Okay so I posted a couple months ago wondering which school to go to and I’m still stuck. My problem before was not being in honors at Minnesota… Recently I got notified that I did get in to the school and honors program. I was accepted to honors at Iowa as well. Is it worth paying out of state tuition to go to Minnesota? I want to study abroad and don’t know which school has a better program for that or if there is a price difference for it between the schools. Also I will be on the cheer team and know for sure Iowa has good athletics everyone rallies around. Is Minnesotas football and basketball teams like that too? I plan on majoring in biomedical engineering and anthropology. I got a 32 on my ACT and have a 4.0. Anyone know of scholarships I would most likely receive at Minnesota? Any information will help. Thank you!!!
It’s essentially a wash. Both are very good but Minnesota-TC is probably stronger in STEM. I don’t think paying a premium to attend Minnesota-TC over Iowa is worth it.
The honors program at UMN-TC is much more selective (I believe they offer to the top 5% of students?) so your honors peer group would be very different. School spirit it great but the sports teams aren’t so Iowa may be a bit more exciting in that respect. UMN-TC has one of the largest study abroad programs, however, most universities now all offer good options for study abroad. You might qualify for a scholarship but your ACT may be a bit low.
What are you planning to study? They are comparable though I would rank UMN-TC higher overall with a student body that is relatively more serious (vs partying) - so depends on what you want. One caveat about the tuition, UMN-TC is seriously considering raising their OOS to a much higher level (roughly 35K) - wouldn’t be right away but probably within the next 4 years and they don’t freeze tuition for OOS. So a scholarship could be an important factor in your decision.
I’d go to Iowa, especially if cheaper. Better college town. U of MN is very good school and Minneapolis is awesome, but it’s not a traditional campus feel and a lot of commuters. I’d rather go to grad school there or live in Minneapolis post college.