<p>I'm a senior girl from Georgia trying to decide where to go to college. My two options are Georgia Tech and UNC Chapel Hill. I want to pursue either grad school or med school, and I really really want to study Genetics. I may even go into pharmaceutical industry. Here are some pros/cons:</p>
<p>Georgia Tech
pros: I would be one of 45 President's scholars (full-ride, retreats, funded study abroad, connections within and outside of the school), opportunities in Atlanta, 40 minute drive from home in the 'burbs, Honors Program
cons: I'm not fond of Atlanta or the urban campus, rigor is insane (bad gpa), no Genetics department and small Biology department (less research opportunities for Genetics), students so focused on academics that the college experience is lost, people just seem depressed/stressed there (I intern twice a week at Tech)</p>
<p>UNC
pros: solid Bio/Genetics departments, I'm in love w/ Chapel Hill (I much prefer college towns to cities, especially when that city is Atlanta), more balanced college experience b/t academics and social life, possible to earn good gpa (for med school!), fresh start 6 hours away from home (my mom is schizophrenic so I'd rather distance myself from this dysfunctional situation), basketball, school spirit, everybody seems upbeat/lively/happy
cons: wasn't selected for Honors so I'd have to apply sophomore year, no special treatment b/c not a Scholar like at Tech, most importantly: $45k a year. My family is upper middle class with good savings so we can afford it. Of course, saving that money for other uses would be great! To put things into perspective, our EFC is $58k. I was admitted to Cornell and really wanted to go but they gave no financial aid. My dad said that Cornell would put a big dent in his retirement savings (he's saving for a lavish retirement since he's accustomed to a high standard of living. It's as obnoxious as it sounds) but UNC is feasible. Also, if I went to UNC, he would have less money to pay for med school/grad school meaning more loans for me</p>
<p>I feel like the two things holding me back from going to the school I feel at ease at and am excited about are the PS program at GT and how much cheaper Tech is. I feel like I would enjoy my experience at UNC so much more! At the same time, sacrificing the President's scholarship's full-ride and non financial benefits isn't easy to do. What should I do?!?!?!</p>
<p>Get excited about GT. That is a fantastic offer. Don’t throw that away for a large public that isn’t even putting your in the honors or giving you money. You can afford to study abroad summers or apply to REUs. If your father really will help you with med school that is a huge advantage for you ask him to put that money aside. You do not need to study genetics as a undergrad, but I’m sure you can do something related or independent projects with a professor.</p>
<p>Will you be able to live in the dorms at Tech? You may find that living on campus is a great experience…also, my D and I toured there as part of an east coast trip and we were both really really impressed by the place…way better than Duke and UNC, in our minds (and, yes, it surprised us). </p>
<p>I do have sympathy…this is a really hard decision…</p>
<p>Ask Dad if he will put aside in a designated account the UNC amount for you while you go to GT. You can then have that money for grad school options. </p>
<p>It’s scary these days in terms of jobs and loans. Grad school used to have tuition remissions and stipends. So you were often a very poor grad student, but at least were not incurring loans. No more. the prof programs all require loans and full pay with but some little awards, very rare to get much. Even the academic PHD programs that were once all paid for, require some money, take a loan if you don’t have it. Direct loans for those programs at 6% for $20K a year available with a signature. </p>
<p>Seriously, I would go to Tech.</p>
<p>this is a tough choice but it’s also an unfortunate one. It shouldn’t have come to these two. Given that it has, busting your butt at GT will be worth it. You can always do genetics in grad school if you’re interested still. Don’t choose a school by major–you can usually do something close enough to what you think (before ever taking a class, I might add) you want to major in and then work with a researcher in a field that approximates genetics. Use some of the money you’re saving for stress-relievers: a masseur, perhaps, or a personal trainer, or regular escapes to the country with a friend. Putting the money you’re saving into your name is a great idea because things change a lot between 18 and 21.</p>
<p>jkeil911, why do you think my two options are unfortunate? Please elaborate so I can get a better idea.</p>
<p>Could be that your dad is thinking of you as he saves for retirement. Not planning to spend lavishly, but rather to pay for his nursing care so he doesn’t have to impose on you by moving in and making you take care of him when he is old and decrepit.</p>
<p>Perhaps the President’s Scholars have more fun than the average GT student? You know, schmoozing with folks at all those events you attend.</p>
<p>Can’t you go to GT and try it out and see? If it’s truly miserable, you sound like a good enough student that transferring out somewhere after a year would not be impossible. You may love it.</p>
<p>If you choose UNC consider that for an extra $13-$15k per year you can have Cornell. Consider taking loans for that difference.</p>
<p>You don’t mention it, but the schools you are deciding between both have extreme gender skew, in opposite directions. Particularly GT. You might consider which environment you prefer. </p>
<p>If you know you can work hard, then GT without a second thought.</p>
<p>But yes, consider that GT has a 68-32 male/female ratio, while UNC is 42/58</p>
<p>I prefer the campus atmosphere of UNC so much more. I feel like I could actually get a college experience there. I’m trying to figure out if it’s better to be poor and happy at unc or rich and miserable at tech.</p>
<p>So, you really want to attend UNC. You already know GTech and have determined it’s not a great fit for you but the “perks” of PS appeal to you (as they should). Is that a correct summary?
If your parents are willing to pay, would you be willing to participate and take on your federal loan ($5,500) and/or have a part time job, so as not to put the whole burden on them?
If they don’t have the money and can’t pay 45K (because many parents with high EFC can’t pay) then GTech’s PS is a great deal for you.
Don’t take on crazy debt* for UNC when you have the PS at GTech of course. But if they have the money and are willing to pay, and since it sounds like you are a better fit for UNC, then go to UNC. If they have the money, you are lucky in that you really have a choice and you can’t choose wrong because both options are great. Don’t forget to thank your parents whose hard work and planning have made it possible for you to have such an amazing choice. </p>
<ul>
<li>more than ~$5,500 for freshman year</li>
</ul>
<p>Seems like you took the best compromise option off the table. </p>
<p>UGA : you are accepted to honors, they have genetics, it’s not urban, atmosphere is great/not stressful, affordable with the Zell scholarship free tuition.</p>
<p>Those Presidential Scholarships are so hard to get, so congratulations. I went to high school in GA and a lot of my classmates went to Tech, and we used to joke that you had to save a busful of children while curing AIDS to get a Presidential Scholarship at GT.</p>
<p>If the above is really true and you got into UGA honors, then why aren’t you considering that anymore OP? It seems like it has all of the advantages of UNC’s college town and experience with all of the benefits of being in the honors college and the free tuition, plus it has the research you’re interested in.</p>
<p>With that said, the GT offer definitely sounds more appealing. Being in the city, if you really want to do genetics research you could work with the biomedical engineering program and do some research at Emory. Emory has a great medical center/network and a lot of people from my undergrad (also in Atlanta) who wanted to do biomedical type research worked with professors at Emory. You’re not limited to only working with professors at your own school, especially if you have a car. Besides, you don’t need a big biology department to do the kinds of research undergrads get involved in.</p>
<p>I don’t see a reason to pay $45,000 a year to go to UNC when you can go to GT for essentially free.</p>
<p>I think you are making an assumption when you say “poor and happy at UNC or rich and miserable at GT.” You are seeing UNC with rose colored glasses and GT with a critical eye.
That “college experience” is at this point part fantasy, but $200K over four years is very real. That could likely pay for med school, or at least a good part of it.
You could, just as easily at UNC or GT, have a room mate you don’t like, work your tail off in a hard class, and other frustrations that come with being at college. You could also be very happy at times in both places, but the cost differential and the honor of being a presidential scholar is significant.
I can’t tell you what to choose, but know that both schools will have pros and cons, and over four years you are likely to be both happy and frustrated at times in any college.</p>
<p>Once you are at college, even if it’s just down the street, you will be as distanced as you like from your home life. You can come home every weekend to visit and do laundry, or once a semester. You’ll be surprised at how it feels. And you can set the tone for that.</p>
<p>Your father may be facing some financial uncertainty. Give him a break. He may face huge medical and other costs connected to your mother’s illness. The idea of mental health parity is making inroads in our country, but its future is not clear at all and meanwhile it’s prudent for him to plan to have savings set aside for that. </p>
<p>If you have a good relationship, he might like to have you close enough to occasionally go out for dinner and give you a hug. I know it isn’t your responsibility, but you could give each other emotional support. It must be hard for you too, and that will be true even after you leave home and it isn’t the immediate day-to-day stresses that pull you down. </p>
<p>Chapel Hill is a really wonderful experience, but I’m not a big fan of paying full freight for an OOS public. As a parent, if I was willing to shell out $45k for CH, I’d instead pony up for the private, Cornell. But since that is not an option for your, save the money at Tech. Use the savings for a semester abroad.</p>
<p>If you have narrowed your choices to only UNC or GT, you CAN make the conscious choice to be rich AND happy at GT! Happiness isn’t something that’s completely dependent on your surroundings. With the right attitude and motivation, you can have nearly limitless opportunities at GT. Seek out great friends, make your own fun, take excellent classes, take full advantage of your Presidential status perks.</p>
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<p><a href=“UGA, UNC CH, or Georgia Tech? - College Search & Selection - College Confidential Forums”>UGA, UNC CH, or Georgia Tech? - College Search & Selection - College Confidential Forums;
<p>Why did you take UGA off the table?</p>
<p>Wow, you have pre determined to be miserable and unhappy at GT? Take a gap year, you are either to spoiled or too immature for college this year. Or go to UGA and plan for grad school at the place of your choice.</p>
<p>OP basically lost her mother to a debilitating mental illness less than 4 years ago and I’m sure she has plenty of difficult issues to deal with. I’ll hazard a guess that part of her interest in pursuing genetics is personal. Her lifetime risk of coming down with the illness is roughly 10X someone in the general population. </p>
<p>I’m going out on a limb here, but there is a chance, just a chance, that if one is at risk, reducing stress will delay, or perhaps even prevent onset. It’s not a known fact, but a theory being investigated. So much is not known. If you want to cover all your bases and do every possible thing you can that might possibly reduce risk, that could help guide your college choice. Is that part of the reason for your concern about GT? Of course, it could all be nonsense and one could bypass a great opportunity because of ill-founded concerns about possible harm.That’s the flip side.</p>
<p>I think you should be choosing between GT and UGA. UNC is not a good value in this situation. It’s a great school, wonderful- if you are in-state, rich, or get scholarship money from them. Is your father happy to pay for UNC, or agreeing with worries about the cost? If he says no to Cornell, UNC may still be expensive enough to be stretching finances.</p>