Hi everyone I need help ASAP!! I am a middle class female from PA and I am having such a hard time trying to decide where to go for college. I plan on majoring in biology on either a pre-med track or a pre-pa track, so something in the medical field. Pitt and Purdue were both safety schools for me and I got into both and they happen to be my top choices.
Pitt obviously has some of the best programs and resources for what I want to do and will provide really great opportunities, however it is only about 30 minutes from my home and significantly more expensive than Purdue. I do not mind being so close, though I would rather branch out, but I enjoy the city atmosphere at Pitt. I would probably be 15-25k in debt after Pitt which is not too terrible but my debt will only increase if I go to Med School.
Though Purdue has one of the best engineering programs in the country, it, unfortunately, does not have the best science programs and such. I love sports and Purdue is in the Big 10 and has a good basketball team (my favorite sport to watch) so i think I would have such a fun experience with that. I also enjoy hiking/adventuring so I don’t mind that Purdue is kind of in the middle of nowhere, plus road tripping to Chicago, etc. would be fun. I would have no debt if I went to Purdue which would be beneficial if I want to go to med school, since that is so expensive.
Please give me advice on what I should do!!! I feel like Pitt might be the obvious choice because it would be better for me education-wise and that is most important but I might have a better experience at Purdue and the education is still decent.
How is Pitt more expensive than Purdue if Purdue is out of state? Did they offer a scholarship at Purdue? If so, that’s AWESOME! If not, I would probably go with Pitt (19,000 a year), since you can live at home and commute. If everything is coming from your own dime, you may want to start at community college. Purdue is $28,000 a year for OOS tuition, and you’d have to pay for room and board, bringing the cost to around 40,000 a year.
Pitt would be around 27k a year, not 19. Purdue did give me a scholarship and it would be between 8k-10k, insanely low. My parents are paying for most of it but any loans i have to take out, I will be paying. I also don’t think I would live at home if I went to Pitt, even if it would help with cost. That just isn’t something I want to do. So, like I said, with what my parents are paying I will be in no debt at Purdue and 15-25k at Pitt. Of course, the in-state school that my dad also went to is more expensive… Pitt is just stingy with money.
I live in eastern PA and as you can tell by my name and avatar have a fondness for Purdue. It is a great school and reputation at least around my home outside of Philly is actually held in higher regard than Pitt. I know many that went to Purdue for Undergrad and then on to Med School (my brother’s Father-in-law, my family doctor when I lived in Indiana, and some of my son’s friends have done this and went on to PA school). I’ve heard no complaints.
I did attend Purdue for engineering, but can tell you that any of the sciences are strong there. I wouldn’t say they lag Pitt by any great margin at the Undergraduate level. Attending any Big 10 University will prepare you for what you need.
Reading from your post, that appeared to be your biggest concern. Everything else seemed to read like you were looking for reasons to justify your decision. Go to Purdue, I think you’ll enjoy it. It isn’t in the middle of no where, really less than an hour from Indy, less than two from Chicago. The Lafayette/West Lafayette area isn’t all that small, together it would be the third largest city in PA (about the same size as Allentown/Bethlehem area). I can tell you in my four years there, I didn’t really feel like I was isolated from civilization like I would have at Cornell/Colgate/Bucknell/Williams etc.
If the cost is considerably less at Purdue (and Purdue has held tuition and fees flat for 9 straight years), the quality of work at the undergraduate level is at worst the same, you don’t wanna live close to home, I think the decision is pretty easy.
Haha, yes, I have been trying to justify my decision. Thank you for that, it was very much what I needed to hear. 
I don’t think that 25K in loans should be the deciding factor- that’s not so much. However, if you like Purdue better, then save the $ and go there. It’s well-respected, can give you a solid education, and won’t hold you back. both schools have great spirit and exciting sports, even though Pitt hasn’t been a big winner for a while.
So you got crazy merit at Purdue and none at Pitt? Interesting.
I know, it’s frustrating. I got a 35 on my ACT and have a 4.8 and a lot of EC’s and such and I’m vice president of National Honor Society. I didn’t get “none” at Pitt, I got 20k for all 4 years, so 5k a year but I was hoping Pitt would give more especially, like I said, since I’m in-state and my dad went there but I have heard from a lot of people that they aren’t super generous with giving out money so…
I’m a Purdue parent. My D’s in engineering but her roommate is a biochem/premed. STEM in general is very strong at Purdue, not just for engineering.
Were you admitted to honors college at Purdue?