<p>I don't know which school to go to yet. I plan on visiting ASU, I am in state in Illinois... none of the schools really interest me other than UOI but my cousin goes to ASU and he loves it. I would be studying biology. </p>
<p>Should I apply to both or is it smarter financially to just stay in state?</p>
<p>ASU is a much weaker school than UIUC. If you can get into Illinois, I’d go there.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t go to a school some random stranger says is stronger. Go to a school you can afford, get a good education, and fits you well</p>
<p>Based on strength alone, I would certainly choose UIUC. Now I have a bias as I am an alum of UIUC. You really have to ask yourself what it is you want. I assume that if you were to go to ASU, you’d pay OOS tuition. Are there any other factors that make you interested in ASU? Have you visited the campus? There are so many subjective factors that go into this decision that you and your parents need to sit down and discuss the options.</p>
<p>University of Illinois is well regarded and highly rated. National employers know it, and often recruit there. The US News and World Reports rankings are not the last word in relative quality of colleges but they are often in the right general area. University of Illinois is ranked as 41 among national universities, and ASU is ranked 142 – a huge difference.</p>
<p>On the positive side the weather in the greater Phoenix/Tempe area from late fall through early spring is exceptional. For some that’s a major plus when compared with the weather in the mid-west. But you can find exceptional weather in Southern California as well. If your stats are competitive and out of state tuition is not an issue University of California San Diego has an exceptional biology program.</p>
<p>Outside of a few programs, ASU is not very rigorous and has been hit hard by budget cutbacks. Given how many students change their majors, it make sense to consider the broader strength of the university which is why I believe UIUC to be an academically superior choice. Granted, the near constant Tempe sun is likely far more appealing than the freezing Illinois winters. </p>
<p>Also fogcity, plenty of employers recruit from ASU although I doubt that many would be looking specifically for biology grads.</p>
<p>ASU biology students are apparently considered worthy enough that some of them are admitted to top-reputation PhD programs in biology.</p>
<p>However, if PhD study in biology is not your destination, remember that biology majors in general face a tough time in the job market. Actually, even at the PhD level, the job market may not be all that great.</p>
<p>But given that you are in-state for UIUC, it does not seem to make too much sense to go to ASU unless cost is a big concern and ASU gives a large enough scholarship to bring the cost down to significantly below UIUC. But that assumes that you have a choice; UIUC is generally considered more selective than ASU, so you may be admitted to ASU but not UIUC.</p>
<p>What will you do with a bio degree?</p>
<p>Do you qualify for merit at UAz? What are your test scores and GPA?</p>
<p>What are your parents saying about how much they’ll pay each year?</p>
<p>UIUC is expensive, even for instate students, so sometimes it is cheaper to go OOS if you have the stats for merit scholarships to other schools.</p>
<p>it looks like asu is about 20,000 OOS and IOIUC is about 30,000 instate.</p>
<p>^? Instate tuition at UIUC is $15258-20178 (depending on major). OOS tuition at ASU is $22977.</p>
<p>it looks like asu is about 20,000 OOS and IOIUC is about 30,000 instate.</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>The COA at ASU is more than $20k. where are you getting that? Are you comparing OOS tuition at ASU with instate COA at UIUC? That’s not fair. you have to compare COA with COA.</p>
<p>OOS tuition at ASU is about $23k. The OOS COA is about $38k.</p>