<p>I was accepted EA at UChicago, which I adore. I love its campus, its philosophy, its quirky students, the city, and I worked my butt off to perfect my application essays. I think this university fits me best and that I'd make friends easily there (I am an unusual person). The downside is that tuition is extremely expensive and I do not want to burden my parents and myself with paying back student loans for years. The other thing holding me back is the school's level of rigor; I fear I won't be able to keep up with my classmates and my GPA will suffer as a result. I want to go onto medical school, so a damaged GPA will be a great impediment.</p>
<p>UPittsburgh has offered me a full ride and I recently interviewed for the Chancellor's scholarship (which covers room and board and some other expenses), which I have a feeling I will secure. I think its campus is decent, but not outstanding. It does have a great medical school, but overall, the education it offers can't be compared to UChicago's. Also, I think the school has a bit of a reputation as a party school, which isn't my cup of tea. I fear I may have trouble fitting in with the partiers. The huge plus here is the money, to be honest. My parents are pressuring me to go there, saying I will have it so easy and won't have to work a part-time job and will thrive because there's much less pressure academically. I've also had people tell me the undergrad experience is less important than grad school. </p>
<p>What is your opinion? If you were in my shoes, what school would you learn toward and why? I'm so torn. :(</p>
<p>Oh, and feel free to ask any questions if you want any additional information. I would love any input from people who have already gone through the whole school selection process and know a thing or two about what's truly important in choosing a university.</p>
<p>since u want to go to med school, pittsburgh for sure. u’ll save a lot of money… and lets be honest med school is expensive as hell so ur gonna want to save as much as u can. for med, its where u go for grad, not undergrad that matters. the only thing u need to do in undergrad is get a great gpa and build a good resume for med school. once ur in, u’ve made it. it will be much harder to get that gpa at uchicago, tho chicago is an amazing school and u would not be making a mistake by going there. in short, the money saved by going to pitt would be a big help in financing med school, and its not that big of a drop off from uchicago since its the grad school that matters and the fact that u went to pitt for undegrad wont make med schools less likely to take u provided u have a great gpa.</p>
<p>This isn’t even an “if I were in your shoes.” Almost the same situation over here, except replace UPittsburgh with UGA. Big party school, but it’s amazingly cheap compared to Chicago (~7k, not counting any FA packages yet). Oh, and I don’t want to go to med school.</p>
<p>But, yes, situation’s pretty much the same. Leaning towards Chicago, but I’m waiting for the official financial aid package to come out, see how much money I can squeeze out of them (please give me more money, please . . .). If my parents lose their jobs, it’s going to be UGA for sure. Otherwise, the Chicago FA office will probably receive some very annoying calls from me begging for more money . . .</p>
<p>QuakerOats415, thanks. You sound very practical, like my parents and some of my teachers. I don’t know; I fell in love with Chicago, but I know that Pitt is the most practical way to go.</p>
<p>neltharion, good luck with your financial aid package! I think they will be out in the next couple of weeks and I am very nervous about receiving mine too. This could definitely determine whether I am able to go at all or not.</p>
<p>I agree with the posters above. Chicago is a fabulous school-my son is a student there- but it IS very expensive, and if you take out loans for four years of undergrad there as well as med school, that will limit your choices in life. For example, you might have to go into a specialty that doesn’t really excite you just to pay the bills. Massive loan repayments will limit your ability to buy a house, save for your own retirement or your own kids’ education, and in general burden you with enormous responsibilities beyond those typically encountered by a young adult. Also, as you say, in this shaky economy, assuming your parents will be able to help out as much as they would like is not a given. Pittsburgh is a great school, and the folks we know who have kids there–many in the honors program–are extremely happy. You can always go to Chicago for med school.</p>
<p>Try bargaining with Chicago. Maybe you could tell them about your family pressures, how you really want to go to Chicago, but that you also want to minimize the burden on your family. Basically beg and use the other financial aid offers as leverage. </p>
<p>If you are premed, this is a no-brainer really. Unless your parents are loaded, there is no way you can justify the $200,000 cost delta. That money will pay for most of your medical school. </p>
<p>As Midaji suggests, call the University of Chicago and see if they can sweeten the pot…BIG TIME! In this economic climate, private universities are very mindful of the fact that many families that would otherwise sacrifice more on rankings will look more closely at cheaper options.</p>
<p>Would UChicago be willing to bargain? It seems kind of shady to say, “Well THIS school has given me this offer, what is Chicago going to give me?” I’ll be on campus again April for the visit days, so should I speak with the financial aid office then?</p>
<p>Well, the debt wouldn’t amount to $200,000; my financial aid estimate seems to indicate part of tuition will be waived in the form of grants. However, I will graduate with SOME debt; how much, I am not sure, as my family’s income will be changing for the next few years. </p>
<p>For the first year, I’ll be receiving ~$40,000 in grants and ~$10,000 in loans. My family income is ~$53,000. Next year, it will be ~$100,000 (my father got a new job), so I don’t know how my financial aid will change. But I anticipate my family will be expected to contribute quite a bit more. </p>
<p>OP, I would recommend calling Chicago’s FA office–NOT to bargain, because your current package is pretty decent, but to seek an early estimate of next year’s package using the higher estimated income.</p>
<p>If you were to take the money out of the equation, the clear winner would be Chicago. So you need to take a close look at the money. How much difference will there be? How much debt will you and your parents have to assume for you to go to Chicago? I agree that it could help to talk to Chicago’s FA office about your dilemma.</p>
<p>The clear winner is NOT necessarily Chicago.</p>
<p>If you are a top student at Pitt, you are likely to have more mentoring, internship opportunities, and personal support than if you are middling student at Chicago. In other words, you may actually get a better education, and your chances at med school (without $200k in debt) will be higher.</p>
<p>And if you were to spend some of that saved $200k on other educational opportunities, the scales might tilt even further.</p>
<p>Silvykins: obviously, Chicago is worth more than Pitt to you, the question is ‘how much more’. That depends on your tastes and on your family’s resources. Also, obviously, Chicago will cost more than Pitt for you, and the question there is also ‘how much more’. You have to get the best possible educated guesstimate to answer that second question, and that information resides with the FA office at UofC. You should share with them information about the competing offer you are looking at, and about your family’s probable change in income for next year, and see what they tell you about your probable 4-yr cost of attendance.</p>
<p>Once you have that info, you will be a lot better prepared to deal with the first question. For my family and my kids, I would guess that Chicago might well be worth $15K more per year, but definitely not $30K more. The area in between is even tougher to decide about. That’s our reality - yours might be different.</p>
<p>mini: Without consideration of finances and given the OP’s clear love for Chicago, it is indeed the clear winner. Someone who really fits Chicago’s “vibe” will make the most of its opportunities. Of course, realistically it’s a much more difficult decision.</p>
<p>The heartburn comes from asking whether you want Chicago DESPITE Pitt’s offer or whether you’d be happy at Pitt DESPITE having been admitted at Chicago. Pretend that the scholarship didn’t come through at Pitt and consider how you feel about being in at UC, then pretend that you didn’t get in at UC and see how that impacts your feelings regarding a free ride at Pitt.</p>
<p>I disagree. For the vast majority of premeds, their best chance at earning a med school acceptance is attending a lower-ranked school. The A’s will be easier since the competition is not as great. Plus, going in at the top of the class ensures ready access to profs and research.</p>
<p>Viewed another way: the vast majority of premeds matriculating as Frosh NEVER even apply to med school as they pick up C’s in the sciences, which are all curved.</p>
<p>This post reminds me of the UChicago day with my son. As we sat down to lunch at the student table, several glassy-eyed students staggered in and collapsed nearby. They had just from their Bio mid-term; one student, the happiest of the bunch, received a 60 and he thought he could still pull a B in the course. The five others were essentially done with premed.</p>
and use the other financial aid offers as leverage. </p>