<p>My DS is trying to decide between Northwestern, Carnegie, Vandy, UIUC and A&M. Besides the obvious cost benefit of staying instate, as well as family ties to my beloved A&M, can anyone help with convincing arguments as to why he should choose A&M over all the rest? Color me most appreciative for any help! :-)</p>
<p>I really large factor in choosing A&M over the other schools I applied to was the credit hours that I am going to get from AP exams so I will be able to graduate in three to three and a half years. Also things you might want to mention: being one of very few in the engineering department but still part of a really large school; I used to hate the buildings (too industrialized learning center for me) and many/most of the buildings have been remodeled or are scheduled to be remodeled by our junior year; a degree from A&M has an unusually large amount of prestige associated with it for its top students (I'm assuming this is the case due to the other schools your DS has been accepted);the research opportunities are amazing - I was just visiting campus over spring break and many of the international students chose to stay on campus and help professors rather than go home; my parents are offering me so many other opportunities that the lower tuition can help us more easily afford - leisure traveling, study abroad in Qatar, summer research at other universities. TAMU is a pure engineering school - it's what they do best. They pour massive amounts of money into new chemical engineering and physics buildings, bringing in amazing professors, and building a new telescope that even Harvard is interested in. </p>
<p>TAMU is growing on me. It was not at all my first choice - sort of the I'm-going-to-apply-because-I'm-auto-admit...your DS might know the feeling, but I'm in love it. </p>
<p>I say all this now but I'm still tempted by the 3-2 with Emory and Georgia...</p>
<p>Aggie network in Texas.
And college station seems to be a decent place.</p>
<p>Besides the obvious Engineering reputation, course/major availablity and lab facilities at TAMU and UIUC, I'd say it is if your s likes TAMU. It is definitely a place that you HAVE to like to fit in. The tradition, school spirit, etc. is something you have to enjoy or you probably won't be happy. But, if money is an issue, TAMU is a great deal for in-staters!</p>
<p>Howdy!<br>
I came to Texas A&M because I fell blindly, madly in love with the Aggie spirit and the feel of the campus. I wasn't thinking much about academic rigor when I picked it. I wanted a decent school, but mostly I wanted A&M. But I'm premed, so where I go to school doesn't matter as much as my grades once I get there, so I picked the school I liked and came to A&M. </p>
<p>But after a couple of weeks, I realized that A&M wasn't the mediocre state school I had expected. In the last 30 years, A&M has risen higher and higher in ranking and prestige. While making my college decision, I remember lamenting that I couldn't find a "science and math" college like there are liberal arts colleges. I didn't realize that that's what A&M is.
Engineering is King here. Because of that, the science and math classes are really, really good (and rigorous), because they support our engineering program. The non-engineering science majors just soak in all the benefits of being at such a science-oriented place.
A&M is also very research-oriented. As nevergettingin mentioned, we "pour massive amounts of money into new chemical engineering and physics buildings, bringing in amazing professors, and building a new telescope that even Harvard is interested in." If your son is interested in science or engineering, especially if he's interested in research, this is the place.
You may have heard of Vision 2020. It's our plan to become a top 10 public university by 2020. The scary thing is, so far, we're on track. You can read about it here: ::</a> Vision 2020 ::
In addition, we've currently ranked first in the nation by Washington Monthly's own ranking system. Here's a link for that: Our</a> Third Annual College Rankings</p>
<p>Of course, there's also the wonderful Aggie spirit and the social atmosphere. Really, the undergraduate experience here can't be beat.
Best of luck to you and your son!
Thanks and gig 'em!</p>