<p>So I've narrowed my choices down to UNC and FSU. I have yet to visit UNC, but as of now I would go there in a heartbeat. The only thing holding me back is the price because I am OOS.
On the other hand, FSU is in state and I got a scholarship. It probably makes more sense for me to go there and I like the campus a lot, I just can't seem to get excited about going there. Please help!</p>
<p>Well, you can take this for what it’s worth, but UNC Chapel Hill is ranked #29 nationally while FSU is ranked #101 by US News & World Report. For me, that pretty much answers the question. Not because of the sheer numbers, but because of why they have been ranked that way.</p>
<p>What is it you want to study? Florida State may be stronger in it than UNC.</p>
<p>UNC meets need, so if you have “determined need”, you’ll get aid. Have you used the NPC to determine what aid you might get? </p>
<p>Are your parents willing to pay whatever UNC expects them to pay?</p>
<p>What is your major going to be?</p>
<p>I want to major in Psychology, possibly double major with Marketing. I’m pretty sure I won’t get much financial aid, I’m hoping to get outside scholarships. FSU would basically be paying me to go there, so obviously that is my parents first choice. They definitely would not be willing to pay the full $41,000 for UNC.</p>
<p>I’d suggest you conserve monies during your undergraduate education. Florida State has the oldest psychology program in Florida and certainly one of the highest rated programs.</p>
<p>Get your undergraduate degree at the least expense but earn the grades to allow you to enter UNC as a graduate student. Since psych degrees, generally, to be operable have to be the terminal degree PhD, this plan would give you a diversity of education at the least expense (which many graduate programs want). Plus, you’d have degrees from some of the oldest, best credentialed programs in the Southeast.</p>
<p>As to the excitement issue, being in the FSU Honors program allows substantial contact with faculty for individual research and even working towards work that may be published. This is remarkable for an undergraduate program and certainly opens your possibilities when applying to graduate programs. If you qualify, you might consider working with the [FSU</a> Office of National Fellowships](<a href=“http://onf.fsu.edu/]FSU”>http://onf.fsu.edu/) for national and international awards. Since FSU has produced more Rhodes scholars and finalists than any other Florida school and most other publics recently, excitement remains only to be discovered.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for your insight!</p>
<p>
You obviously knew UNC would cost $160K over four years, and your parents probably didn’t spring it on you that they wouldn’t pay that much, so Carolina being expensive should hardly be a surprise. Considering that you applied anyway, you may as well wait and compare packages. </p>
<p>Graduate school is usually paid for, so it is not necessary to save money for it at the undergraduate level. If you decide to do something else like medical or law school, however, it’d be nice to have money for that tuition available. I agree with parent2noles that $160K is a lot of money, and barring substantial financial or merit aid from UNC, FSU would likely be the way to go. It is a solid school with a beautiful campus. </p>
<p>I vehemently disagree with his suggestion that you can just plan to go to UNC for grad school, however; UNC’s psych program is one of the very best and admits about 4% of its applicants. With budget cuts, that rate will only drop. In any case, the experiences of undergraduate and graduate students are very different. I don’t think it should influence your decision, but by no means head to FSU laboring under the misapprehension that you can always get into UNC for grad school.</p>
<p>Let’s be clear about one thing - the best grad schools are always competitive - UNC-CH, Florida State’s and many more. If you aim is a terminal degree from a reputable university you are in for a long, hard academic slog.</p>
<p>Secondly, consider how long you will need to recover your educational investment in your chosen field. If you are forced to incur substantial debt to garner a terminal degree in a field with low demand…well, I hope you marry “up”. Just as there are many unemployed attorneys there are likely many more under-employed attorneys, also with a crushing debt burden. Certainly follow your passions, but be realistic about your financial burdens in doing so, unless you have a wealthy benefactor secured by a strong, enforceable contract.</p>
<p>Warbelers, you seem to imply if the student attends UNC-CH for undergrad he/she is more likely to be accepted for UNC-CH grad school, thus the investment of money in UNC-CH as an undergrad is worth the risk. Is that correct? So an accomplished student published in a peer-reviewed journal as an undergrad is of little admissions interest?</p>
<p>I am finding this implication hard to believe. It smells too much of academic inbreeding.</p>
<p>I’m already pretty familiar with Florida State… can someone tell me some more (unbiased) information about UNC?</p>
1 Like
<p>What exactly is unbiased? UNC is more prestigious as a university and as a psych program. They have one of the best psych programs but at full-sticker for UNC it isn’t worth it IMO. I think basically everyone has acknowledged that…</p>
<p>If you had aid (which unc provides) or a scholarship that’s a different story</p>
<p>
I really haven’t the faintest idea where you got that from, and I recommend dialing back on the defensiveness. My point was exactly what I stated; Carolina’s psych program is very selective, and one cannot count on being admitted as a graduate student. You are correct that applying from UNC would be inbreeding, and such an applicant would actually be at a severe disadvantage when applying for most graduate programs there. </p>
<p>I’ve seen many people turn down colleges and assume they’ll get the chance to attend later (e.g. “I’ll go to Middlebury now; there’s always grad school for Harvard.”). Given the high degree of selectivity of most graduate programs, however, many, many perfectly qualified applicants - with good grades, glowing recs, strong research backgrounds, etc. - are rejected every year. Quite often they’re rejected for something out of their control – too many students admitted in that subfield the year before, for example, or a relevant professor going on leave. It is therefore unrealistic and unwise for a student to count on graduate school when selecting an undergraduate institution. </p>
<p>I try not to impose my own opinions on students making decisions, but as it happens, no, I do not consider UNC worth that much money over FSU.</p>
<p>Warblers, thanks for clarifying. Posting here is not for my benefit (though I think its interesting), its for the students. Feel free to offer counterpoints, disagreements or arguments on topics. You won’t hurt my feelings. I think such things help the students figure out their own position, as if they were a jury in a trial.</p>
<p>But please, don’t impute emotions to me via text posts. It doesn’t work very well. I think you have very fine input for the students, for the record. However, I elect to offer frank opinions to many student queries. I think it offers a framework for them to figure things out, however they may.</p>
<p>Be well, fellow ACC member. 
(oops, I did the imputation thing. You’re a Dookie, right?)</p>
<p>What about UF vs. FSU vs. UNC?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Your post suggests that FSU would basically be a full-ride. You are very fortunate. Go to FSU. UNC is the higher-ranked school, but it’s not worth paying that much more for it. </p></li>
<li><p>I don’t agree that grad school is usually paid for, especially not for non-STEM majors. Getting a paid TA position at a decent Psych program is going to be competitive. </p></li>
<li><p>Paying over $100,000 for any degree from any school for a Psychology degree is insane.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>The choice is YOURS, not ours to make. I understand you are searching for input from people, but you will only get opinions and everyone has one! LOL. </p>
<p>UNC, Florida State and Florida are all outstanding universities. Other than the differences in USNWR rankings, which are dubious at best, a student should select a college based on their own personal criteria and circumstances, including finances. </p>
<p>Students should also understand that a very high percentage change majors at least once during college for a variety of reasons. But taking on enormous debt for an undergraduate degree is really not a wise decision in MY opinion. </p>
<p>Picking a college is very subjective. One kid can step on the Duke campus and say “this is me!” and another can do that and say, “never going to happen…not me!” Same at Chapel Hill, FSU and Florida. </p>
<p>Visiting a campus is essential to catch the vibe. But its also important to measure emotional responses carefully. </p>
<p>To me, all three of these schools offer much of the same experience, good to stellar academics, excellent social life and athletics, nationally recognized schools and outstanding placement for grad schools and professional schools. They are all large public insitutions. There isnt a clear yes and a clear no, it seems to me. Its up to you.</p>
<p>You may be inclined to go to Chapel Hill to get away from your high school crowd and see another part of the country. Nothing wrong with that, whatsoever. But be aware that Chapel Hill is going to be primarily residents of North Carolina and those kids will come from a lot of the same high schools with their ready made clicks. Hard to avoid. Just like a kid from North Carolina heading to Florida State for the same reason…will find a ready made click of Florida buddies to encounter. </p>
<p>Academics, programs and faculty are important factors. Do what you can to investigage that and find objective information. One benefit of an Honors Program is that it functions like a small school within a school, with very close knit people and faculty mentors. They will be your likely source of recommendations for graduate school and career paths. </p>
<p>Go and visit Chapel Hill by all means. Talk to people…in the library, in the cafeteria, on the quad, in classrooms and buildings and dorms. Get the vibe. And then you have to weigh the benefit versus the expense. And yes, its gut wrenching…for you and millions of other kids making tough decisions in late April before the May1 deadline. Sometimes its very difficult and brings tears. Hard to turn down a prestigious school, particularly about money. But that is life. Its the first tough decision you make as an adult where you are in charge and you own it. But that is a GOOD thing, in the end. It means yoiu are growing up!</p>
<p>No wrong decision here. All wonderful schools. Congratulations. Good luck.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t worry about social cliques. Neither FSU nor UNC are commuter colleges and they draw students from all over the state. There are several hundred high schools in Florida alone, so there will only be room for a handful of students from each one, who may not necessarily know or care for each other.</p>
<p>In regards to UF. USNWR ranks the Psychology program of FSU and UF about the same, so I would go where you feel more comfortable, and where the finances work out.</p>
<p>
Do you have data to support that position? Are you suggesting that a majority of psychology PhD students do not receive funding?</p>
<p>The conventional wisdom is that doctoral programs are rarely worth the expense if one does not receive funding; students who do not receive funding are usually those professors feel do not have what it takes to make it in their field. Additionally, most reputable programs provide full funding through fellowships or teaching or research assistantships – a department lacking the money to fund most/all of its PhD students is of dubious quality. In fact, some elite universities, particularly the privates, do not allow any graduate program to admit PhD students unless it can guarantee them support. Glancing over the 35 programs US News ranks as top 30, all except two seem to promise five years of tuition + stipend to all admitted students, and the other two claim to fund most students.</p>
<p>Incidentally, many areas of psychology fall under the STEM umbrella.</p>
<p>You jumped right to doctoral candidates. What about general grad students who are just going for their majors? I admit–I am no expert–but with the preponderance of psych majors in American academia, it’s hard to see how schools could fund them all through grad school. Either they are only funding a small portion of them, while the rest are paying, or there are only a tiny number of seats available. </p>
<p>I’d rather not dive into whether or not Psychology is a STEM major. This appears to be an agenda item of the America Psychological Association:
[How</a> to advance psychology as a STEM discipline: Proposals from the APA Science Leadership Conference](<a href=“http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2011/03/advance-psychology.aspx]How”>http://www.apa.org/science/about/psa/2011/03/advance-psychology.aspx)</p>
<p>If psychologists can convince policy makers that Psychology should be prioritized as a STEM major, I guess that only proves how powerful of a tool of persuasion psychology is after all and I concede by default. These are not the droids I am looking for.</p>
<p>I just realized that the OP never actually mentioned grad school. :)</p>