Santa Clara or Western Washington?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I received a call from Santa Clara last week with an acceptance off the waitlist. I now have to decide between Santa Clara and Western Washington since I won't know about my University of Washington Appeal until a couple weeks from now, after the May 1st deadline.</p>

<p>I'm looking to major in either Chemistry, Computer Science, Business Administration. Wherever I go, I'd like it to have a strong science program. Santa Clara already wins hands down for Business Admin. I know SCU has a good Arts/Sciences school, but so does WWU. Western specializes more in environmental sciences while SCU is more computer and tech based. </p>

<p>Which of these schools would be better for the sports experience? Santa Clara is a major soccer, baseball, and basketball school, while I'm not sure that Western really has any spectator sports (that people actually go to).</p>

<p>Things to do off campus between the two is pretty much a wash, as there's lots to do at both schools. I do like the location of SCU better, though. Being 45 minutes from San Francisco, a couple hours from the beach, and a few hours from some incredible skiing, it seems to offer a bit more of what I'm looking for. Western does have great skiing nearby and Vancouver is only 45 minutes away. Transportation to Vancouver is difficult and pricey, though. </p>

<p>The major difference is price! SCU will be roughly $52k a year and WWU will be roughly $20k. Coming out of WWU I'll likely have no debt as my parents will be able to afford most of the $20k, but I'll likely have between $90k and $150k of debt from SCU. At SCU, however, getting an internship could be very possible at a local tech company, as I already have a strong resume working for tech companies.</p>

<p>Which would you choose? I'm leaning towards Santa Clara because of its location in Silicon Valley, sports, top-rated business school, and recommendations from friends at both schools (most at western say to avoid it, and SCU friends love it there, even though it is pricey). However, that is a TON of debt and would take a while to pay off. At WWU, theres also the option to transfer into the University of Washington, but I feel like I'd miss out on everything you pick up in your freshman year.</p>

2

<p>Who will be taking on this debt? You, personally, can’t borrow this much, so I’m assuming it’s your parents. How do they feel about this? Even if you will pay them back, they will be the ones out the money until you get a job.</p>

3

<p>SCU is unaffordable for you. The only loans that you can take on without a co-signer are the Staffords, and the four year total is about $27k. More than that amount of debt is unreasonable for you to consider. Even if you could find a co-signer for the $90k to $150k you are contemplating at SCU, the repayment schedule would strangle you. $90k would work out to be roughly $1000 a month for ten years. That is essentially three car payments! There are a number of nice calculators at FinAid.org that you can use to estimate your loan repayments. Here is one that allows you to compare up to three financial aid packages side by side: [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Award Letter Comparison Tool](<a href=“Your Guide for College Financial Aid - Finaid”>Award Letter Requirements - Finaid) Run it, and then talk with your parents about just exactly what those numbers could mean for you.</p>