<p>So the NU pricetag is 48ish grand / year; my question is this: Is it worth it?</p>
<p>I have a unique financial situation in that my father passed away and left me approximately 200,000 dollars in cash and assets. On the other side of the spectrum, my mom (who is my only legal guardian) makes next to nothing. According to several online calculators she is expected to contribute -1600 dollars and I am supposed to contribute +67,000 dollars. Correct me if I am wrong, but I do not believe the financial aid office shells out money to kids with this amount of money in the bank. I am looking for some opinions; is it worth it to shell out full tuition at NU or UofC over 20,000 a year at UW-Madison? I will be majoring in Biomedical Engineering at Madison or NU, at Chicago I would major in Chemistry. I will be attending medical school after my BS is complete. What makes NU a better choice than Madison, or what makes Madison a better choice than NU?</p>
<p>I think you can go to any # of schools and get a great education, including but but not limited to NU.</p>
<p>Additionally, a prestigious university is no guarantee of success. Some of the most successful people I know went to colleges I'm sure you've never even heard of.</p>
<p>Others would be more qualified to answer your question as it pertains to your particular major and what the advantages are. For example, NU has a great engineering program. So does Purdue. I think if you are a dedicated, hard working student, you will get into a good medical school no matter where you go to undergrad. In fact, some experts would tell you to save your money for post grad rather than undergrad.</p>
<p>Were I in your position, I'd go to UW-Madison. It's a great school.</p>
<p>And, by the way, I'm sorry you lost your dad.</p>
<p>I had to choose between these two colleges as well and ended up applying and being accepted to NU under the early decision program </p>
<p>I know this is horrible, but I chose the college based soley on name recognition and placed little thought into any future career plan. Whether this was a good decision or not financially may never be determined for sure, but hopefully my uneducated college decision will be successful.</p>
<p>no college, and i mean no college, is worth an extra 30k dollars a year than wisconsin</p>
<p>wisconsin is an amazing school and u can get an amazing education there</p>
<p>heres the thing. at 50 k a year for NU ro UChi, in 4 years ur out of money. 4 years at 20k a year at UW means youll have 120k at the end... you then work for a few years and you have enough to get you through grad school... one year of work, if you do well at madison, can make up for all the tution costs of those 4 years (you can make around 80 your first year out of college depending on how well you do)</p>
<p>if i were you i think the choice is easy to go to Madison... the educational quality is virtually identical to NU and UChicago (USNEWS is soooo biased towards state schools, notice the first one is at 20+), it costs you 120k less and gives you much more flexibility and ability to attend grad school within a few years of graduation</p>
<p>im just curious, and you really dont have to answer, but isnt it unusual to give the money to the kid and not to the spouse?</p>
<p>OP, you probably recognized me from the Wisconsin forum so I supposed I am biased. Given the current financial situation of your mom, you and your post college goals, I strongly recommend that you properly invest your inheritance (find a trustworthy financial and tax advisor if you need help) and then draw from the portfolio to support you through college and med school. Your residence status at Wisconsin means you are getting one of best college/engineering education at dirt-cheap price so go there!! If you seek prestige, get your act together at Madison and aim for HMS, JHU and like in 4 years.</p>
<p>Have you applied yet? What I would recommend is to apply to all 3 and then look at the financial package they offer if you are accepted. You actually might get a substantial amount because the $20,000 is savings and not income per year.</p>
<p>I'm surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for NU on a Northwestern thread...</p>
<p>I hate feeling indecisive and hesitant, but I will be paying the extra 30,000 a year to go to Northwestern as well, hoping the educational standards of the university are equivalent to the price tag</p>
<p>Is this the case or are there any great benefits from attending NU over any top public school?</p>
<p>I have the same question. I was also accepted to UW-Madison except OOS. But its still almost 20K cheaper than UChicago and NU. Money isnt really a problem for me, but im just not sure if those schools are worth the price.</p>
<p>"im just curious, and you really dont have to answer, but isnt it unusual to give the money to the kid and not to the spouse?" Mom and Dad are wayyyyy divorced. =P</p>
<p>"Uh...no (at least in the case of UChicago) but it's hard to put a dollar value on the difference." </p>
<p>I believe this to be true, which is why I am a bit biased towards Chicago. I have already applied to all three schools plus others. Publics will give me no financial aid, as my sister found out (same financial assets as me). Not sure about privates though, I only assume they shun kids like me. </p>
<p>Prestige is an issue in a situation such as this, anyone who tells you otherwise is a fool. Medical school admissions are competitive, and I am hoping to "go big" when it comes to that. Prestige of the undergraduate college is a factor in these decisions, as I am sure you all know. I am going to work hard, wherever I go, to get a chance at some of the ivies and JHU for medical school. This may be something pompous to say, but I am having a few issues with Madison in that I worked hard in highschool, scoring a 33 on the ACT and staying in the top ten percent and all that jazz, so it hurts to go consider a school that accepts so many people with less than amazing credentials. I know two people personally that were accepted with a 19 on the ACT and a GPA of < 3.5 . I know I have a chance to be accepted to any medical school with a BS from madison, but I guess my main issue is putting a pricetag on the increase in chances I would get from a Uchicago or NU education versus a Mad Town one. Thanks for all the constructive comments everyone, in towns like mine kids like me have only CC to rely on!</p>
<p>Not to sound arrogant or anything, but I think it's fair for a student to desire a student body with similar academic credentials as he/she may have.</p>
<p>However with all competetive factors aside, I would like to know if there are any concrete provable differences between UofW-Madison and NU/UoChicago or is the prestige and price tag what drum up the academic standards of the colleges?</p>
<p>i had cousins who went to UT-Austin (it was instate, even though they were accepted into stanford, yale, penn, MIT, etc)</p>
<p>after they graduated Austin (at less than 5k a year including all expenses) they ended up going to JHU medical and Harvard law... it doesnt really matter that much where you go for your undergrad, just as long as you do well youll do fine</p>
<p>You should take the maximum scholarship package and invest your inheritance for the future. You obviously are an intelligent, focused, and ambitious young person. If you graduate with top grades and distinguish yourself in your studies, you will be a strong candidate for any post-graduate or medical program you apply to.</p>
<p>I have a child at Northwestern and would be the first to tell you it's a terrific place. I've also worked in a prestigious Ivy League graduate school and will tell you that many, many of our strongest students - both in terms of preparation and work ethic - come from good state schools. In particular, UCLA, Berkeley, University of Arizona Honors College, Penn State Honors College, Ohio State, Universities of Michigan, Texas, & Washington and, yes, University of Wisconsin.</p>
<p>Since you already know you plan to attend grad school, you are looking at about a decade of being a poor student. Investing your inheritance wisely will provide a great cushion for you to look forward to and perhaps be a help to your mother when she's retired. Good luck to you - you will do well, no matter which college you attend.</p>
<p>I got into University of Michigan and I also applied for NU. If there is not much difference between those two schools, I guess I just don't have to worry too much about my chance to getting into NU.</p>
<p>Apply to all 3 - look at what they offer you $$-wise and if the difference is significant choose Wisc.</p>
<p>While prestige is a factor - it's not a $100k+ factor (I would say the same thing if you were talking about Harvard or Stanford).</p>
<p>"I got into University of Michigan and I also applied for NU. If there is not much difference between those two schools, I guess I just don't have to worry too much about my chance to getting into NU."</p>
<p>UoM admits a much wider range of applicants than NU - so unless you fit the profile of a Ross student, an NU acceptance is no guarantee (and even for those with Ross credentials, it's no sure thing - since admissions has gotten very competitive).</p>
<p>I dont think he means that he has a good chance of getting into NU because he got into UM. He means that because he already got into UM, which is close to NU in terms of academic caliber, he doesnt really care whether he gets into NU or not.</p>
<p>it really depends on your area of interest. UM is probably slightly better than NU in terms of engineering/business.. in other playing ground they are about equal but NU would gurantee you more individual attention than UM. however, UM is more well-rounded in the sense that i think all but one department is ranked out of top 15.</p>
<p>"UoM admits a much wider range of applicants than NU - so unless you fit the profile of a Ross student, an NU acceptance is no guarantee (and even for those with Ross credentials, it's no sure thing - since admissions has gotten very competitive)."
Oh, I know that NU's admission is tough. My point is if I am not admitted to NU, I will go to UM anyway and will not be too disappointed</p>
<p>"it really depends on your area of interest. UM is probably slightly better than NU in terms of engineering/business.."</p>
<p>um, no, and northwestern doesn't even have a business school</p>
<p>and in response to what the other guy said, defffffinitely do not expect to be making 80k a year upon graduation, especially if you graduate from UW.</p>
<p>"um, no, and northwestern doesn't even have a business school"</p>
<p>Kellogg School of Management anyone? </p>
<p>I was wondering about something else. If anyone knows anything about accounting and such... What if I invested 200,000 in mutual funds.. (returns are what.. 10%/year?) and took out loans for school (7%/year?). Making more money than I am losing? Just a thought.</p>