<p>Like many of you, I have to make a tough decision soon, and I have it narrowed down to only a couple schools. I got into Michigan's college of engineering and was really excited, but my financial aid situation isn't so great. I'm only getting a $1,500 scholarship from the University along with a work study and $5,500 in loans, and all that I know for sure that I'm getting from outside sources is $1,000. I'm in state, so the costs are much lower, but my parents aren't sure if we can cover the rest of the gap without outside loans. On the other hand, I would be able to attend Michigan State for free.</p>
<p>How do MSU and UMich's engineering programs compare? Are the prestige and superior academics of U of M good enough to be worth all the extra money and loans? I will likely want to go to grad school afterward. Does that change the situation at all?</p>
<p>I’m in the same situation. I’m looking at both compsci/eng programs. the problem is that i don’t know the job placement statistic for msu engineers vs u-m.</p>
<p>I have similar questions. Michigan State University is my top choice, though University of Michigan-Ann Arbor is second. In your situation, it’s a obvious choice to attend Michigan State University, great school, and free tuition. In my case, there are a few concerns. Such as pre-medicine, many argue with me that University of Michigan- Ann Arbor would be the pick. I would like to attend a graduate school out of state ( I think) many argue with me that University of Michigan- Ann Arbor would be the pick. College town, well known for Ann Arbor to be rank as a college town, though I think East Lansing is a good college town also ( underrated collegetown). Then family issues, how things are… being a hour from home sounds nice, also a new environment.</p>
<p>Since you are instate, it is definitely worth going to Michigan. Michigan is worth $10,000 a year over MSU, especially for engineering. Basically every top company recruits at Michigan…not so much for MSU. Michigan ranks in the top 10 in the country for engineering…I didn’t even know MSU had engineering until I saw your post. Also, if you want to live out of state, Michigan has much more prestige nationally and internationally. </p>
<p>If you were out of state and the difference was going to be $40,000 a year then I might suggest going to MSU, but $40,000 over 4 years for a superior Michigan education is definitely worth it. MSU isn’t a bad school, but Michigan is a great one.</p>
<p>Earlier you guys mentioned that with pre-med umich would be the pick.</p>
<p>I didnt get a full ride from MSU but I did for Wayne State, what would your suggestions be there?
Wayne has a decent med school, and they really favor their students over others in the admissions process, but Umich really can’t even compare to Wayne for undergraduate.</p>
<p>Im really stuck!
I only got 5500 in loans for Umich and that state government scholarship, and my dads jobs not so stable right now. Hes willing to turn to outside loans such as the PLUS loan program, but is that even a good idea?</p>
<p>Like I’ve said before, where you did your undergraduate work isn’t that important in medical school admissions*. Go to the school that is best for you, get a high GPA (3.6+), do well on the MCAT (30+), throw in some research and clinical stuff, and you will get into medical school.</p>
<p>*if you aiming for the top medical schools (Harvard, Hopkins, Stanford, Michigan, etc.), I would advise you to go to Michigan. I say this because a large majority of the student bodies of Harvard, Hopkins, and Stanford medical schools come from top 25 undergraduate schools, indicating that prestige of undergraduate does play a role in their admissions process. However, if you are not aiming for the top schools, ignore this advice and just focus on my first paragraph.</p>
<p>As my good friend Charlie Dickens once said:</p>
<p>“…Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.”</p>
<p>In short, it is not worth getting too much into debt just to attend the better university. If the debt is manageable ($10,000-$25,000 over 4 years), then fine. However, getting into $40,000+ debt is not worth it if you ask me.</p>
<p>Are you guys kidding? for engineering major, UM is one of the top school in the nation. It’s impossible to compare UM-engineering program to MSU’s. I am transferring to UM from MSU next semester, and I hope you go to UM but not MSU. It’s worth to pay the tuition if it’s no concern for you. Do not listen what people said above. UM is much better than MSU in academically.</p>
<p>arob28, are you in-state? if so, i was in the exact same situation as you my senior year. free ride to MSU, but only $1500 scholarship from Michigan (i assume it’s the regent scholarship?) i ultimately went to Umich, and i realize now as a junior in engineering that it was definitely the right choice for me. but it may not necessarily be right for you…</p>
<p>i suggest that you ask yourself what it is you want to do in the future. are you bent on going on to grad school, med school, working on wall street, or working for a “star” engineering firm? if so, then the extra prestige of the UM degree may be worth the extra money. if you aren’t particularly ambitious, then MSU for free is probably the better choice.</p>
<p>if you’re out of state, then obviously throw some extra weight to MSU…and you have to think about your family finances as well.</p>
<p>Yeah, I’m in state and I only received the regent scholarship. I am fairly ambitious and do want to go to grad school, but from what I’ve heard, where you get your bachelors degree doesn’t matter if you get a masters degree from a good school. Elixirs, why do you think now that Michigan was definitely the right choice for you?</p>
<p>I guess I missed that question from arob28. In case you’re still out there and would like an answer, it’s because my ambitions have increased since starting undergrad. Whereas as a high school senior I would have been happy with any decent job that pays well after graduation, and didn’t really know what I wanted to do, now I’m looking to shoot higher in my career goals and have a clear path in mind. For that, the UM advantage is a true boon (especially for engineering). For example, I am interning at a great fortune 20 company this summer - who recruits at Michigan, but not MSU. Also, my family is able to pay for the increased tuition no problem. Hope that answers your question (but you probably made a decision long ago).</p>