My son is deciding between UDel and Rowan for ChemE. UDel is in the top 10 ChemE programs in the country, but Rowan is A LOT more affordable. UDel would be almost $100K in loans over 4 years, and Rowan would be no loans at all. Is UD worth it?
It depends. Is your son looking to continue on to grad school? If so, the Rowan path is attractive as he (and you) wouldn’t have any debt at that point. If he’s looking to head out into industry right after his undergrad, the UD diploma will probably attract a few more recruiters. That top 10 rating IS worth something for the effort required to obtain the degree.
Disclaimer - I did not attend either school but I am very familiar with the ChemE program at UD. And I met a ChemE grad from Rowan last year and he impressed me as a bright and successful individual. Best of luck to you and your son.
UD is a terrific school, and the ChemE program is unquestionably among the very best. I don’t know anything about Rowan’s program, but I’m sure you can find out about that.
You can check various online financial authorities to see what they believe is appropriate (finaid.org is well-repected and has long advocated borrowing no more than your anticipated first year’s salary - and even that is pushing it). Everyone has their own tolerance levels for debt and risk, so it’s up to you and your son.
Before deciding, make sure you’ve gotten the final word on both merit and need aid. You could be surprised.
All of that said, I would personally never take out $100k in loans for an undergrad degree. Among other things, as Fauster aptly points out, grad school likely becomes out of reach for quite some time. Both of my kids have had to forego their first choice because of cost - and they’re quite happy.
The Chem Engineering Programs at both UD and at Rowan are among the top rankings in their respective academic categories (UD in Chem Engineering Programs where the highest degree is a doctorate and Rowan in Programs where the highest degree in Chem Engineering is a Masters Degree). By virtue of this difference the research opportunies at UD are probably more extensive than at Rowan. The Chem Engineering Program at UD has the reputation of being a “weed out” type of program and I believe only a little more than a half of freshman Chem Engineering students end up graduating with a degree in this major. So at UD the competition in Chem Engineering does not end with being initially accepted into the program but continues throughout your years there. I don’t know for sure but I don’t believe this is the case at Rowan. Perhaps you might want to ask about this in the Rowan CC forum. I also would agree with the comments from the previous two posters. There obviously are also multiple other differences between the two universities in many areas outside of the academic major. IMHO it would be hard to justify the additional cost in attending UD verses Rowan, but again this is just my perspective. Good luck in making your decision.
This will be my son’s quandary next year, but as a mechanical engineering major where the differences between the two schools is probably less pronounced. My son fell in love with UD, but Rowan has dumped significant money into the school, and invested in state of the art engineering labs. There are separate buildings for MechE, ChemE, etc., not just a corner of one engineering building. He is scheduled to visit for the first time this month. I hold a ME degree from Lafayette College and my employer has recently hired a number of engineering grads from Rowan; I have to say I am impressed with what I see. I work closely with an EE graduate from Rowan who is intelligent and talented. Rowan may seriously be the best bang for the buck. My son will also be looking at some excellent private schools, but I thimk Rowan will definitely be in the running.
The irony is that, if going to UDel, many of his classmates will be South Jersey kids who decided that Rowan was too close to home.
What has driven UDel’s well-reputed ChemEd program for decades? DuPont. South of UDel are poultry farms. Rowan also has DuPont in the neighborhood, and many other chemical companies and refineries, south, west, and north. It’s not as established as UDel, but as earlier posters have mentioned, it’s young rep is pretty darn good.
Grads’ first jobs are typically in the region of their college. I see no edge for a Delaware grad over a Rowan grad, or vice versa. I don’t know of any companies that will only take Delaware grads or Rowan grads. I see absolutely no career advantages between either college. Different paths to the same probable destination.
Here are the differences that I know of: Delaware is more frat. Rowan is more club. Delaware’s football games are more of an event. Rowan has the traditional semesters; UDel has a 4-1-4 system. And the $100K difference is probably a low ball.
Rationally, if you’re a NJ resident, the way to go is definitely Rowan, especially if grad school is a possibility. But the correct choice is wherever your son sees himself succeeding. And, if pushed, he may take his eyes off the ultimate prize.
Good luck!
I am a graduate of UD, but 100K in loans is way too much! Send him to Rowan and give him the best gift ever - graduating debt free!