<p>An international student and a prospective mech engineering major here. </p>
<p>As the May.1 deadline's approaching, I feel like I really can use some input!</p>
<p>Right now UC Davis will cost me 37k/yr, WPI 30k/yr and Alabama around 10k - 15k/yr (I received a free tuition scholarship at U of A, so I only need to pay for the bits and bobs - housing, meal plan, transportation etc - if I choose to go there)</p>
<p>With respect to cost, I know Alabama is the right choice;however, I'm really not sure if UA's lackluster ranking in engineering is going to thwart me in my future job placement as I want to land a job in the US after graduation (preferably not in the south, though)</p>
<p>Any input will be greatly appreciated! Many thanks!</p>
<p>I worked my entire career in southern California and have worked with several UCD grads. Good school IMHO. Also worked with a few WPI grads and my daughter is currently a student there (I am originally from New England, so I knew a lot about WPI and thought it would be a good fit for her, which it was). Obviously, I believe that WPI is a good school. Don’t know anything about UA and have never, to my knowledge (we don’t always discuss schools) worked with someone from there.</p>
<p>You can get a good education from UCD and WPI and probably UA as engineering principles don’t change depending on school. However, I know that UCD and WPI and probably UA are more locally known than nationally known. Therefore, it will probably easier to get a job after school in the region each of those schools are located. Not impossible to go elsewhere, but more local employers would be at their job fairs and “trust” that the engineers they hire from there will suit their needs.</p>
<p>So, if you don’t want to work in the south, that puts a black mark against UA. Depending on your financial situation however, the lower cost of UA could be quite attractive. </p>
<p>Sorry that this isn’t a whole lot help for you, but just trying to point out another factor in yor decision.</p>
<p>If you are interested in working in the automotive industry, Bama is a great choice. Lots of professors doing research in the area, and lots of automotive industry in the area.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t think automotive industry requires security clearance, so being an international student wouldn’t impede your progress there.</p>
<p>As for UA being in the south, major companies do not tend to recruit at Southern schools, except for Georgia Tech, so if you don’t want to work in the South, I wouldn’t go with Bama. But I do wonder if Bama’s automotive expertise would help you get an automotive job in the midwest, say Michigan.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for your reponse, hpuck35!</p>
<p>So does graduating from a southern state school really limit my future job placement in the southeast for good? I wouldn’t mind getting my first job in the south but I think eventually I will want to relocate to either the west coast or New England.</p>
<p>However, the more pressing issue for me right now is having to GET A JOB right after graduating college so that I can have a chance at the green card thing. Otherwise I’ll be caught up in the citizenship redtapes and got sent back to China (Yuck, I’ve been living in Connecticut for quite a while now - can’t imagine what it’d be like if I ended up going back to China)</p>
<p>WPI and UCD are financially feasible. It’s just that going to either one of these two places will cost my parents quite a fortune. My parents work in China and folks down there don’t make much by any means - by not much I mean something around $30,000 a year, way below the median income in any state here. A degree from either WPI or UCD will probably cost most if not all their current savings.</p>
<p>So does that mean holding a degree from a southern state school like UA will be discriminated against by major companies? What about Mercedes? I think they’re located in Alabama.</p>
<p>That might not be possbile. Are you canadian or austrailian citizen ? Its not easy as you think to get a working visa. </p>
<p>If you choose Alabama, you are selling your self to a low tier college. If you choose the other two, you are giving yourself what you deserve. I would probably go with WPI since Davis is too expensive.</p>
<p>That is what I’ve heard. And no, I’m Chinese. I can’t really see myself working in China, though. Do you know more about the working visa?</p>
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<p>I have been stressing over this ever since I learnt about the rejections from my top choices this year. I’m still quite hesitant about going to Alabama to be honest. </p>
<p>As to WPI and UCD, I think I’d rather go with UCD since the prices are not so different after all ( the difference is like $7,000 a year, tops; and it’d going to be cheaper after my freshman year because I would move off-campus) However, it is an enormous investment for my family with potential risk involved and my parents are leaving the decision making up to me. I feel quite stifled by all this responsibility. I just wrote an appeal letter to the Office of Financial Aid at Davis yesterday asking for more financial support (They’re currently giving me $13,000/yr) but I don’t think they’re taking me very seriously :(</p>
<p>I did not intend to imply that there is any regional discrimination going on. Only that the schools you listed have good regional reputations and are not as well known nationally (as something like MIT would be). So the job opportunities at those schools are usually from local companies. That doesn’t preclude you from searching for a job elsewhere in the nation. You would just need to sell yourself a little more.</p>
<p>I am not that familiar with the labor laws regarding non-US citizens (or green card holders) from getting a job but my impression is that the company has to show that no other US person can do the job before they hire a non-US person. That is hard for a new grad to demonstrate. I would investigate what your job prospects would be in the US before I would saddle your parents with all the expenses of a college education.</p>
<p>Sounds like you’re trying to avoid what you’ve essentially admitted already: affordability will be a critical factor in your selection of a school.</p>
<p>You’ve gotten good advice here on CC. While there are some schools that attract employers from around the nation, a large component engineering career placement are regional contacts. That being said, I would think that an ME grad from U Alabama would not be rejected out of hand by BMW and Boeing in S. Carolina, Toyota in Tennessee, Kia in Georgia or Mercedes Benz in Alabama.</p>
<p>Certainly a Alabama grad might find the competition for employment rough going in California, but that’s where elbow grease comes into play.</p>
<p>You are correct. Mercedes Benz has a strong presence near Bama. I did not mean to imply that they weren’t a major company. I was thinking more along non automotive companies. Automotive companies are gaining a strong presence in the South. There are plants not only in Alabama, but also a Nissan plant in Mississippi, and there may even be another in Mississippi. </p>
<p>If you’re interested in the oil industry, I would recommend the Louisiana and Texas schools.</p>