<p>Thanks for the additional responses. We are carefully weighing our priorities. Initially we were deciding between Lehigh and UA. But when we carefully factored in the costs and the Engineering programs of Pitt, where DS was accepted, Pitt is now a very attractive option. Merit and need-based grants at Pitt will result to a gap cost of $3300/year, about $8000 cheaper than Lehigh and $1000 less than UA. Since the difference in cost is quite substantial (compared to Lehig) we are now leaning on DS going to Pitt. We read an article at Washington Post that “Over a lifetime of employment and saving, $53,000 in education debt leads to a wealth loss of almost $208,000. Most of the loss comes from reduced retirement savings.” Pitt was formerly not seriously considered it was too close to where we lived and we thought DS would like to have his college experience away from the family. Decision time is coming soon. I am really grateful for the insights you all have provided.</p>
<p>Good luck to your son on his decision, tweetymommy. </p>
<p>Pitt has a very good biomedical engineering department, and there is a lot of great research going on there in the field your son is interested in. And there is also a lot of variety of academic offerings should he change his mind on what he wants to study. Don’t let fear of being too close to home factor in not sending him to what the best academic choice would be. I know your son is going to do very well wherever he winds up. He obviously has very caring parents, and that plays a large role in their success. Good luck on your final decision! </p>
<p>tweetmommy - As far as the distance thing goes DS lives on campus and my husband can walk from his office to DS’s dorm in less than 20 minutes. However we only see him when he wants us to.,…so even if your DS lives close to home he can have his college experience away from his family. </p>
<p>I am waiting for DS to decide but it looks like Pitt would be my recommendation. This has been a rollercoaster decision- at this point I just want to send our deposit to any school. We were so set on Lehigh and UA jockeying for top position only to be replaced by Pitt. But I really should be thankful that he has these options. This college application process with DS has been stressful and a real eye opener. I am just glad that I found so much information on this site to guide us on the process. I just hope that I would be better prepared when our middle child starts her applications four years from now. </p>
<p>Good luck! We toured Pitt last week and were very impressed. My son liked the city atmosphere, along with the campus feel. It is near the top of his list, especially as it is relatively affordable, even with OOS tuition levels. One of my sons is at a college 30 minutes from home but hardly even comes back, yet it is nice when he is feeling sick or just wants a break to be able to pick him up easily or take a local train. We never just drop in on him as we are busy with work and our HS student. </p>
<p>I think city colleges get a bad rap of being commuter colleges and no real campus life. But being in a city offers a student so many more social options than your typical college town. And I must add, travel to the campus town adds up. Hotels are scarce and expensive, especially during those peak times. And cost to get from an airport to your college town is also expensive. Then there’s the car that you’ll eventually have to get them so they can shop, go to work, etc. Trust me, no free ride is free. It’s just not as obvious where the money gets spent. But believe me, it gets spent.</p>
<p>My D will be graduating from PITT on Sunday. She really enjoyed her time there and the free transportation you get to anywhere in Pittsburgh on the city’s transportation system just by flashing your student ID was a real plus!</p>
<p>I just wanted to give everyone an update on which college DS chose. Until yesterday we were set on depositing at Pitt. I urged my husband to ask Pitt’s financial aid office the terms of renewal for their financial aid package- which was very generous. However yesterday we found out that two weeks ago they revised their financial aid package and replaced a grant they gave to DS with the external scholarship ($10,000) that he received. We were counting on using this scholarship to pay for the gap cost. So we were beyond disappointed and relieved that we found out before we paid the deposit. DS chose not to attend Pitt because the cost to attend Lehigh was cheaper than going to Pitt. Lehigh actually gave additional grants when we appealed their financial aid package. I had been silently hoping that DS would choose to go to a college other than Pitt. Because while I really liked Pitt and their engineering program, I wanted DS to go away for college since living on his own, away from family would be important for his growth. And I felt that being at Pitt would be too familiar and safe. I never outrightly expressed this to DS so I am happy he chose to go to Lehigh. </p>
<p>Congratulations to your son on his decision to attend Lehigh. Now you can breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy the rest of his senior year.</p>
<p>Congrats on your choice. If Lehigh had more generous merit aid, my DS would be there as an IBE major. Enjoy the hill. And the brown shirts 
</p>
<p>Wow, it is good that you called. Are you sure Lehigh doesn’t also subtract the outside scholarship though? </p>
<p>When DD went there, outside scholarships were applied to the schools portion first. Only if the scholarship was greater than the grant was it subtracted from the students portion, then lastly the parents portion.</p>
<p>Thank being said, Congrats on Lehigh!</p>