<p>My S1 was accepted at UVA as a Rodman scholar and at Duke. UVA is instate for us. Right now he is interested in Biomedical engineering but no guarantee he will not change to another engineering discipline. Right now he thinks he will attend grad school. Financial aid for Duke will not offset what the cost is for instate tuition. Is the large extra cost to attend Duke really worth it?</p>
<p>No. Doubtful.</p>
<p>Nah, I’d go for UVA.</p>
<p>Before voicing an opinion, I’d want to know how much more duke would be per year compared to UVA</p>
<p>IMO, Biomedical Engineering is too narrow a focus for an undergraduate degree. It’s very popular and a lot of kids are majoring in it…but it’s pretty limiting for employment. I believe it’s better to major in a broader, more traditional engineering discipline like mechanical, chemical or electrical. If your career path leads to the biomedical industry, you can get a masters degree in BME.</p>
<p>Duke (outside of its vaunted BME program) and UVA aren’t particularly known for their engineering programs…Since I don’t recommend BME, I wouldn’t pay extra for Duke over UVA.</p>
<p>UCBChemEGrad: Thanks for the input. He isn’t sold on BME. Has thought of chemical and/or materials or possibly mechanical. He is not thinking of med school which I know many kids do when they start BME.</p>
<p>Duke’s tuition is close to $40,000 and UVA is close to $10,000 for instate. We are definitely leaning towards UVA, although Duke is his #1 choice. He also understands that whatever school he and we (parents) choose(s), the more he puts into it, the better off his choices will be if and when he goes onto grad school.</p>
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<p>I find your comment interesting because after having gone through 4 years of a BME program (at Duke), if anything I would say it’s too broad! hahaha. Definitely not too narrow. It’s not limiting for employment at all; in fact, I’d say it’s one of the majors that has a more diverse career paths than most. BMEs at Duke go to companies like Medtronic and Stryker in decent numbers as well as medical school, but there are TONS who also go into management consulting, IT consulting, banking, finance, and grad school in various disciplines (engineering and not). In fact, I’d say the majority go into one of those latter fields. I’d estimate 80%+ of BMEs at Duke who wanted to get full-time employment even in this economy were able to secure a position. Maybe BME (and engineering) at Duke is different than most other schools, though. It’s certainly possible. BME/Econ is a popular double major for those who want to go into finance/management consulting.</p>
<p>Not going to voice an opinion on the UVa vs. Duke debate as it’s really a personal decision based on your finances. We don’t know how much you can afford, what the difference in cost is, or if Duke is truly a better fit anyways. Only you can determine that, but rest assured, either are fine choices.</p>
<p>^bluedog, I understand the education is likely broad based and you’ll receive an excellent grounding in physics, biology and engineering principles. However, when I meant limiting, I was speaking in terms of employment. Numerous industries hire engineers…mostly from the traditional engineering disciplines. My concern is there is a large number of kids pursuing BME, and employment in actual biomedical engineering is limited to a few firms (Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, etc.). These firms would also hire a chemical, mechanical or electrical engineer as well. However, the electrical, mechanical and chemical engineer could also pursue employment in the energy, food process, chemical process, pharmaceutical, water treating, oil, microchip manufacturing, etc. industries. These industries are not actively recruiting biomedical engineers. Also, all of the industries you listed (consulting, IT, banking, finance) are open to engineers of other disciplines as well. IMO, majoring in a more traditional engineering discipline gives a wider employment base in which to pursue your interests.</p>
<p>^UCB got it right. ChemEs with some biotech/bio courses under their belt can compete for the same jobs BMEs want in biotech. Nobody hires BMEs in food process or oil and gas. I would definitely save 120K if I were you.</p>
<p>For a $20K difference, sure. For $120K, no way. BTW, for 99% of the students in America, UVA is a dream school. I never fully appreciated that while growing up in VA.</p>
<p>Duke peer group is stronger than UVirginia. Both are good schools but very different environments.</p>
<p>Bluedog brought up a point I think pretty unique to Duke, at least in the case of Duke vs. UVA: Many, many Duke enineering grads go into finance, management consulting etc. In fact, only 7% of Duke MEs go into engineering practice! I’d say there is a fair chance that a HS Sr. will change his/her mind about major a few times in the next two years and many more about a career in years to come. Duke gives a broader range of choice, if money is not a problem.</p>
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I had the same experience with Carolina growing up in NC.</p>
<p>UVA is a great school with a great quality of life, and it’s a steal at that price. I’d find it hard to justify an extra $30K a year for Duke.</p>
<p>Yeah, I think UVA is a better choice considering the $$ issue. Maybe you will find those $$ you save might be useful for his graduate study, which I believe means more to the employer</p>
<p>Duke and UVa are peer institutions…and neither is particularly known for having strong Engineering programs, Duke’s BME department being the notable exception.</p>
<p>As such, if one university comes at a significantly higher price (more than $40,000 over 4 years) I would recommend the cheaper option. If money is not an issue (either the cost of attendance is almost identical or the student’s family is well off), then I would recommend chosing based on fit.</p>