So I want to make a college decision by tomorrow at the latest and I’ve been stuck between these 2 schools:
Villanova ~ $15K a year after scholarships, less parties, smaller campus, closer to philly, better sports
UD Honors ~ $30K a year after Scholarships, more social and party life, bigger campus, further from home, better band
I prefer campus and student life of UD over Villanova, as well as the Honors college. But is it worth it to pass up Villanova’s full tuition scholarships for my preferred campus? I realize both schools have great engineering and I’ll hopefully get a great job afterwards, but should I choose Villanova over UD Honors?
@JoelEmbiid21
If your family can afford to comfortably pay the extra $60,000 over four years without any sacrifice to you or your other siblings for college or otherwise, then go with Delaware because it is excellent for engineering and you prefer that school. However unless you want chemical or biomedical engineering, see my remarks below, if money is any issue or concern at all, then take the full tuition scholarship at Villanova. Because both schools are excellent academically and the engineering job you can obtain from either school will likely have the same salary. So why to pay out an extra $60,000 at Delaware over four years?—thats a lot of debt to repay —use that savings instead on getting your own apartment or saving for a home eventually. I don’t think Honors is a plus in your consideration because Honors is not as important for preprofessional majors such as engineering, business, etc… I don’t think an engineering firm will care or not if you took honors sections in liberal arts courses or wrote an honors thesis —Honors is more beneficial for the liberal arts majors and those that want prelaw because honors adds rigor to the program and hence to your qualifications. (Whereas employers already know engineering, business, etc… are rigorous enough without having to take on honors). As for the engineering I don’t think biomedical engineering is offered at Villanova so if that’s an interest of yours Delaware has that whereas Villanova doesn’t.
checkout https://www1.villanova.edu/villanova/engineering/departments/me/undergrad/ABET-accreditation.html and compare to http://engr.udel.edu/about/abet/ Also thanks in part due to benefactor DuPont, Delaware ‘s chemical engineering is exceptional and would be worthy to weigh into your consideration. Finally although Delaware engineering may be a bit higher ranked in USNewsWorld Report #55 versus Villanova at #104, I don’t think that such rankings should make a difference in your decision due to the cost difference, except if you want chemical or biomedical engineering at Delaware.
It’s great to have choices, Dd had to choose between the honors college at UDel for $30,000 after scholarships vs. $70,000+ for Villanova, no scholarships. Her heart wanted Villanova, her head is choosing UDel.
Hi, my son is currently a freshman in Engineering at Villanova and he did look at UD but decided not to apply. He liked the campus but overall preferred everything else at Villanova. I agree with the above comment that Honors at UD really shouldn’t factor into your decision. If money is not a problem at all, and you are not a biomedical engineer, then I think you have to go to the school that feels the best fit for you, UD and Villanova are actually very different in campus vibes. One is significantly more of a party school and bigger which gives it a completely different feel. As Villanova is smaller, ALL of my son’ s freshman classes were 25-60 students. I think UD will be bigger in the introduction courses. VN also has a more collaborative feel as opposed to competitive. Although I can’t talk to competitive at UD, only as opposed to tech schools. So honestly, it comes down to money. If you can afford the higher amount, I would go where you feel the best fit is other than engineering, since that outcome would be the same. I know my son chose Villanova over UD not because of engineering differences, but because of everything else. It was the right choice for him. Let me know if any other questions relating to engineering and VN since my son is there.
Go with Villanova. The $60,000 you save can be used for many other things. Or show your Villanova offer to Delaware and explain your situation and maybe they will offer you more. It doesn’t hurt to ask.
First reaction is to go to the more affordable one which happens to be a fantastic school! However many of my sons friends came home or transferred because they did not take into account the non monetary factors like surrounding area, size, distance from home, social fit etc. That being said I would not go into substantial debt for UD and based on my research Villanova has a better reputation for engineering. I have heard great things about Delaware too and the town right there is a lot of fun.
Unless you believe you will miserable or it’s academically too intense, you will be very happy to have both the significant savings and the Villanova network as life goes on. It’s a fun place too.