I am an international student who has been studying in Kansas for the past 3 years. I am currently deciding to major in Biomedical engineering at either Purdue or K-State. I still can’t decide and I have 3 days left, it would be nice to get some opinion on this, thank you, guys!
Here are some of the pros and cons I can think of
K-State:
pros: close to home, less stressful, more fun, cheaper tuition
cons: weaker academics
Also,If I were to attend K-state, I don’t plan to graduate there so I might transfer during my third year.
Purdue:
Pros: stronger acadamics
Cons: tuition is more expensive, more stressful
I would say to never go into a 4-year college planning on transferring. You’ll just miss out on enjoying the experience of being there. So, if you couldn’t stand being at Kansas State for 4 years, then go to Purdue.
Kansas State’s academics are stronger than you may think particularly at the higher levels and they have a strong biomedical engineering department that can assist you in getting great jobs after graduation. They have a good honors college also. Purdue is excellent but keep your costs down.
Interesting rates of acceptance from a couple of years ago (2017): Purdue = 57% while Kansas State = 95%.
^^ Kansas State accepts most students as their state wants for their public universities. Their goal is to give almost everyone a chance at college, particularly IS. That does not mean the college is anyway substandard when you arrive. If the students can not make it with many opportunities for success (great access to help) they do not continue. My son is pre-vet, had excellent stats and is challenged. Their honors college is excellent. All the STEM majors are just as challenging as the ones friends are attending at schools with lower acceptance rates.
I am wondering is there any specific reasons for this?
I am wondering is there any specific reasons for this?
Any engineering field is going to have a rigorous courses. I don’t think one school is going to be more stressful than the other.
Can you comfortably afford Purdue without taking on debt? If not, go to KS.
I also agree with the poster who said not to start school with the intention of transferring.
My DD is a freshman FYE at Purdue. She has had plenty of time for fun!
Go to Kansas State…academics are fine.
If you want to have access to job recruiters from California, Chicago and other job hotbeds, go to Purdue. If you want to graduate in 4 years, go to Purdue.
Kansas State has about a 28% 4 year graduation rate, so you are unlikely to finish a degree in four years, if you go to Kansas State, in four years. So Purdue may work out cheaper, although probably not, as you are much more likely to get a degree in four years, if thats your goal. Kansas State has a 6 year graduation rate of 58%.
This means that more than half the students at Kansas State do not graduate at all! Its a huge drop out rate for a university, and this results in a poor rank for Kansas State.
If you want to work in Kansas, and will not be distracted by all your classmates who may drop out, or flunk out or not finish due to finances, Kansas State might work out OK.
Kansas State could be followed up by a masters degree at another university as well.
You are international. What is your specific immigration status? Is there a chance you will have a green card by the time you graduate?
KS has given you in-state status. That will really keep your costs down. If you can get work permission for CPT, start haunting the career center and attending job fairs so that you find out who will hire you for summer internships with that status. The stronger your contacts are, the better chance you have of landing a position after you graduate for your OPT. At the present, you can work for two years of OPT with a STEM degree. If you don’t have a green card when your OPT expires, you will need to find an employer who can get you an H1B work visa, or you will need to go back to college for a grad program, or you will need to leave the country.
I wouldn’t worry about the average number of years to graduation, or the fact that many students drop out of Kansasa State. If you stay focused on your own coursework, you can finish in four years. The folks that take extra time to finish are people who have to repeat a lot of classes and/or change majors and/or take time off and/or study part time. At big state universities, scads of freshmen drop out by Thanksgiving, and there are plenty of other students who can only take a minimum courseload because they needed to pay their own way.
Agree with the don’t start somewhere you intend to transfer from if you can avoid it. Transferring is always stressful as classes don’t always line up the way you’d hope. However, don’t go into debt if you can finish up at K-State. There is little difference at the Undergraduate level in engineering programs. IF you want to let chance decide go watch the K’State v. Purdue Alamo Bowl and Drew Brees’s coming out party.
Go to K-State, you will love it once you are there and then save your money for grad school. You can also let chance decide by watching one seed Purdue face K-State in the 1988 NCAA basketball tournament.
It is not true that less than half graduate from K-State. Most engineering and architecture students go in with 5 year plans. Lots of the vet school students go straight into vet school after 3 years and get their bachelors at 5 years and doctorate in 7. Numerous students do study abroad and extend their time to take part in more of those activities. A good number do drop out after their first year but those are marginal students that K-State gave a chance. They would not be in most of the classes you would be in. All of the people in my son’s department and his gf’s department that are there now are right on track to be done in 4 years. If you are a good student and don’t want to co-op, or extend your time you will be done in 4 years. Again either is good. Don’t just look at numbers. There are reasons for the numbers that aren’t shown.