<p>I was accepted into the honors programs at both schools. I plan on majoring in chemical engineering. I visited VT last spring and absolutely loved it but I was not able to go to one of the Hokie Focus days. I did get to attend a Decision Day at UD and even though my heart is not totally set on UD, their honors program (class sizes 20-30 kids) + top 10 ranked ChemE program and awesome study abroad program made it sound great academically. I am leaning towards VT but I do not know a lot of things that I could have found out at a Hokie Focus day. Can anyone tell me how strong the ChemE program is versus UD's and also any information on class sizes and benefits of the honors program (I am not in honors housing)? I am from Philadelphia as well but I think I will do better away from home (even though my parents see it as a con).</p>
<p>I really need help considering the deadline is in a week so any input would be appreciated.</p>
<p>My son is currently a freshman ChemE major at UD (non-honors), he was also accepted to VT engineering, and had a hard time choosing between the two.</p>
<p>I personally don’t know much about VT honors program, but two very knowledgeable and reliable posters on this thread (chuy and blueiguana) have posted that VT engineering majors should not do honors. I believe you must maintain a 3.6 gpa, which is challenging enough in engineering without all the extra writing that honors requires. According to the posts I’ve read, there is no real benefit to an honors degree in engineering from VT.</p>
<p>After our visits last year to both Hokie Focus, and Delaware Decision Days, the one area we thought that Tech came out on top (for ChemE) is their co-op program. Delaware does not have co-op (only internships, both paid and unpaid). According to the information provided during VT’s ChemE presentation, you can apply for co-ops beginning sophomore year, and there are usually enough positions for all, or most, who apply.</p>
<p>If you are sure that ChemE is for you, I think that Delaware has the better program. If you think there is a chance you may want to change disciplines, then I would choose VT - they definitely have Delaware beat in every other discipline, and offer more disciplines than Delaware. That’s the advice we gave my son last year at this time.</p>
<p>That’s my two cents - good luck to you with your decision.</p>
<p>I’m a junior architecture major at Virginia Tech in the Honors program. Although I’m not an engineer, I can definitely speak to the strength of Honors here. While maintaining the 3.5 required GPA can be a challenge, it’s very possible. There’s a lot of engineers in Honors. I don’t really know about the benefits of having “Honors” on your diploma when looking for an engineering job, but the benefits of being in Honors during your time in college are much more important, in my opinion.</p>
<p>People are often afraid of the “extra work” of Honors, but in reality there are so many ways to earn Honors credit that you can find ones that fit your interests and schedule. You can get Honors credit for studying abroad, doing internships, taking upper-level classes outside of your major, doing student-led reading groups and colloquia courses, taking Honors sections of classes you’d take anyway (i.e. freshman english), etc. The faculty that teach these courses are fantastic, and the opportunities afforded students in Honors are beyond worthwhile. Even if you’re not in Honors housing now, you can apply to transfer in in the future. I lived in a regular freshman hall my first year, and then moved into one of the Honors communities, and it’s been awesome.</p>
<p>Honors at VT is all about making yourself interesting, and the faculty and staff really help you do that. They’re constantly relaying information about lectures and events on campus and in the area, as well as opportunities for scholarships, study abroad programs, internships and co-ops, etc.</p>
<p>Not to mention course selection preference…</p>
<p>Like I said, I can’t really speak to the ChemE department here, aside from the fact that it’s well-ranked and my friends who are in it really like it. But regarding being farther from home, I’m from New Jersey and being eight hours away isn’t really a big deal. Personally, I think it’s nice to be able to experience a different part of the country.</p>
<p>Academics and Honors aside, the best thing about Tech is the sense of solidarity and community. I’ve fallen in love with Blacksburg and this school, and can’t imagine being anywhere else.</p>
<p>I hope this helps. I’m sure you’ll be happy wherever you choose, so don’t freak out. Just remember to take advantage of all the opportunities college gives you :)</p>
<p>Thank you so much for both of your responses.</p>
<p>jerseyarchhokie- I am also considering PSU, but did not apply to their Honors program. So, do you think that paying about 10 grand a year more to go to VT would be worth it considering I am in the Honors program? I feel that the Honors program makes a huge difference but I do not know if it would be worth all that debt.</p>
<p>^^ That’s a really tough call. If you’re not the type of person who will take advantage of all the opportunities Honors gives you and you’ll get to know the staff, you should probably just go with PSU. If you want to get into honors housing and meet some great people, get to know the staff, etc, there’s certainly a strong case to be made for VT.</p>
<p>I’m also out of state at VT, and I love it. I didn’t even apply in-state because we sent 20 kids to pitt and another 20 to penn state. I’m so glad I went out of state, and I think a lot of kids who did that will echo my sentiments.</p>
<p>I have no idea the relative ranking of chem engineering programs, but that’s certainly another thing to consider. I’ve advocated Honors in a lot of my past posts, so feel free to take a dig through them (<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/search.php?do=finduser&u=209663[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/search.php?do=finduser&u=209663</a>) to read more.</p>
<p>mmm money is always a tough one. for me, VT was the cheapest school I applied to, even with financial aid offers from other schools, but even if it had not been, it’s worth every penny. i’d like to echo the latest post though - it’s important to take advantage of the opportunities offered. it can definitely pay off in the form of scholarships and grants, but you have to be willing to work for it.</p>
<p>
I’d like to clarify, FWIW, that my position stated earlier on VT honors for e’school students was simply to remember the GPA requirement is high at 3.5 and choose VT for VT, not simply for the honors aspect, because keeping a 3.5 may or may not be realistic for every engineering student in college, in fact it’s quite hard. I said nothing of the programs value (or not) to e’school students.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the responses. I have been trying to take in all of the information provided here along with the information posted on my threads on PSU and UD’s pages to try to help me make my decision. I will definitely post back to tell you where I decide after I visit PSU this Friday.</p>
<p>I chose Penn State! After my visit yesterday, the decision was obvious. I loved everything about the school. However, VT will always be a special place to me and I will still be a Hokies fan!</p>