s in a city with a lot of companies right there, I think. UMD College Park. I think is kind of more in its own area.
I will like to point that USNWR ranks Pittsburgh higher than UMCP for chemical engineering (32 vs. 36). For the entire engineering, UMCP is higher, primarily because of its strengths in electrical and aeronautical, and then mechanical.
These rankings do not necessarily mean much for undergrad experience, but it is will certainly be hard to justify paying more for UMCP for chemical engineering.
How much total debt are you talking about to cover the 48k difference? Whose debt? Would this be in addition to the standard federal loans (27k total for him), or would it be covered all or in part by the standard student loans? What might he switch to if he decides against engineering somewhere along the line? Would that major make a difference in where you would want him to attend.
I don’t see a good reason to spend more for UMD than for Pitt. However, if the 48k difference can come out of the family coffers relatively easily, and not mean any more debt than the standard federal student loans, than yes, it is OK for you to let your kid go to UMD. Just like buying an Acura instead of a Honda if you have the money for it.
I overall based that UMD is stronger academically on my impressions, rankings and reputation amongst other engineers I talked to. But I agree that as pointed out by osuprof it is not the strongest for Chemical Engineering and their ChemE department only recently started coops. Before their courses were not offered in all terms limiting students flexibility to take a semester off. Only 10% of their students are doing it. Pitt is definitely more established in coops. I just looked at employers at both Pitt and UMD past carreer fairs and Pitt had more opportunities overall.
Thank you very much for your points of view and opinion, it’s really important to talk about it to realize what I knew in my heart all along. That much extra debt is simply not worth it. And answering happymomof1, no we don’t have that much money lying around, I usually keep my car until it becomes unreliable which usually is 8-10 years.