<p>The major: Chemical Engineering</p>
<p>The choices: Columbia Fu Foundation, Cornell Engineering, Cooper Union</p>
<p>What do you think is the better choice?</p>
<p>Some things to keep in mind about me:</p>
<p>A) I live in NYC and would like to experience the outside
B) I value a good education and feel that should be the major driving force
C) My family is middle class so we done get much financial aid
D) I have a gf who's probably going to Barnard</p>
<p>Well, as all three schools are in New York, I don't think D should be a deciding factor. That being said, Cooper Union is clearly the best choice cost-wise. And it is certainly academically solid. But is its reputation on par with an Ivy? To the general public, probably not. But to those in the know, the people whose opinions actually matter, I would assume that they would be equally familiar with the two schools and hold them in the same high regard. So I personally would be inclined to recommend CU, but it is quite small, so if you find that problematic, you may want to consider Columbia instead.</p>
<p>Thanks for the response. </p>
<p>I recently had a new consideration. If I wanted to go to graduate school, would the admissions process not be the same as it is with undergrad. If it is, then schools probably care about what you do with your free time and etc. Considering that CU is a smaller school, would it not limit my opportunities and thus make it harder to get into Grad School. If im wrong and grad schools focus more on education and academic achievement, that would be great - for i wouldnt mind saving 150k.</p>
<p>Anyone else?</p>
<p>Grad schools care mostly about GPA and exam scores. They'll still consider other factors, but they are realistic, and don't expect you to exploit opportunities that don't exist. Each school provides a multitude of different options to the student body, and said offerings vary greatly by institution. Admissions officers recognize that, and decide accordingly.</p>