I never thought I would find myself in this situation, but I was offered a merit-based full ride scholarship to the University of Illinois and was also accepted into UPenn. My family is at the point where we don’t qualify for much financial aid, so paying for UPenn would be difficult, though not impossible. My prospective major is Political Science, so I’m concerned that the prestige of my undergraduate school will have a significant impact on my career opportunities. I know I will be able to make opportunities for myself at either school, but I feel like the atmosphere at Penn would push me to challenge myself. At the same time, doing well academically at U of I and having opportunities handed to me would make it easier for me to do well relatively to my peers. Right now I’m leaning towards UIUC, but I would like some input of others who may know more about the field or the programs at these schools.
UIUC. No school, in my opinion, is worth that much more, especially as your family would really have to stretch to make it work. Take the money at UIUC and take full advantage of all available opportunities.
Definitely UIUC. While Penn is great, the financial burden is simply not worth it. A full-ride merit scholarship can always be a future selling point, too, when applying for internships and future jobs as it helps solidify you’re an elite candidate. Good luck!
What are you interested in doing with the Poli Sci major? Are you interested in adding a second major or minor?
@itsgettingreal17 thank you for the advice!
@northstarfx thank you, I also hope it will pay off in the future and thank you for the luck!
@Much2learn I’m interested in working for an advocacy group in DC. I’m interested in pursuing an additional major in Global Studies/International Relations in either schools. There’s also a Public Policy minor at Penn that’s a dual minor with the Wharton school that I was thinking about.
After looking at what Penn PoliSci grads have gone on to do, (most of them end up on Wall Street) I think it’ll be better for my future career goals to start with no debt in a job I care about. If anyone has an opinion going the other way, I’d love to hear it, but I think I’m more sure about UIUC.
UIUC
@enigmaticmind It really depends on your financial situation. If you are going to have to take out a lot in loans and go into serious amounts of debt, go to Illinois. If you can afford going to Penn without taking on a ton of debt (or especially if no debt), then I’d say going to Penn will be worth it for the reasons you mentioned.
I’m assuming you’re undergrad? If so go to UIUC. It doesn’t really matter where you go to undergrad, however if you are going into grad school I’d understand choosing Penn.
As people have said depends on your financial situation. If coming to Penn means putting your family in a financially stressful situation and they really deprive themselves of important things now or in the future to go there, then it is not worth it. no school is worth that. If on the other hand you can come to afford penn by tightening your family budget a little bit and if that tightening doesn’t have important consequences for your family then I would say penn would be worth it, especially given your major. maybe the opportunities at auk are not fully comparable but it is still a very good school and if you do well there many doors will open. also a full-ride merit scholarship is always something you can talk about on your resume and it is a big plus.
I agree with Penn95. I am a parent with children at both UIUC and Penn. Both schools have academic and competitive climates as there are strong students at both schools. Have you visited both schools? They have a very different feel. And the geographic locations are near opposite as well as the campus size and layout. Please feel free to ask me questions or send me a PM. I can tell you that both schools fit my children perfectly and they are both very satisfied with their choices!
Your full merit scholarship might come with other perks that you wouldn’t get at Penn, such as a better dorm, first choice for classes, special opportunities, etc. I know someone who accepted a full merit scholarship instead of an Ivy. She is treated like gold at her university, while my kid is just one of the masses at Penn. Also be aware that the cost of tuition and housing goes up every year.
UIUC, no brainer. Penn isn’t a powerhouse in Poli sci according to USNews rankings and is #28 below UIUC.
Honestly it depends a little bit on what type of advocacy group you want to join. Some firms/agencies/departments/advocacy groups/etc. won’t even look at apps from students without an elite pedigree. But if you’re looking to get involved in grassroots advocacy then it probably won’t make a big difference. But for the so-called “unicorn” jobs (highly specific and highly prestigious jobs) in DC, pedigree matters much more than one might think, even at the undergrad level.
Most or all of the 2016 presidential candidates didn’t go to the pedigree schools.
@will1099 it is not about being a poli sci powerhouse but rather having the elite (ivy+) background that many posisiton pertinent to poli-sci majors implicitly expect. Dc and the whole politics circuit is quite snobbish. That said no school is worth going into debt for as I said before.
Well, most of the remaining 2016 presidential candidates did indeed go to pedigree schools if that tells you anything. Hillary went to Wellesley and Yale, Donald went to Penn, and Ted went to Princeton and Harvard. But either way, i wasn’t talking about being President. I was talking about getting your application read at Dept of State, the White House, the VP’s office, Dept of Justice, the elite lobbying firms, etc.-- and within those entities, getting your application read for the specific offices that are working on the issues with which you really want to be involved.
@Optimyst “Most or all of the 2016 presidential candidates didn’t go to the pedigree schools.”
That is not true.
2016 Presidential Candidates
Clinton Wellesley and Yale
Bernie U of Chicago
Cruz Princeton and Harvard
Trump Penn
Recent Presidents
Obama Columbia and Harvard
Bush 43 Yale and Harvard
Clinton Georgetown, Oxford, and Yale
Bush 41 Yale
@enigmaticmind What do your parents want you to do?
I really don’t know about PolySci to have an opinion on your situation. I can tell that the brand helps, but I am not sure how much.
I am sure that the only way to get the value from the Penn Option if you choose it, it to really take advantage of the additional opportunities outside of class. They offer a lot, but you have to get involved. Those can make a big difference. If you are seriously considering it, I would try to understand what opportunities interest you and what they do.
The candidates you listed from pedigree schools have more scandals behind them than being exemplary role models. DTrump - Bigot, Clinton - Sex in the white house, Hillary Clinton - whitewater gate, Benghazi, Email and a variety of other gates, Bush - ruined the economy with unnecessary wars and the list goes on.
I am asking about an undergraduate degree. Along with what a lot of you have said, political science is a degree where the prestige of the school matters. At the same time, UIUC has a lot of the same opportunities and I would not have to compete for those. Will being one of five full merit scholars at UIUC have the same weight on a resume as UPenn would? Even at an elite firm or interest group?