<p>Don't remind me about law school...</p>
<p>I should be writing my personal statement right now. Viva procrastination!</p>
<p>ken285, I would go as far as saying Harvard engineering program is dreadful(exclude BME)....It is disappointing that with a 50 billion endowment they can't build a top 20 engineering program....</p>
<p>I wouldn't say college doesn't matter, for example Google specially recruits Stanford grads...makes sense.
But in most cases it doesn't matter that much.</p>
<p>What about the government agencies I listed?
Especially DoE...I doubt they recruit undergrads though....</p>
<p>Google specifically recruits people who can solve their billboard riddles.</p>
<p>Anyway, if you are hell bent on caring about the name of the university you go to, Stanford is not a bad choice. At least they also teach you something there (usually).</p>
<p>Oh, and from what I can tell, government agencies care even less where you went than private companies.</p>
<p>^^^^
Google doesn't have billboards around here:(</p>
<p>Anyways,I think the government secretly does care...especially in R&D department...</p>
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Cornell is probably the only Ivy league school I'd go to for engineering or science related majors.
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<p>Seriously? I can see it for most engineering, but most of the Ivies have fantastic natural and computer science programs. And Princeton has a lot of very strong traditional engineering departments (aero/astro, EE, chemical, mechanical...).</p>
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Anyway, if you are hell bent on caring about the name of the university you go to, Stanford is not a bad choice.
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<p>seriously, i'd worry about not going there AFTER getting in. Stanford being #1 or #2 in engineering w/ acceptance rate somewhere in 10%, calling it "not a bad choice" is a bit presumptuous.</p>
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Seriously? I can see it for most engineering, but most of the Ivies have fantastic natural and computer science programs. And Princeton has a lot of very strong traditional engineering departments (aero/astro, EE, chemical, mechanical...).
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<p>Yea I'm saying the other Ivies don't have BAD programs in those areas I'm just saying I think I'd fit in best at Cornell.</p>
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Anyways,I think the government secretly does care...especially in R&D department...
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<p>Yes. Sure. The government cares. You should probably have a couple of PhDs from MIT and Cal Tech both, just to be on the safe side. Frankly, if you didn't know how to do computational fluid dynamics in your head by the age of seven, you should probably just give up now and embrace your fast food management destiny.</p>
<p>(Seriously, you're making a way bigger deal of this than it actually is. If you come from a solid program, do well there, and get into an upper-tier grad program, you'll have a plethora of opportunities.)</p>
<p>I wasn't trying to disparage Stanford's engineering program. They are great. But as everyone on here has tried to reiterate again and again, the name of the school you go to DOES NOT MATTER.</p>
<p>"Anyways,I think the government secretly does care...especially in R&D department..."</p>
<p>Think it all you want. It isn't true. They really do not care where you went. All they care about is that YOU know what you are doing. And that is the last I will say on the subject. If you really think after everyone has told you otherwise that they care intensely where you went, by all means go wherever you feel will give you the most clout. So long as you can afford it they are usually pretty good options.</p>
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So long as you can afford it
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<p>well, i'd understand the concern of cost only if you are choosing between private vs public (instate).. but otherwise, if going to that 3rd-tier private eng program would cost as much as going to stanford, why not just goto stanford? (provided you do get accepted into both.)</p>
<p>so in those cases, it'd be at your advantage to goto a higher ranked engineering program not just for job prospects. (better facilities, more renowened faculties, better research opportunities, etc)</p>
<p>im saying this because i realized initial concern stemmed partially from cost of going to private institutions and i don't see a point of this if you are choosing between private vs private (or public vs public - both being instate)</p>
<p>i mean, it sounded like you were saying the "disadvantage" of going to a highly-ranked institution is "cost of attendance", but cost itself has nothing to do with the instituion being highly-ranked or not. it has to do with it being public or private, and seriously, there are so many public instituions who are highly ranked in eng (ucb being at #3). if you are a californian and got accepted into UCB eng, i don't see why the person would opt to goto some third-tier program instead. i know some ppl do, but not many.</p>
<p>If salary is what you are concerned about, i'm pretty sure average starting salaries for engineers are almost identical after taking into account differences in the cost of living, whether it is Stanford or a 50th ranked engineering college.</p>
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well, i'd understand the concern of cost only if you are choosing between private vs public (instate).. but otherwise, cost of private schools aren't correlated to their engineering rankings. if going to that 3rd-tier private eng program would cost as much as going to stanford, why not just goto stanford? (provided you do get accepted into both.)
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<p>Well firstly a 3rd tier private engineering school does NOT cost as much as going to Stanford or another school of similar reputation. My friend at MIT pays much more than twice what I do at a top ranked private engineering school. </p>
<p>Secondly, not everyone is interested in going to an Ivy. I'd much rather stay close to my family and friends for the next four to six years and get the same knowledge I would in another engineering school. Plus I plan on getting a job in this area when I graduate anyway.</p>
<p>well, joejoe is right about stanford. stanford is more expensive than other privates.</p>
<p>well, what im saying is, there really aren't that much of disadvantages of going to a high-ranked program if your other option is similarly priced anyway. there are plenty of high-ranked programs that are public. (i don't remember right now, but i believe almost half of top 10 eng programs are public in fact) don't worry about OoS for moment.</p>
<p>for instance, i say this again but, if a californian got accepted and decided to goto Cal, there really aren't any disadvantage for him to attend a such highly-acclaimed program in the nation, since he'll be paying an instate tuition.</p>
<p>Maybe I am wrong, especially government jobs wise. I am looking at famous people that were recruited 50 years ago from few colleges...but maybe that is because i doubt many universities were developed back then.</p>
<p>Any suggestions anyways?</p>
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Any suggestions anyways?
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<p><em>facepalm</em>... We've already listed a whole bunch!</p>
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ken285, I would go as far as saying Harvard engineering program is dreadful(exclude BME)....It is disappointing that with a 50 billion endowment they can't build a top 20 engineering program....
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<p>I can't blame them for that because they aren't even trying. They don't want to be a top 20 engineering program because from what I've seen, they feel as if engineering is "below" them. </p>
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Well firstly a 3rd tier private engineering school does NOT cost as much as going to Stanford or another school of similar reputation. My friend at MIT pays much more than twice what I do at a top ranked private engineering school.
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<p>MIT costs approximately $45k. Polytechnic, which I consider to be third tier, costs $39k. Stevens Institute of Technology costs $47k. I'd say it's about the same.</p>
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I can't blame them for that because they aren't even trying. They don't want to be a top 20 engineering program because from what I've seen, they feel as if engineering is "below" them.
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<p>They might have a point if that's their true rationale. In some regards, engineering is cliff notes for physics. I have to take quantum from the physics department because I didn't like the way it was taught in ECE.</p>
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They might have a point if that's their true rationale. In some regards, engineering is cliff notes for physics. I have to take quantum from the physics department because I didn't like the way it was taught in ECE.
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<p>You just made a whole lot of enemies on this board, I am sure. I would go get your flack vest and hunker down.</p>
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MIT costs approximately $45k. Polytechnic, which I consider to be third tier, costs $39k. Stevens Institute of Technology costs $47k. I'd say it's about the same.
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<p>But you are just cherry picking there. There are pleanty of good schools that don't cost nearly that much. Texas Tech, Texas A&M, and <em>slight gag</em> Texas are all decent engineering schools, and none of them cost that much. They are 15k, 22k, and 26k respectively (and that is out of state tuition).</p>
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But you are just cherry picking there.
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<p>I wasn't cherry picking, though I do realize it's a small sample size. I was simply picking off third tier engineering schools in my area that I'm familiar with.</p>
<p>There doesn't seem to be a strong correlation between cost of attendance and quality.</p>