UIUC vs. Georgia Tech

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
1

I must say that after stalking (er, following) these forums and all the helpful information on it for years now, I am now here to ask a question of my own.

I am currently a Senior who has been accepted to Purdue for BME, UIUC for Civil Engineering, and Georgia Tech for BME. With May 1st quickly approaching and housing deposits and the like being due soon, I am running out of time and would like to hear some opinions from those who have more experience with these schools than I do.

Now I intend to go into Bio-medical Engineering to specialize in medical devices or prosthesis, eventually going into a PhD/MD program hopefully at JHU or Georgia tech for my graduate schooling. With this, I aim to go into R&D or the application of such devices. I also live in super-rural Indiana, possibly worth noting for the environment’s sake.

First off, UIUC. I just got back from a college visit to Illinois-Urbana and have to say that I enjoyed nearly every bit of the college. It is close to home, friendly, a near perfect mix of an urban-country setting, and offers a good amount of prestige in the programs they offer. The dorms appeared to be of good quality and apartment choices were endless and beyond well priced. This school is a bit of a bias within my family as well, considering that my uncle is a high-standing alumni within the Geo-technical Engineering department. Also, the well developed Beckman Institute and computer analysis facility seemed like an added bonus in terms of research. As for the downsides, the only one (which is unfortunately a major one) is that their BME program is not the most well established or notable. While far from bad by all means (They are 19th in the US I believe, taken with a grain of salts), it does leave much to be desired. It would also require a transfer into the program for the sophomore year, which isn’t all that bad I would imagine.

Georgia Tech on the other hand boasts what UIUC doesn’t and fails at what it does. The campus is of course in the middle of Atlanta, which I am not a huge fan of but could live with. From what I have heard, and can either confirm or deny in an upcoming college visit, the housing is mediocre and campus is fairly acceptable. Eventually seeking an apartment also seems off the table, as housing prices in Atlanta are atrocious. It is also rather far from home, and has a questionable environment in terms of safety. However, what shines is the BME program which is in the top five in the nation. Being a tech school, I know they they will more than prepare their students for graduate school, along with providing a prestigious undergraduate degree in the process.

Ultimately I want to ask the fine people on this forum which college they feel is best. Which option would any of you recommend? I personally see either 1) Going to Georgia Tech for Undergrad because of its excellent program and having a better chance to get into their graduate school. 2) Going to UIUC for their undergraduate program and trying to get into Georgia Tech (Raising the question, does the undergraduate degree matter with an MD/PhD?). 3) Going to UIUC for undergrad and their graduate school for their own M.D./PhD program.

I apologize for the ramble here, obviously conciseness wasn’t what got me into these schools. It’s painful decision because of the two starkly different possibilities. I appreciate any and all input on the matter!

2

Do not count on a transfer into the program at UIUC.

The ranking of the program is where it is, in part, because it is up to this point a relatively small department (the number 55 comes to mind, but don’t hold me to that). Transfer may not be possible at all.

If money is a constraining factor (you mentioned cost of off campus housing), why not seriously consider Purdue? GPA is more important than program ranking if you are looking at MD/PhD, and the low cost option for undergrad may free up funds for that endeavor.

Lastly, random thought, have you read about the new engineering based med school coming to UIUC? It will be the first of its kind and it sounds like it would be right up your alley when the time comes.

3

Thank you for the response!

Fortunately, the cost for both schools ended up being about the same because of scholarships, sitting at about 42,000$ for each. This is well within our budget in terms of college savings (I was blessed to have parents/grandparents to save up quite a bit), but paying for housing, or an apartment is a different story. I found condo sized apartments in UIUC for 600-800$ a month whereas the same could get the bare minimum in Atlanta. Again, not a major issue but one I considered.

Your statement about GPA being more important than rank is comforting, because recently I have seen articles and heard from friends and teachers that your undergraduate degree is now more important than your graduate degree. I personally found this hard to believe but that’s why I am came here, to get a second opinion or two. As for Purdue, I greatly respect the school but was personally more impressed with the campus and programs of UIUC. The ten grand difference in price again doesn’t matter because of those savings.

I guess a better way to reword my question could is there any benefit in going to GT for BME over UIUC. Both cost the same for me but GT is much further away and in an environment I am not the most fond of (Far away, big cities, safety issues, etc.), whereas Illinois is much closer to home and in familiar territory. If the difference in the programs won’t matter in the long run then I by all means would love to go to Illinois, but I value education above all else and will gladly go to Georgia Tech if the difference is worth it.

As for the med school, it does sound really interesting. I looked it up after seeing your post and must say that it seems almost dead-on with what I aim to do. It may definitely be a deciding factor. Thank you for the tid bit!

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You seem to be set on going into Biomedical Engineering, so I would recommend going to GT over UIUC, mainly because your seat as a BME at GT is reserved. Changing engineering majors at UIUC is extremely hard, those kids that got their seats reserved have no intention of giving it up.

You could email the department head of BME or the admission’s office double check with them and ask for the contact info of someone who successfully changed into BME, but I’m confident I’m right about my claim.

5

The main benefits of GT: much much smaller student body, that is well connected and studies together, with a higher ranked BME. The BME is in a joint program with Emory University Medical school, one of the top medical schools in the country and home to a fantastic MD/PhD program by the way. GT in my opinion, is in a much better city, Atlanta, for you to learn about life and arts and culture. College is not all grinding study, even for BMEs, so you will learn more by leaving the comfortable rural midwest. I think you can handle “big bad Atlanta” and grow to love it. Atlanta is near the start of the Appalachian trail, and located at 1000 feet above sea level. Its a beautiful and very wooded area to explore and hiking is nearby. I would visit GT before you say you don’t like the campus. My sense, after seeing both UIUC and GT , you may prefer GT’s campus once you visit. The flight to Atlanta is very easy if you live near a major airport. Atlanta is a hub so usually you can find less expensive flights.