<p>My son was admitted into the journalism programs at both Northwestern and Miami. He loved Miami when we attended for the Singer weekend, but he also likes Northwestern. Northwestern has a much higher overall USNWR rating, and a more prestigious journalism program. However, Miami offered $30,000 per year in merit scholarships. We would have to pay the full price of attendance--no financial or merit aid--at Northwestern. I am curious to hear from Miami graduates if they feel this difference in reputation of the schools has hindered their ability to secure selective internships or with post college job placement.</p>
<p>Even though I’m not a graduate (I’ll be a freshman next year), I will say that undergraduate universities are not worth going into debt. It took me a while to realize this, but now I understand it. Case in point, I was accepted to schools like UIUC and Purdue for engineering, schools well known and world renowned for engineering. However, I will be attending Miami’s College of Engineering this fall; a school less known for engineering. The reason I’m doing this is because I would pay anywhere between $30,000 to $40,000 for UIUC and Purdue whereas for Miami, I am paying $5000. In the case of your son, I would definitely say Miami because it would be significantly cheaper. It’s not the rank of program that matters, but how much you are willing to receive it and make the best grades possible. I’m pretty sure any employer would take a Miami grad with a 3.5 GPA than a Northwestern grad with a 2.5 GPA. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>This is a tough call. Northwestern’s school of journalism is one of the best in the country and enjoys and incredible reputation. Miami’s a good school, but nowhere near as prestigious.</p>
<p>Having said that, I’d echo freedom2succeed’s comments that debt is something you’ll want to avoid at all costs. If you have to take on more than a little bit of debt for Northwestern, it may not be worth it, especially in a field as tumultuous as journalism where getting a job out of college can be quite the struggle.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your thoughtful responses. This is a hard decision for us because of the points you all make. And the fact that both campuses are truly beautiful and seem to be great fits for our son. We are not wealthy, but we would pay the tuition with some significant sacrifices, and we don’t want to be short sighted about the value of a good education. If a degree from NU helps open doors and achieve professional success, we want to support that; however, if it really how hard one works at the institution much more than what an institution can offer in terms of education, valuable internships, and alumni support, then Miami seems like a better choice.</p>
<p>psspss: These are two excellent schools, albeit with different reputations. However, I do agree that a student who is committed to studying and pursuing various opportunities, internships, etc., will do well at either university. While UM journalist doesn’t have the reputation as Medill, you are still in a major media market with a lot of opportunities. Your DS can always go to grad school at Medill. That is, if he is brave enough to venture to Evanston after four years in tropical Coral Gables!</p>
<p>FYI - I am a Northwestern grad (communications) and will be sending my DS to Miami (engineering - he wouldn’t even consider NU!)</p>
<p>Thanks, LINYMOM. Although sunny and nice at the moment, Chicago was really cold and rainy this morning–it made Miami more desirable!! I have to admit, though, the experiential focus, alumni support, and reputation of the Medill program at Northwestern is extremely impressive. Attending the accepted students day today at NU has helped my son focus his interests, concerns. He now has good questions he can ask the journalism/university faculty at U of M, and those answers will help him in his decision.</p>
<p>I really think $120K difference is way too much, especially for journalism. Even Medill grads are not unemployment proof. In fact, the school has the highest rate of umployment among the six colleges at Northwestern, despite its reputation (there are just not that many journalism jobs around, I guess). Of coure Medill would make some difference in securing internships; but is the difference worth $120K in a relatively low-paying field? Probably not.</p>
<p>What is the interest rate for student loans these days? Is it like 6-7%? If the difference is financed with loans, the monthly payment is probably at least few hundreds even if it’s spread over 20 years.</p>
<p>umiami is the way to go</p>