UB and RPI are my top two schools at this point for Civil Engineering, and I wanted to ask which is better in people’s opinion? I saw a website that said UB was ranked nationally in the top 5 and globally in the top 15 over 3 years for Civil Engineering (2018-2020). That’s very impressive, but I know RPI is known for being a great engineering school too. They also gave me much more aid compared to UB (71K w/o loans vs 5K from UB). I’m sure UB may give me more aid as an Honors student, but I want something that’ll last for four years as scholarships rather than one years worth as I may not be able to get financial aid each year from UB. Most of RPIs scholarships are renewable that I’ve gotten, so that’s a big plus as well. I know socially I may enjoy UB more than RPI, but I want a college that will prepare me well for the workforce. Any advice is appreciated!
Both are solid accredited programs, but for pricing, base it off the net price rather than the amount of aid received as a school like rpi would have been significantly more expensive from the start.
For civil engineering, pick the school that’s more affordable. What’s the most important is working hard and getting an internship. I say that as a structural engineer who co-owns a firm.
Also not sure about total financial cost to you. If it’s not a significant amount or issue, definitely go with RPI. It’s a much better, more respected school. Lots of industry cred. You’d probably have more fun at Buffalo but it’s not like you’d never have fun times or make lifelong friends at RPI. You would. And your future self would be grateful.
I don’t know much about RPI. However, our daughter from Southern California, (yes crazy), chose UB, for its med school-related programs. She ended up transferring into Electrical engineering and computer science. (At Berkeley, it’s called EECS “Eeks” and she would have enrolled there if she had liked the “fit” and feel of that campus.)
She powered through the program (being one of 4 females in her program) and got a lot of experience in the field trips and labs. She received tutoring, which is strongly recommended if you want to maintain an “A” average.
She was eventually asked to become a tutor. She returned to California, for summer internships, and had no problems finding work. She’s currently a manager in electrical engineering and consults in computer software programs. As a supervisor she trains junior level engineers. Management loves her and her expertise. She’s an effective communicator.
Here’s the thing with RPI, it has an excellent reputation yes, but what if you decide to go out of the major to something else that may not be at RPI. Yes, it does happen.
Think about how you want to live and socialize for the next four years. How will you pay? You have to look at the total cost of attendance and subtract any aid from that number.
My husband is a supervising engineering manager and he does a lot of hiring interviews for experienced engineers. His company does look at an applicant’s credit history because they don’t want their engineers, who work in secure areas, to be compromised by their previous debts.
Thank you to Everyone who has written advice so far! My total cost of attendance for RPI is 82K for freshman year vs UBs of 31K for Freshman year. Some of the UB Scholarships and my high schools scholarships I applied to should make UB a better option financially for my first year, but I’m worried that won’t be the case for years 2-4. RPI does have a better reputation in the Nation for engineering, but UB is up there too with NY schools. I would like some diversity with college as a Black Male, but I’d prefer to gain Internship experience so I can become a Project Engineer and Manager someday. I’m interested in the Structural Aspect of Civil btw!
Given the price differential combined with the fact that you seem to really like SUNY Buffalo the choice seems clear to me.
FWIW I don’t think your outcome will be measurably different based on which college you choose - the more important thing will be what you achieve at the school you attend. Both of your options have fine ABET accredited programs.
Thank you for the comment! I want to go to Buffalo a smidge more due to the social life and diversity, but RPI has a better reputation and gave me huge scholarships. I just don’t want to make the wrong decision for my future though if one college offers better job prospects.
I have! I got 71K with Scholarships and Grants alone surprisingly, and my COA is 82K for my freshman year. It’s the most expensive school I’ve applied to, so I want to be sure I’m making the right choice financially. UB is better financially, and I only have to worry about paying for 18K out of the 31K due to my Pride of NY scholarship and grants. 18K is a lot, but I think some more aid via scholarships can help cover most/all of that.
My bad! It’s 82K with no aid at all, but 11K for me with all the scholarships and grants they gave me. I made this more confusing than it needed to be.