?'s re: Co-op experience; Grad school

<p>My daughter is trying to decide between Northwestern, Oklahoma State and Tulsa for chemical engineering. Her interests are in consumer products & the healthcare side of things, as well as research.</p>

<p>NU has a very strong co-op program; whereas OSU and Tulsa offer primarily internships. I know OSU and Tulsa are more oil & gas-oriented, though not exclusively. NU would offer a broader range of options, I think(?) though OSU and Tulsa would serve her well, too.</p>

<p>The rub is that OSU and Tulsa are full-rides. NU is not, and she'd be counting on co-op earnings to help keep her debt reasonable - if any debt is reasonable. (Her mother and I are concerned about that, but she'll make the final decision as long as it's somewhat "reasonable."). SO...</p>

<p>1) How helpful is a co-op experience for an engineer (financially, grad school, getting a job, etc.)? We've been told co-op students' pay ranges from $15-$30/hr, with $17 or $18 being more typical.</p>

<p>2) Also, how do grad schools evaluate students from a range of schools? What if you have a 3.5+ at OSU or Tulsa? What if you have a 3.0 at Northwestern? What are the considerations we should factor in? (She plans on grad school, by the way).</p>

<p>Thank you for your feedback and comments.</p>

<p>A commonly used limit for “reasonable” undergraduate student loan debt is the Stafford loan limit.</p>

<p>Co-Op is very helpful in obtaining employment after UG. </p>

<p>For gaining admission to graduate school, UG research, publication (if any), along with a good GPA (>3.5), and GRE scores are some of the main considerations. At some universities, Chem E is among the most challenging of the majors (others – quantum physics, math etc), and to maintain >3.5 GPA would require fair bit of work & commitment. </p>

<p>Obtaining a position in co-ops is quite competitive, and being in Oklahoma may give your D an added advantage, should she decide to co-op at an energy company. </p>

<p>While NU is a great opportunity from an UG experience (advising, research, student body etc.), a full ride at OU would, imo, be a better option; ChemE department at OU also offers Matls. E, and may have research opportunities.</p>

<p>Graduate schools definitely do weight people based on the perceived strength of their undergraduate program. Coming out of Northwestern with a 3.3 or something could definitely put you on the same level in admissions as someone coming from Tulsa or Oklahoma State with a 3.5 or so. Note: that is a very rough estimate; different admissions committees will treat things differently so don’t take those numbers as any sort of exact relationship, just an illustration.</p>

<p>That said, you can still get into top graduate schools from lower-ranked undergraduate schools. It happens all the time. You just don’t have quite as much wiggle room.</p>

<p>Unless the additional $$ to go to NU isn’t much of a problem I’d suggest looking real hard at TU. Their ChE program is going to be a lot smaller (and probably more supportive) than OSU so she will get to really know the people there. A full ride at TU is a wonderful opportunity and I would expect you would not regret attending there.</p>

<p>Also TU is only ~5 miles from a major airport so it will be very easy to travel to/from for anyone needing to travel.</p>

<p>The school doesn’t need a co-op program for her to obtain a co-op. I go to Michigan now and they do nothing is terms of setting you up with employers for co-ops (or internships). There is a giant career fair and lots of info sessions on campus, etc etc, but the student actually has to land the job.</p>

<p>The competition for a co-op will be less than an internship, because less students are looking for co-ops. </p>

<p>Pay can also vary widely. You could see offers below that $17 you mentioned. Your year in school could affect the rate too.</p>