<p>We are very thankful that our son was accepted to several schools and have been given financial aid packages that are doable for our family. But making the decision on which school to choose is still difficult. DS is interested in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering. DS accepted at Swanson School of Engineering with generous aid. Final cost of attendance for the first year is $5,500 federal loans and $3,000 gap cost. While we love Pitt DS is leaning towards Lehigh (accepted at engineering) or CMU (waitlist at engineering). At Lehigh, first year cost is $6,500 in federal loans and gap of $13,000, while at CMU it would be $8500 in federal loans and a gap of $ 17,000. Main contention are job opportunities after graduation (which seem to favor Lehigh and CMU) and the smaller classes at both Lehigh and CMU compared to Pitt. We are from Pittsburgh so Pitt and CMU are familiar to DS. He spent a week-end at Lehigh and liked the campus and the engineering program. So the campus location is not a major concern. Would the private school education at Lehigh and/or CMU justify the extra costs (~$10000) of attendance compared to Pitt? Are the published ROI for Lehigh and CMU grads really higher compared to Pitt grads? </p>