<p>Full tuition at Northwestern and nothing from Stanford? No brainier, NORTHWESTERN! I live in northern Illinois, so yes I am biased.</p>
<p>decidecollege: there exits a thread on CC for athletic recruits. It may be wise to post your question on that board to see what answers pop up from parents/potential student athletes living through the recruiting process.</p>
<p>Best of luck.
BK</p>
<p>Evanston is not a “long ride” in to Chicago. My son spent a ton of time in Chicago while at Northwestern, particularly in his junior and senior years. For someone who wants that, it’s a great thing. Other students probably are very happy being Evanston- focussed throughout their career at NU.</p>
<p>It seems to me the key question here is whether the student is likely to want to continue with their sport for all 4 years.</p>
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</p>
<p>True, but there are two points: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Approximately 30% of students respond to this survey</p></li>
<li><p>The devil is in the details:</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Major Degree Average Salary Range Students
Aero & Astro Eng MS $63,832 $34,500-80,000 11
Biology BS/MS $45,669 $6,100-100,000 8
Civil Eng MS $64,465 $50,000-$84,000 26
Communication BA/MA $43,156 $35,000-55,000 11
Computer Science BS $93,850 $65,000-$120,000 20
Computer Science MS $105,341 $10,250-$175,000 49
Earth Systems BS/MS $46,600 $18,200-$70,000 13
Economics BA $65,600 $48,000-80,000 19
Electrical Eng BS/MS $72,800- $65,000-$120,000 50
Electrical Eng PhD $108,000 $52,000-$145,000 19
History BA $51,643 $39,000-$75,000 14
Human Biology BA $37,622 $14,000-$54,000 26
International Relations BA $48,136 $13,000-$70,000 11
Management Science & Eng BS $62,526 $40,000-$83,000 20
Management Science & Eng MS $83,201 $40,000-$150,000 51
Mechanical Eng MS $83,075 $38,650-$110,000 50
Mechanical Eng PhD $99,590 $36,000-$120,000 11
Political Science BA $58,115 $24,000-$80,000 13
Public Policy BA/MA $30,000-$50,125 8
Psychology BA/MA $49,932 $43,680-$80,000 18
Science, Technology & Society BA $63,000 $32,000-82,000 12
Symbolic Systems BA/MA $86,650 $72.500-$105,000 10</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Experiences are de facto subjective. Graduate students can easily be more isolated and are not necessarily residential students. The integration with undergraduates is not a given. It is a fact that Palo Alto has sterile, plastic, and boring overtones, but that is on the surface, and might not be permeating the Stanford … campus. </p>
<p>In addition, it is easy to confuse --not saying that you do-- order and space with boredom, and chaos and overcrowding with wonderful activity. Some people like to shop in the souks in Marrakech or in a bustling open marker in Rome; others like to shop in a shopping mall with directories and ample parking. The question is when someone HAS to do it all the time. What is fun as a tourist can easily turn in a daily calvary. </p>
<p>On a personal note, while there are more than a few that do NOT like the look and the feel of the Stanford campus, I think that few change their opinions after visiting or would be happy to leave for greener pastures. </p>
<p>In the end, the OP has mentioned that he liked both choices. It does become a matter of economics, and the appeal of a cheaper education is hard to resist. But, let’s put it in different terms … had the financial support be reversed, would there be ANY discussion? It would be the same, even with the finances were equal. This mean that the discussion about campus and life is not really important. The question is all about the finances and free money. </p>
<p>If the student is prepared to commit to swim for four years and commit to the requirements, his best bet is indeed at Northwestern. And, of course, if the guaranty of funding the four years in worth the paper it is written on versus being a glorious imitation of Emmental.</p>
<p>If the student is willing to swim for four years, then it is just irresponsible to advise him/her to spend over a quarter mil on a basically comparable education because of weather.</p>
<p>xiggi,</p>
<p>I agree with your posts for the most parts. It’s ture that only 30% responded but the survey still beats couple acendotes any day. </p>
<p>The details in your post were actually less helpful since those ranges include the numbers for graduate students. I think the stats showing the breakdown by degree levels and academic areas are more helpful.</p>
<p>If you look at the swimming as a healthful on-campus job, the “pay” is about $43,000 a year for 9 months of work. That’s a fantastic salary for a high school graduate.</p>
<p>As long as it doesn’t make you unhappy – if you even feel neutral about 4 more years of swimming – I would take the money. The only exception would be if your family is so rich that they could pay Stanford’s costs and still be able to help you with grad school tuition or a house down payment.</p>
<p>The academic differences between Stanford and Northwestern are so negligible for the most part that I’d say…take NW.</p>
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</p>
<p>Oh, I agree that the statistics only go that far. Thirty percent is on the low side, but it is still much better than a stack of anecdotes. My main objection might stem from witnessing how “different” the past years have been from one could have expected just five years ago. On the one hand, you have a real deflation in salaries and demand for non-technical jobs, and on the other hand a booming world in computer sciences and amazing opportunities for entrepreneurs. Add the attraction to “giving back” by working at non-profits, join the Peace Corps or TFA, and you have a real mixed bag in compensation for recent UG. </p>
<p>My point was that, while it is true that the salaries for humanities major (and biology) are depressed, the average salaries are probably overstated because of the tech sector in the Bay Area. Anyone who excel at Ruby On Rails would agree! :)</p>
<p>PS To be clear, I’ll repeat that the OP will find clear advantages at Northwestern. I would also take the money and run. However, one has to be realistic about the life of a Div I athlete and the implications of being overwhelmed by the demands. Nobody wants to be an indentured servant who cannot walk away without huge financial implications.</p>
<p>One thing that hasn’t been discussed is the difference between Stanford and Northwestern swimming. Stanford is a top-5 team while Northwestern is at least couple notches below. A “slow” guy at Stanford would have been one of the faster guys at NU. It’s those “extremely competitive years” that get the OP an offer from the Stanford swimming team. If the OP is good enough for Stanford, NU shouldn’t be too difficult and it looks like he wouldn’t have to push as hard. The risk of voluntarily (it sounds like the OP can still keep the scholarship in the event of injury) dropping out of swimming because of the demand doesn’t seem that great but then I think the OP knows this probably more than any of us.</p>