You’re welcome! Yes, school fit is different for everyone! My son loves PSU’s campus and PSU definitely has an excellent name recognition and ranked high for CS/engineering! My husband and I were just as surprised he selected another school. He’s the one going to college, so we obliged, but once we visited his chosen school, we saw what a better fit it is for him.
It is so important to dig deep into each school’s curriculum and do research on how students from each school value the school, curriculum, etc… Add your student’s feel for the campus vibe, and then weigh those against each other in order to make the best informed decision.
Good luck to those whose students are still trying to make a decision!
@TheMonaLisa I see your son is landing at Pitt- my daughter is there in bioengineering and has had a lot of wonderful opportunities. My son is definitely torn between the two. I don’t know what will help him make the final decision at this point- flip of the coin perhaps? It’s hard not to love the Penn State Campus. But my daughter loves Schenley park in Pittsburgh and has a great crew of engineering friends who study together. It seems like a very collaborative program.
Yes, my son will be at Pitt for CS! He’s very excited! If it’s equal between PSU and Pitt, have your son flip a coin - heads for Pitt, tails for PSU. See how your son feels about the outcome. If he still feels equally about both schools, compare curriculums. My son went on Reddit to see how students at both PSU and Pitt feel about their school/classes. You can get a feel for the vibe - though not comprehensive, but you can also ask questions like pros and cons of the engineering school at Pitt/PSU. My son going on Reddit swayed him towards Pitt a little bit (Pitt = supportive CS community, students genuinely happy, a few negatives about profs, but no huge complaints about the CS program. PSU CS on the other hand was a different story). It wasn’t until Accepted Students Day that my son felt that Pitt was the best fit school for him. My husband and I felt it too! Good luck in your son’s decision! Are you on the Pitt Class of 2027 for Parents group OR PSU Class of 2027 Parents group on Facebook? Those 2 groups helped inform us about both schools and swayed my son to go to Pitt. You can PM me if you’d like. I do want to say, what may be a good fit for my son may not be a good fit for another student. But I can share my observations with you if you’d like. Good luck!!