Well, May 1st is rapidly approaching and I’m starting to panic a little bit about making a choice about college.
Here are the Colleges and their respective costs after aid/scholarships (Money matters):
CMU: 62k
UIUC: 36k
USC: 66k
I’m in the Engineering college for all schools.
My notes on USC:
As of now, I am leaning a bit towards USC. USC seems to have an unparalleled flexibility; I have access to all their engineering majors with no GPA requirements and things like that. With that being said, transferring majors is apparently easy at USC. Additionally, I can major and minor in things like Business or Economics which is extremely attractive. It also seems like USC has great academic advising and the engineering programs seem to graduate students in 4 years with great success. And, the strong alumn network and location in LA is a plus … But does bearing the financial burden of paying ~120k more than UIUC over four years justify all these positives?? Oh and also, USC is the lowest ranked engineering wise at #27 but it is #21 on overall rankings.
My notes on UIUC:
UIUC, as of now, seems to take second on my list. UIUC is the top ranked engineering undergraduate college on my list, taking place at #5. I’m in UIUC’s Engineering Undeclared Engineering program which essentially allows me to pick a major based on my freshman year GPA and major availability (Biomed is out in this picture). UIUC is the most attractive financially and does allow some double majoring (typically by having students graduate in 5 years) and some minoring with some restrictions based on availability and such not. If I wanted to do a double major at UIUC, for example business + engineering, I’ll have to go through the hassle of transferring between colleges which isn’t fantastic. I also find UIUC’s location a bit troubling and I’m a bit bothered by the hugeness of the university. UIUC overall is ranked #41.
My notes on CMU:
CMU is currently 3rd. A big reason why is that the engineering major variety is the smallest. At CMU, I will be unable to study Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science. I know that CMU has a nice location next to Pittsburgh and is very prestigious (ranked just 1 spot below UIUC at #6 for undergraduate engineering), but the cost combined with the major availability just makes it seem less attractive than the two. As for double majoring, however, CMU offers Biomedical Engineering and Engineering & Public Policy which is pretty sweet.
Please correct me if I have gotten anything wrong and please give me your opinions!
If you were my child I would encourage you to do more research on UIUC…the difference in cost of attendance is substantial. Also since I believe you are in-state, I would even consider a quick trip to campus.
My children are in business, not engineering, but they do participate in RSOs with engineers.
Things you might want to consider: joining a business frat, Illinois Business Consulting, the T & M program,
As for location…well, as a parent, I love having my kids fairly close. Moving in/out and coming home at Thanksgiving and breaks has been easy.
What GPA do you need for each major? Needing a 2.5 GPA to get into your desired major is quite a bit different from needing a 3.5 GPA to get into your desired major.
UIUC Engineering Undeclared is quite selective and only good academic standing (GPA > 2.0) is needed to transfer to all engineering majors, except BioEng, so even CS Engineering is available.
I would assume as a IL HS student and acceptance to Eng Undeclared that you also have quire a bit of AP credit, so check the link below as top Eng students usually enter UIUC with soph standing (>30 hours credit). https://admissions.illinois.edu/Apply/Freshman/college-credit-AP
Given its reputation, UIUC engineering is a great value for IL HS students and is not on the order of $37K/year. it’s closer to $30K per year as most do not get the deluxe meal plan. Housing costs are generally lower once leaving the dorms in later years and also UIUC tuition is frozen to the freshman year cost.
@IlliniDad18 The AP credit page is very helpful! Regarding the academic requirements for obtaining a BS or BA, I have not read up on very in depth… All I know is that I have to complete a certain amount of hours to obtain a major/minor at UIUC.
@88jm19 Wow! I’ve never actually heard of the undergraduate major/minor combination of engineering and business being frowned upon. From what I read, it does make sense to sharpen the technical side first before trying to traverse to management and things of that nature. Also, it seems that an undergraduate major in engineering leading to some work experience and then back to grad school for a business degree seems to be the logical option. Thanks for the thread!
Considering “money matters” as you put it, I can’t see how USC adds $30K/year more value than UIUC, considering the latter’s excellent education and reputation in engineering.
Engineering is typically a very heavy course load. Pursuing another major (such as business) at the same time could prove crushing. More typically, people do a BS in engineering and then an MBA later.
… But does bearing the financial burden of paying ~120k more than UIUC over four years justify all these positives?? Oh and also, USC is the lowest ranked engineering wise at #27 but it is #21 on overall rankings.