<p>UF will cost around $8000/yr max. Vandy will cost around $23,000/yr</p>
<p>I want to be pre-med (hence medical school, which is also expensive)</p>
<p>which one should i pick?</p>
<p>I would save the money and go to UF if you plan on going to medical school. Vandy is a great school, but if you can save 60k+ by going to UF, why not?</p>
<p>Well of course, if it’s affordable for you, you should choose Vanderbilt without thinking</p>
<p>I’m in the same situation, but I’m gonna do engineering and then go on to grad school. University of Florida is gonna cost me 15k and Vandy about 24k. What should I do?</p>
<p>yayy,</p>
<p>I have a lot of respect for VUSE. Undergraduates are not just lost in the shuffle, as is the case at many large publics (I don’t know too much about UF specifically, however). The administration is committed to the undergraduate program, as is the university overall.</p>
<p>What kind of engineering are you considering? BME is highly regarded at Vanderbilt. Have you looked at the profs in the various departments to see what kind of research is going on? </p>
<p>How about research opps for undergrads at Florida? </p>
<p>A big question: Do UF engineering students graduate in four years? If not, there goes the difference in cost right there.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that engineering PhD programs often provide waiver of tuition and fees and pay graduate students a stipend for research or teaching. That doesn’t necessarily mean I am suggesting that going into debt is a small thing, but keep that in mind. If you are thinking about a master’s as a terminal degree, I’m not really sure about what kind of aid you can get.</p>
<p>I’m planning on doing chemical eng, and a lot of Vanderbilt cheme professors are doing nano/materials, which is what I want to do.</p>
<p>A UF professor told me upfront that students do get lost in the shuffle but if you make the effort, you will get the attention.</p>
<p>Research opps for florida aren’t handed to you, you’ve gotta search for them, but they are there, just like other universities and they are pretty good.</p>
<p>Some engineering students do take another year, but they said it’s very possible to graduate in 4 years.</p>
<p>I don’t know… I went to UF and just wasn’t impressed. Everyone else who’s going to UF is soooo excited but it just didn’t feel right for me. However, I haven’t visited Vandy because air fare is really expensive… I live in Hollywood, Fl.</p>
<p>yayy,</p>
<p>It is really unfortunate you didn’t get to Nashville, but I understand about the air fare. I haven’t been on the UF campus in many years, since my sister graduated from there. I can tell you that Vanderbilt’s campus is very nice, and the area surrounding it enhances the appeal of the university because it is easy to get off campus for while. The Commons area, where freshmen are housed now, is very nice, even if it is a bit of a walk over to Featheringill. All of my degrees are from very large universities, and I think there are advantages to them, but at the undergraduate level I give highest marks to mid-size full-service universities like Vanderbilt. I think it is hard to beat. As I said before, I am very impressed with the administration in engineering. </p>
<p>Is the extra money a major drain on your family? If so, or if your family indicates the cost will lead them to make sacrifices to their retirement, go to Florida and enjoy it. If you and your family can work out how to pay the additional 9K a year without hardship, I think you would be both happy and satisfied at Vanderbilt.</p>
<p>One other thought: has there been any indication from UF that state budget problems will lead to increased tuition? Or that cutbacks are planned that might lead to the inability to get the courses you need? I really am wary of the ability to get what you need in 4 years from some of the public engineering programs. But, as I said before, I am not referring to UF specifically.</p>
<p>The extra money isn’t going to be a major drain, we can make it without making sacrifices to anything. However, my mom said that finances will be tight and for 4 years we would have to be spend thrift and watch what we buy.</p>
<p>I personally haven’t heard of UF getting increased tuition, but it’s a definite possibility in the upcoming years, I agree, me and my parents are wary…</p>
<p>Haha, I talked to Vandy’s chem eng department over the phone and I was impressed just by talking to them! I’m hoping I’ll be blown away when I get there!</p>
<p>According to USNWR, Florida’s engineering dept is ranker higher than Vandy’s</p>
<p>I know, but Florida is a huuuge public school and doesn’t have the personalized attention that Vandy has. Vandy also has more resources and has research opportunities that I’m really interested in.</p>
<p>vandyclassof2013, </p>
<p>On the one hand I am happy when Vanderbilt’s rankings go up, and on the other hand I take them with a big grain of salt at the undergraduate level (different story at the graduate level). The overall quality of the undergraduate education and experience are, for me, a better measure. FWIW, my son turned down quite a few of the top-ranked engr. programs, and one of the two topped cs programs to go to Vanderbilt, and has not regretted it. He has had great research opportunities and finds the ability to get to know professors very useful.</p>
<p>But I’m not trying to dismiss UF’s program. I’m sure that for smart, directed and confident undergraduates it works very well.</p>
<p>Another note: I know a student who, for financial reasons, attends his state flagship university for engineering. It is not a bad program at all, and he was very happy to get a research scholarship this year. Unfortunately, there are equipment shortages and graduate students always get first priority on using the equipment (when it is in working order!) As a result, he has made little progress on his research project. That is one of the reasons I am starting to worry about the effect of the economic downturn on public university budgets, particularly for fields that need up to date and functioning equipment.</p>
<p>I am by no means saying anyone should go to Florida or Vandy. I was just giving a different perspective than the rest of the posts in the thread. I actually got into both UF and Vandy engineering schools…and picked vanderbilt</p>
<p>how about pre-med? how do those two programs compare?</p>
<p>Well, Vandy has an amazing biomedical program with the hospital and all that and the premed courses are tough, but definitely manageable. If I was in med, I would pick Vandy. Can you pay the 23k a year though?</p>
<p>if your family’s share is 23 thousand and they can afford to pay it in these hard times in our nation, I think it is worth it to go to Vandy. Of course, you should not take risks financially if your parents do not enjoy job stability since you really should avoid debt if you are going to grad school.
23 is such a reasonable pricetag for the quality of Vandy instruction, class size advantages, close contact with teachers…to say nothing of the opp of going to school among the strong classmates that define the class of 2013. Pick Vandy if you want a more traditional college experience for the first four years of your education and if you like the idea of intense required liberal arts courses required by AXLE. </p>
<p>College is of course about the classroom but it is also about your peers, and I think the peer group at Vandy is remarkable and challenging and varied and diverse. </p>
<p>I don’t know a thing about UF, I confess. Anyone with the work ethic to get into Vandy can make UF a successful enterprise, too. </p>
<p>all best…let us know.</p>
<p>Nashville is a pleasant vibrant city with four distinct seasons and Vandy has a positive relationship with its host city that is unusually good to students looking for fun experiences with friends plus Vandy delivers on the chance to do research and get field experience as interns in Nashville. </p>
<p>which school do you think will bring the best out in you?<br>
my son is graduating from Duke this year, and I have to say that just being around his talented classmates has taught him a lot about passion and organization and work ethic. Plus he has had tons of fun…Vandy is that kind of university…you learn as much from peers as you learn from faculty.</p>
<p>AXLE is only for A&S. Engineering has a much less stringent liberal arts requirement</p>
<p>so what did you decide?</p>
<p>who? me or azn? i’m going to vanderbilt!</p>
<p>Well, Yeah, Yayy!<br>
welcome to the Vandy and may it be golden for you.
my son will be joining you…from VA</p>
<p>Azn…we await your decision.</p>