Trouble Determining College Choice

As the deadline to choose a college to attend closes near, I am having difficulty determining the pathway that I want to take in the future and would like others to weigh in on the options if possible.

Currently, the options that I have lie between University of Michigan, University of Georgia, University of South Carolina Honors College, Michigan State University Honors College, and Georgia State University. Normally, I would have easily decided to attend U of M, but the extremely high OOS tuition and fees are preventing me from considering it as a viable option at this point. I am hoping to negotiate a better aid award, but I am not counting on it at the moment.

In terms of the other colleges, I am heavily leaning towards the honors colleges at Michigan State and South Carolina given the smaller class sizes and extensive opportunities. USC has the top International Business program, which is definitely something I may consider majoring in, but Michigan State has an exceptional Game Design program that I also take interest in.

And of course, I am a Georgia resident, so the cheapest options for school fall with UGA and GSU. Unfortunately, I was rejected from Georgia Tech for the upcoming fall semester, but still have a strong interest in attending. If I went to one of the Georgia colleges, I would likely intend on transferring there when given the opportunity, although once again it is not something that I can rely on.

Therefore, my final decision ultimate decision lies on the program I want to study and my future prospects. While the honors colleges offer great opportunities, I also continue to have a strong preference for Georgia Tech if given the opportunity to apply as a transfer and would rather attend an in-state school for the lower cost.

I would go in state to Georgia or Georgia State, especially given that you want to transfer.

Michigan State’s international business program was rated no. 24 by the most recent US News ranking. MSU also has the top supply chain management program (undergrad and grad… and tops in the world, but some surveys) as the no. 21 rated MBA program. That said, US News in NOT the holy grail and, overall, MSU generally carries considerably more prestige than Univ of South Carolina.

If you wanted to save $$ and stay in Georgia, I would go with U. Georgia over Georgia State for similar reasons.