Hey everyone, I’m deciding on if I should transfer out of GWU and go to BU for CS. I am a rising junior and I really don’t like GWU, but it’s tolerable for another 2 years - plus they gave me a generous scholarship so I’d be graduating debt free.
I visited BU and liked the campus and could definitely see myself being a student there - but in terms of a career standpoint, would it be worth it to transfer to BU? The only red flag I see is that I would be graduating with 30k in loans.
Can I ask why you say that? Genuinley curious as I’ve heard a lot about how solid BU’s CS program is and how much the name gets you. To preface, GWU’s STEM career fair only had 5 companies come and only 2 were relavent to CS…
What is it about BU that you like better? They are pretty similar schools (both larger, urban, private U’s of fairly similar reputation); on the face of it, I can’t quite see 15K/year worth of value added by transferring, but maybe you can explain what benefits you see? In terms of the weight the degree will carry going forward, I think they’re pretty similar. What makes you feel like BU is worth the additional money (which is more than you’ll be able to borrow yourself - parents will have to cosign for more than half of it).
Since you feel like you could stick it out at GWU, have you considered studying abroad, to reduce your time on campus while still finishing your degree there? They seem to have a number of overseas universities that are specifically appropriate for CS majors, most of which are in English-speaking countries Study Abroad | Department of Computer Science | School of Engineering & Applied Science | The George Washington University There would be additional expenses associated with studying abroad vs. living at home and commuting, but nowhere near 30K!
Also, do you know how many of your courses will transfer? Would it definitely take you the same amount of time to graduate? Is it possible you might be able to finish early if you stayed at GW?
The main thing that stuck out to me about BU was how much more STEM oriented the school is. GW is a great school, but I don’t feel that there are opportunities related to STEM, specifically CS, offered by the school - especially career fairs. For instance, the career fair earlier this year had only 5 companies show up, 3 of them were no name companies that neither my peers or I have heard of, and only 2 of the 5 companies had any CS related offerings. From what I’ve heard and read, it seems BU’s STEM clubs, career fairs, and network is much more affluent than GWs.
I have thought about studying abroad at GW, but I haven’t really looked much into it. I might now though!
BU housing is for the academic year, includes furniture and all utilities. Oh…and no first and last months rent deposit…or guarantor needed.
Off campus housing will likely require a deposit, a 12 month lease, payment of all utilities including heat which can be very pricey in the winter (utilities…internet, heat, electricity, gas).
Might be the living at home with your parents that affects your GWU experience.
In total, how much more would BU cost ?
If the difference in cost is primarily due to room & board, then transferring seems like a reasonable option as living on your own will be a growth experience in addition to better career opportunities in your field.
My daughter is at BU for grad school, you are looking at $1000+ a month for a room in a shared apartment (multiple roommates) within a 20 - 30 minutes commute (t or walk) to BU. She loves it though.
I’m sure that’s the main reason - also doesn’t help that I’ve been familiar with the DC area for well over half my life
To go to BU, I’d be paying around 20k more per year - I plan to mitigate some of that with internship money though
The main difference is in the room & board, I think base tuition is 5k more for me. I’m going to try and argue a logical point I thought of in my next meeting on Tuesday so I’m praying they budge a bit more for me
There is value in getting to know a second major American city as an undergraduate student. Easy to assimilate to BU as BU accepts lots of transfer students & Boston is the most student friendly major city in the country.
However, there is also value in graduating from college debt free–especially if attending grad school is in your future.
The “mitigation” argument presumes that you wouldn’t get paid internships unless you go to BU - do you think that’s the case?
I hope you get your transfer credit information soon. It would be a drag to make a decision based on two years remaining, and then discover that you’d need an additional semester to finish because of transfer “friction” issues.
If you don’t end up transferring, you could still try to get a summer internship in Boston. Summer sublets are plentiful and relatively affordable (can rent rooms in MIT Greek houses, for example) and it’s the nicest time of year in Boston anyway! (Also, BU classes are open enrollment in the summer, although it would be hard to do that and a full-time internship.)
Good luck with the financial aid folks as well as the transfer credit; I hope it works out for you to make the move if that’s what you want. I understand the feeling that STEM is de-emphasized at GW, although I personally have no idea whether the CS education at BU is superior to what you’re getting at GW, content-wise. But the desire to go away to college is certainly understandable regardless, and more help in connecting with employers would be a good thing; you’ll just have to decide whether the combined advantages are worth the debt.
I would not go into debt to attend BU over GWU. I view them as peer institutions academically and the two schools are similarly located in east coast urban areas.
Keep in mind that transferring successfully will take a great deal of effort on your part. Many friendships are formed freshman year when everyone is new to the college and you will need to develop new routines while most others will already be in a groove. There are times when a transfer makes sense (I transferred after one year) BUT IMO the new school should be materially better for you in the long term – and personally I don’t see BU as materially better or different as compared to GWU.
Oh sorry, I meant that I am already fortunate enough to have secured an internship for this summer so I’m thinking about using some of whatever I make to pay for the tuition - of course I would hope to get better opportunities at BU bc it’s more STEM oriented.
I’m planning to call this Tuesday to ask about that and see how much longer they need.
Well there you go. The career fair isn’t really relevant. However you found that internship, you can find your job the same way. TONS are not finding jobs via the schools.
If you live home now and at BU you won’t, I think the difference will be more than $15k. Just living in Boston.
If going to BU will make you happier as a person I think that 30k is worth it. It’s important to be able to be able to gain independence and experience the normal college student exposure before working professionally. It seems you are unhappy at GW. BU does have various of opportunities available considering it’s located in a prime student area with prestigious universities nearby. 30k is not that bad compared to other students who also have loans. You mentioned before you have an internship which should lessen costs along if you continue appealing. Boston is a good change in my opinion and unless you see yourself regretting it in the future I think you should go for it.
Well…here is my suggestion. Stay at GW and finish your bachelors degree. If living at home is an issue, then perhaps you can find a place to share with some other students near GW for the next two years.
Boston University is terrific (says this proud parent of an alum), but I’m not sure I understand your academic reason for wanting to transfer.
