Yes! They include stickers so you can start showing off Illini pride. My son also received a small gift from his major department…that was back in 2021.
2 Likes
It’s called a dual degree, rather than a double major, because it’s in two different colleges within the university. People do it, although it’s a little more complicated than a double major.
1 Like
when will they start announcing virtual events?
1 Like
my daughter got into Bioengineering at Grainger. She also has been admitted to University of Kansas Honors program, and she is interested in pre-med track. requesting your kind inputs on which is better, thanks in advance.
1 Like
UIUC no question, Grainger is one of the best engineering schools in the nation
2 Likes
The “which is better” question is never easy to answer.
If someone is going to med school, look at the pre-med advising because schools won’t differentiate one school vs. another let alone one flagship vs. another, even as good as UIUC’s engineering rep is. Your GPA, MCAT and other things will.
Has she been to both campuses? KU is smaller population wise and closer to society - meaning Kansas City vs. pick your city close to UIUC - whether Chicago, Indy, St. Louis - although there is an airport and it’s certainly not a rural town.
She might like one campus over the other. I’ve not been to KU although I’ve driven past it several times on I70. I have an opinion about UIUC’s campus but I’m not your daughter. What’s her opinion?
KU Honors is noted as a top Honors program - but what will she get out of Honors? What does she desire to get from it? Look at the curriculum - as Honors typically is not overwhelming vs. the overall curriculum. Is there better advising? Will it help her focus on pre-med? My daughter is in an Honors College, has three advisors, and it’s like playing wack a mole. Everyone says - talk to this person and it’s a circular waste of time. Will there be one person to help spearhead their issues at each school? That said, the Honors class size and topics work for my daughter and she wishes she could take more.
From a “ranking” POV - you can’t beat UIUC, especially for engineering and KU won’t be in the same ballpark. But will it matter for pre-med - unlikely. Her GPA and MCAT will amongst other things.
Which has better access to shadowing opportunities? Pre Med Success? Overall advising?
Is cost an issue for you - as you’ll have med school after so that’s another - call it $300K Assuming you are OOS for both (and I don’t know this), I’ll assume KU is less $$. Med School adds four more years - so how will you pay for all?
Better is in the eye of the beholder. Figure out what is better for you?
We cannot tell you which is better.
2 Likes
As a pre-med student, I would consider strongly whether to major in engineering. GPA is the most important thing in applying to medical school, and getting a 3.8+ GPA in an engineering curriculum is very difficult. It really doesn’t matter where you go to school for applying to med school. You don’t get to have a lower GPA just because you went to a higher ranked school. Generally the advice for applying to medical school is to go where you will get the highest GPA. However, lots of premed students get weeded out or decide not to continue. You need to figure out if that happens is there an attractive alternate course of study.
5 Likes
thanks a lot for this! yes, i should have put it as what factors we would need to consider - instead of which is better 
I’m a newbie to the US college world myself, so all your inputs are very helpful.
KS would be in-state as she attends high school there, UIUC is currently OOS but would have to submit a petition as I relocated to Bloomington IL in spring 2022 for my job and she should be eligible for instate.
I would also listen to @VirginiaBelle
Engineering is brutal and has a way of bringing HS studs down to size.
My kid was a HS stud and has a 3.2 in engineering, 3.6 overall - still strong - but in his non-engineering classes he breezes to A+ and A - and that’s important for pre-med. The engineering will likely bring the GPA down - even to those who are straigh As and high SAT/ACT. In fact, depending on the study, 40-60% of engineers don’t finish. That’s less likely for someone like your daughter as she’s clearly qualified where a lot of engineering students aren’t…but something to think about.
2 Likes
And that brings up another point. Premed classes can be GPA busters as well. And many medical schools don’t accept AP credit for premed classes, so likely you will need to retake chemistry/bio even if you place out.
I think it’s wise to read the statistics on med school acceptance before deciding to take that path and choosing a college, just so you know what they’re looking for and what you’re up against. For example, the 3.8 GPA I quoted gets 2/3 of applicants in. That means 1/3 even at that level are still rejected. Drop down to a 3.4-3.6 and less than a third are admitted. And also GPA calculation can vary among schools. We have one at UGA where a 4.0 is typically a 94 or higher. At Georgia Tech, it is a 90 or higher. That puts a 3.8 an easier reach at Georgia Tech theoretically than at UGA. To get a 3.8 at UGA you need to get a 94 or higher in almost all of your classes over the course of four years. It’s possible and definitely easier if you choose a less challenging major but still a pretty high bar.
1 Like
thank you, very helpful insights.
I also see we have Carle Illinois College of Medicine - would there be preference to undergrads from UIUC? KU school of medicine has great reputation, I’ve heard, but not sure of Carle school ( may be because I’m new to IL.)
and this is just me being a parent thinking through the possibilities - if pre-med track is not happening: - are the career/placement opportunities for bioengineering undergrad promising? or a higher degree would still be needed?
Pre med is just an “advising” if you will. As long as you meet the pre-reqs, the major doesn’t matter. But it was just pointed out that some majors are easier to get higher GPAs.
So if the student wants medical school, they shouldn’t be dissuaded by that goal.
You can talk to the school/department about outcomes and careers in the major. I can’t speak to that major but most engineering doesn’t need a Masters. There are some jobs but few with a masters and some employers don’t want a masters - higher salaries.
I would say your daughter should pursue her passion.
But just note about pre-med and the GPA of her chosen major - that’s all. No reason to give up her desires at this point.
Really - she should make an advising appointment if possible (ahead of school) at one of the programs and she can ask these questions or express these concerns and see what they say.
1 Like
The Carle School of Medicine at Illinois is relatively new, founded in 2015. It is marketed as the world’s first engineering based school of medicine. So it may be right in the wheelhouse for a pre-med Engineering student.
2 Likes
35 ACT, 4.0 UW GPA, 16 AP classes, large semi-competitive public school. Published NLP research at Stanford amongst other strong ECs.
Any idea on the chances of conversion at UIUC if deferred?
Since they do not accept any LOCI, any stats on the number of RD applications and acceptances in RD?
1 Like
Did anyone get scholarship notification?
Did the decision come out today? I thought decisions come out March 3rd.
I thought decisons came out in april march ish?decisions
Is it possible to update applications to be considered for scholarships or notify the OSFA office?
1 Like
my daughter had applied for the Early Action consideration so the results came out by Jan 27