Cost matters.
And so does education, reputation, dorms quality, social life, starting salary etc.
Please share your opinions… I’m in all three For engineering
If cost matters, what will they each cost you per year out of pocket?
Well Virginia is 7000usd costlier per annum, but I was hoping to get opinions on other factors too
Based on your past posts, you’re an international student - please correct me if I’m wrong.
A quick google search will show you the Cost of Attendance for each school for this year as an international student. It’ll go up a bit for next year, so the numbers won’t be exactly the same.
Virginia Tech: $38,186 + estimated $6000 for expenses (http://www.admiss.vt.edu/apply/expenses/)
Buffalo: $38,408, they do not provide an estimate for any expenses but those will still need to be taken into account (http://financialaid.buffalo.edu/costs/undergradcost.php)
Stony Brook: $36,266, they do not provide an estimate for expenses (http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/finaid/finaidbasics/cost.html)
Rankings from US News & World:
VT is ranked #71 overall, #27 Public School, and ranked #8 for Engineering in Public Schools and #15 overall (http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/virginia-polytechnic-institute-and-state-university-233921/overall-rankings, http://www.vtnews.vt.edu/articles/2014/09/090914-engineering-usnews2015.html, http://www.eng.vt.edu/news/virginia-tech-breaks-top-25-best-public-universities-undergraduates-ranked-us-news-world-report)
University of Buffalo is ranked #103 overall, #48 public school (http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/university-at-buffalo-196088/overall-rankings)
Stony Brook is ranked $#88 overall, #38 public school, #69 overall engineering (http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/stony-brook-university-suny-196097/overall-rankings)
Virginia Tech has pretty low costs of living due to its location. The dorms are pretty standard. There are some higher quality dorms (not many freshman end up there) and various living communities you can apply to, like one specifically for engineering. Many students live off campus after their first year, which allows for flexibility and your own room at a reasonable cost. Our dining program is top ranked almost every year. There are lots of research and extracurricular opportunities for those who seek them, and lots of Engineering companies recruit during the engineering career fair each fall. Blacksburg is a college town, meaning that students dominate the area for much of the year, providing a very lively campus and lots of activity.
Based on those who complete the post-graduation report at VT, between 80%-90% of Engineering graduates were employed after graduating in the past ten years. The median salary for 2012-13 that was reported was $62,500.
Thank you Very much for your very informative answer. I appreciate it alot.
Yes, I am an International.
Also may I ask, you mentioned it will go up next year. Why is that?
Regarding the costs, be careful. financiallylost provided a lot of useful information, but actually the Buffalo and Stony Brook estimates do include estimated expenses. The question is how do each of the schools derive their estimates - what exactly goes in to personal, transportation, etc.? I’m not sure you’re apt to get a clear answer.
I would recommend creating your own spreadsheet. Total up tuition, fees, and room and board based on the schools’ web sites (do yourself a favor, and figuring in increases over four years), but then do your own cost accounting on the other stuff. For instance, since you’re international, perhaps you are flying into JFK and taking a quick train to Stony Brook several times a year, which may be a lot cheaper than getting to Buffalo or Blacksburg. Of the three, Buffalo is most forthcoming with merit aid, but that all depends on what you are offered.
As an international, you may prefer lots of other international students (Buffalo is 12th in the nation, with 16%, Stony Brook is also high, with 10%, Tech has 4%), or you may prefer fewer, or you may not care. Each of the universities has a distinct culture. Stony Brook has a NYC/Long Island/commuter feel, Buffalo is a medium sized midwestern city, Tech has more of a southern feel where the cadet corps and sports are a part of the experience. The weather in Buffalo is rough, Tech is generally pleasant, and Stony Brook is in between. Tech is more heavily oriented toward engineering (about 7k out of 24k undergad), while Stony Brook (2.5k out of 17k) and Buffalo (3k out of 19k) are more diverse.
Tech clearly has the strongest engineering reputation, but if there are other things influencing your decision, you’ll need to dig deeper.
@JustListening Thank you very much for your opinions. it is very helpful :))
Yes I have infact created a spreadsheet with exactly these things hehe. 
Also,
Is Virginia Tech generally a better ‘job Grabber’ than the others? As in will the chances of getting a higher paying job be higher if I choose VTech?