<p>My dilemma is that RPI has given me a tempting financial package of 35,000...</p>
<p>Besides that I'm not really sure what I will major in engineering. I was accepted to CIT (ECE very tempting too) , MCS. While in RPI they have a great aeronautical engineering program.</p>
<p>So what would any of you do?????</p>
<p>If my DD was in your position...I'd want her to take the money and go to RPI. For engineering, RPI and CMU seem to me to be pretty much on a par, CMU stronger in some areas, RPI stronger in others. Close enough in terms of quality of education and students that $35,000 would sway us to RPI.</p>
<p>Is that 35k per year? If so, this is an easy decision.</p>
<p>For computer science/engineering and some areas of EE, CMU is the better of the two.
RPI is better for things like nuclear, mechanical, aero and civil. RPI also is extremely strong in biomed/biotech.</p>
<p>Anyone know how RPI"s architecture program is?</p>
<p>I'm not sure exactly what it's ranked but it is a highly selective 5-year program, that has to count for something.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.arch.rpi.edu/index.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.arch.rpi.edu/index.htm</a></p>
<p>I've heard that the architecture program is quite rigorous... The few architecture majors I have met have always said its a ton of work. </p>
<p>Also, I know the lighting research center is pretty important.... but overall, I don't know how the department ranks nationally.</p>
<p>The website for the Lighting Research Center (LRC) can be found here, by the way: <a href="http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/%5B/url%5D">http://www.lrc.rpi.edu/</a></p>
<p>I'm not an architect myself, but I received two degrees from RPI and spent a fair amount of time there...everything I heard about the architecture program is very positive. Many of the students put in a LOT of time, and work long hours, but my impression is that it's largely because they're really into what they're doing. I know that the faculty is a very talented bunch of people, and that the architecture department was always having neat shows, guest speakers, etc. A number of the architecture students spend a semester studying in Rome as well...which could be a big plus if that's something you're interested in.</p>
<p>The long hours are typical of all architecture programs.</p>
<p>I'll have a better feel for CMU tomorrow, but it seemed to me that RPI is a very good place for those of an entrepreneurial bent. It seemed to have quite a few practical courses (too many for this liberal arts person!) and some great campus opportunities to put your learning into practice.</p>
<p>CMU all the way! I'm sure you will be extremely bored at RPI and will be working just as hard if not harder. CMU offers more opportunities in terms of a social life, ratio of boys to girls, location wise, as well as a larger nicer campus and more students to pick your social niche from.</p>
<p>Sickofflorida, I agree that CMU has the better social scene, but how how do conclude that the campus is larger and nicer? Maybe you mean that is has more people (it does) but acreage wise RPI is about 2X CMU's size and RPI's campus is one of the most attractive 300 acre campuses in the U.S. (in my opinion anyway).</p>
<p>I've been to both places now and I liked both. RPI felt much smaller than CMU - I'm surprised to hear that it's bigger acreage-wise. CMU does have a more varied student body with strong arts programs in particular. Both places seem more focussed on career prep than I expected. Lots of talk about placements and starting salaries... CMU's system of separate schools means that you can get a more targeted tour - which I found very helpful. Even WPI gave departmental presentations. RPI didn't. Have you visited both places? If you like them both, I think I'd go with the money. I think either place will prepare you well in a variety of fields.</p>
<p>RPI gives departmental presentations... at least on the excepted students day, medalist day, or other days designated as visiting days. </p>
<p>Otherwise, I can't say I know much more about CMU, other then that they have strong computer systems engineering program. And I would suspect RPI would be stronger in Aero as you mentioned, and Nuclear as well, especially when it comes to opportunities for research.</p>
<p>My final decision came down to RPI and CMU, and I too had a tantalizing scholarship dangled in front of me. The two schools are comparable in terms of academic rigor, but what sold RPI for me (apart from the money) was the wider variety of majors from which to choose, and the ability to change majors easily (at CMU, you have to go through a whole internal transfer process).</p>
<p>As for social life, I found that I'm having a great time at RPI, not missing out on the "college experience" one bit. Social life depends more on the person more than on the school, and an enterprising person should have no problem getting by.</p>
<p>The accepted student day we went to didn't have a presentation about computer science. Really. :)</p>
<p>Since Mathson has been set on computer science since elementary school CMU is almost certainly a better fit for him. RPI looked great though, and there were certainly plenty of things to do on campus.</p>
<p>Ok, gotcha. </p>
<p>I went to the one for physics last year, but probably not every department has one.</p>
<p>Well I feel like an idiot as soon as I turned off the computer I remembered there had been a presentation of sorts. It was just so low key compared to the others we'd been. We went to a classroom. There was a professor (I guess) who didn't even say hello. There were several students, one of whom asked if we had any questions about the program. My son found it more intimidating than intimate. They did have a folder with a lot of paper work.</p>