Hey everyone. I would appreciate some help. I was accepted to all three colleges above. I’m planning on studying aerospace engineering. I would love to hear other’s opinions for these schools. I’m from PA so Penn state is in state for me. Also I grew up a penn state fan and went to games since before I could walk, so penn state is in my blood. So far penn state is the only one that I’ve visited, but I am visiting virginia tech this week. I do like the big school feel. My main concern is how employers view degrees from each school. Again thank you to anyone who responds and i would appreciate any insight that you could give me! Thanks!
Employers are going to view the schools as peers. They aren’t going to care a bit about which one you went to.
What are your parents saying about paying for each of these schools?
@mom2collegekids
They would prefer Penn state. And then virginia tech. The costs for both of those are pretty close for me. To be honest it’s between those two for me. I grew up right next to penn state and I love that campus. I’m visiting Virginia Tech in a few days so I’ll have to decide from there.
If you say that degrees from each of the schools are comparable, then it just comes down to cost and how much I like each school. Thanks for the info!
Visiting makes a huge difference so it’s good that you are visiting. But something else you should consider is distance. You said you lived right next to penn state, just make sure you willing to stay where you lived for a long time for the next 4 years. But on the flip side I think vt would be pretty far from you so make sure you willing to drive that much if you take your car, or be willing to sit on the bus for that long. Also, would you mind posting your stats? I’m still waiting on a few college. Hope you figure out your decision soon!! Good luck!
RPI is a great school, but it is TINY compared to the other two. If big time college sports are part of the experience you seek (and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that), you can scratch RPI off the list unless you live for hockey. The issues with the big two is that there will be lots more social opportunity. Read that as PARRRTEEE!!! There’s also nothing wrong with that as long as you can balance it with your academics. The temptation will be much higher at VT and PSU. The undergraduate teaching MIGHT be better at RPI since the others will rely a bit more on graduates, but that’s not certain. Lastly, if you were accepted to a private that RPI considers a peer (CMU and Case are common ones), got more money, but have since scratched that school off your list, you can parlay that award into an increase at RPI. Even a simple call can sometimes help. Even with the minimum Medalist award ($60k), RPI is very expensive. Good luck.
@senior19
Hey you asked for my stats.
SAT:2060 (M:690 CR:750 W:620)
UW GPA: 4.0
Gender: Female
Ethnicity: White
Home state: PA
Essays: all very strong
Recs: very good
ECs: 4 year field hockey player(won awards as a senior), book club, journalism club, student council, had 2 jobs
Etc: I was dual enrolled in high school and college my junior year. My senior year classes are definitely rigorous.
It bears mentioning that i am a female going into engineering. So I know for RPI especially, they admit a higher percentage of women. So use that info as you will.
Also, I have considered the distance. I have always wanted to be far from home for college, but I would be willing to go to Penn State if it’s the better option in other respects. Penn state is about 30 minutes away and Virginia tech is about 6 hours. So quite the difference. But as I said it’s more dependent on the schools and campuses themselves rather than the distance from home. I hope you hear back from your colleges soon. Good luck!
@kelors Since I am an RPI grad and have a son at Penn State who visited VT, I think I can lend a perspective to this.
RPI is a great school, and the campus has expanded some since I was there (1987 grad). But it is small, and as a female engineer you would definitely be in the minority (only 30% female).
Penn State - nothing I can add there that you don’t already know. Large alumni base can be helpful.
VA Tech - has a campus and setting that is comparable to Penn State.
All 3 have highly ranked engineering programs. If you are looking for a setting like Penn State, but want to be farther away from home, VA Tech sounds like a great option.
Feel free to ask any questions.