Hi, so I have an offer from Rice with $40,000 financial aid per annum, and Cornell without any. I plan to major in Maths and then pursue theoretical physics. In the long run, I plan to enter the academia, and pursue research, possibly in the field of relativity.
My parents can afford to pay the fee at Cornell, but it will be a financial burden.
Could anyone please advise me soon, because the deadline for replying is May 1st which is about a week away.
You have one private elite many kids dream of attending that would be a financial burden and another even richer private elite many kids dream of attending that would not be a financial burden.
I’m not sure why this is a difficult decision.
You answered your question right there.
A career in academia requires grad school. The higher up the educational achievement ladder you climb, the less the school from which you got your undergraduate degree matters.
Rice - no doubt about it (assuming you like them both equally – of even if you don’t). Have you been able to visit either or both?
$160K is a boatload of money to turn down, esp. if paying full freight will be a burden on your parents (and given the generous FA package you received, you likely do have significant need). That money will come in handy to help with some of your expenses during grad school and before you land an academic position, if indeed you go that route.
Rice is a very fine school - as is Cornell. One is not significantly any more or less prestigious than the other (other than the fact that Cornell has the “ivy league” label, which is based on an athletic conference, not on the quality of education you will receive). Take the money and don’t give it a second thought!
Congrats on the acceptances!
Go to Rice and don’t look back. It’s a fantastic school, and that $ is a wonderful deal for you and your parents. Congrats!
I would have recommended Rice over Cornell even without the aid. It’s a fantastic school with stellar academics and reputation, Houston is an amazing city to be a college student in, and you will have an awesome time. Better than trekking through the snows of Ithaca…
(Maybe I’m a bit biased, being a native Houstonian…)
Agree with @thetsaria and @marvin100. I’d go Rice even if the $ was the same. Given that $ is a factor, absolutely Rice.
Rice is an elite private school. At one time they were considered almost a liberal arts college with an elite graduate research school like Caltech (2000 undergrads but 3000-4000 grad students back in early 2000s) but they have expanded the undergrad program over the years while keeping the liberal arts style eduction with a lot of different majors being available. So the school has great fundamental sciences programs in Math and Physics.
If you were to major in engineering Cornell has some additional value (may be about 5-10k per year) but they definitely do not merit an additional 160k of your money.
Even for engineering, Cornell would not add extra value. For working on Wall Street, it would (though Rice has the edge if you want to enter the energy industry).
They are both top 10 in the percentage of their student body who go on to get PhDs.
I imagine you received a merit scholarship at Rice. Most are around $25k per year. Did you receive financial aid on top of the merit offer at Rice?
Don’t get it. What’s so special about Cornell vis-a-vis Rice to even make this into a dilemma? I agree with everyone who posted on this before me. Take the money and run!
Are you international? Given that you used “maths” instead of “math”? Are you concerned about international reputation? Again if you are getting a US Phd in the future, should not matter unless one school has a higher admit rate in your chosen field.
You’re going to be a math major. Figure out the future value of the $160K that your parents would use once they retire.
This wouldn’t be a second’s hesitation unless your parents are already millionaires.
OP,
Could you tell me about your ECs, leadership, and community service? I am trying to understand what is required for the big scholarships at schools like Rice. Thanks.
If you like Rice – regardless of how you feel about Cornell – I think Rice would be the better choice. $160,000 is a lot of money you could put to good use.
@nw2this, this could be fin aid. Different schools have different policies on fin aid for internationals.
@nw2this , @PurpleTitan - Regardless of financial need, Rice has a full tuition ($43K) merit scholarship available to internationals that is not available to U.S. students. The top merit aid scholarship for domestic applicants is $26K, with an exception made for engineering students who can get anywhere from $10K to full tuition.
I don’t know much about how Rice calculates financial aid, but I get the impression that it is limited for international students.
Given that OP got nothing from Cornell and $40K from Rice and given the way the original post was worded, I’d say it’s a good chance that the OP is international and that the money is for merit.
Rice no brainer if they’re giving you that much.
Another voice here that would choice Rice in this situation even at the same price.
Hi everyone, thank you so much for the replies. It’s truly shed a great deal of light on the situation and helped me make a decision.
Unfortunately I haven’t been able to visit either. But I have placed my deposit at Rice because having considered all factors, it seemed to be the correct choice.
Once again thank you all so very much for the replies for the replies.