P.S. DC area has many young people and students, and other universities near enough to GW.
I was thinking about getting my own apartment in DC with some buddies, but I’ve know most parts of DC like the back of my hand bc of how long I’ve been in the area.
The main academic reason is just the emphasis on STEM and the fact that it’s strongly lacking at GW
Thank you!
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Yet you got an internship. I assume a decent paying one.
How?
In the end if you get an internship and then a job, as long as it’s good, the school’s focus matters little.
Not telling you not to go to BU but let me ask you this, would the outcome likely be better there ??
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CS is a profession where prestige doesn’t matter. If you have a scholarship where you graduate debt free, I’d just stay there. There are plenty of job prospects for at GWU as well as BU.
Solid response, but my understanding is that there are more job opportunities in the Boston area compared to DC.
Yes…and there are plenty of people who graduate from colleges that are NOT in Boston who get jobs…in Boston.
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Many students do internships/externships during the school year. Boston is a great place for CS.
Who says he can’t apply for jobs in Boston? All you need is one offer. The rest don’t matter.
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Honestly, I think the issue of “STEM focus” is doing an awful lot of heavy lifting in this decision. I empathize with both of the feelings that are driving your desire to transfer: feeling a little marginalized at GWU, because so many go there for the chance to study poli sci and related fields in DC, and desiring to get away from home and go to college in a new city. I understand why you feel this way, and heaven knows we see plenty of young people who are spending way more than a 40K differential for schools they prefer for reasons like this. It’s 100% your decision and I understand why it doesn’t feel like a no-brainer to stay put and save the money.
But also, I agree with what others are saying (and I’ve said myself, up-thread), that we’re not talking about a meaningfully-different education, at the core of it. You’re already succeeding at getting paid internships, and there’s no reason to think you won’t succeed in getting jobs. There’s nothing substandard about the CS education you’re getting at GW; you haven’t even asserted any dissatisfaction with that aspect. I don’t think a BU CS degree, in and of itself, is going to get you anywhere that a GWU CS degree won’t. (The problem being, of course, that no matter what you choose, you’ll never know how the other option would have gone.)
It doesn’t matter how you categorize the money (internship income, etc.); the bottom line is that you’ll be spending at least 40K more in the next two years (assuming you can graduate on time)… and given that most of that will be borrowed, the amount you’ll ultimately pay back will be significantly more than 40K. Do the math on what your monthly payments will be, and how much you’ll ultimately be spending by the time it’s paid off. I am unconvinced that feeling “centered” as a STEM student, and getting incrementally stronger career advising, is worth this much money. I would definitely think hard about the alternative pathway of spending some money to make the GW experience better.
Nobody can tell you whether the additional cost is worth it for you. Anyone urging you to go for it is not paying your bills. And nobody who’s cautioning you not to go for it is paying your bills either. Just be clear on the real financial impact and how it will affect your choices and your lifestyle in the years after undergrad. I know CS can be a lucrative field, but a dump truck of money isn’t going to arrive on graduation day, and nobody knows what the job market is going to look like two years from now.
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I’ve sent in another appeal and will see how far that gets me. I’m pretty confident I could pay at least half the 30k before I graduate (very thankful to even be able to do that), but it honestly depends on how much more they give and more crucially, transfer of credit.
I’ll keep doing some research and asking around for advice. At the end of the day, I want to make a choice I won’t regret.
I’ll be sure to keep this thread updated. Thank you again to everyone who contributed, it means a lot!
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Being a programmer myself, I can tell you you’re wasting your money going to BU…especially if you already have internships lined up. That already puts you at the front of the line for actual job offers because you have practical experience. CS is ridiculously employable. And really, you only need one job opportunity. The rest don’t matter, because the “quality” of the offer is entirely subjective. There’s no rational way to connect “quality” of offers from one school to another. Entry level jobs have a high turnover rate, because it’s expected that you’ll find higher paid employment as you gain experience. At first, you’re most likely going to work in a few jobs until you find a good “sweet spot.” By the time that happens, employers won’t even ask where you went to school, because it won’t matter.
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Hey everyone, I decided to stay at GWU because I really don’t want to shell out any extra money + take loans as I’d rather just save. I’m sure I’ll have other opportunities to explore later on in life so I’m not that upset. Thank you everyone for your input, advice, and kind words - I really appreciate it!
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Makes sense to me. Best wishes as you complete your degree and start your career!
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