Worcester Polytech vs. Boston University?

College Search & Selection
1

Hi everyone, I’m struggling a lot in deciding where I’m going to school (or if it’s going to be either of these places at all). Thanks ahead of time for any input.

WPI is ranked #68, and the average starting salary for what I plan to major in is roughly $82,000 (computer science). I’ve been to the campus multiple times,I like the school, but something feels off about it, as if I’m not supposed to be here. The average debt for students coming out of WPI is about $44,000, which is drastically lower than the $140,000 I would accumulate. The school is ranked #5 in terms of pay in the nation, #16 for ROI, etc, all of these good opportunities, etc, etc. But as I said, for whatever reason it feels like I don’t belong there, though I think the financial benefits/job opportunities would be great in the end.

Boston University is ranked #42, but has fewer opportunities as far as I know regarding /showing/ employers your knowledge rather than simply having a degree. Also, Computer science is a BA here, though I’m not sure it matters (?). I would be 120K in debt after attending BU, and unless something changes when i visit for the last time, it feels like a good place to be.

also, BU is closer to my home, and I do not want to end up at a tech school if i dont end up wanting to do STEM. the male/female ratio at WPI is not balanced at all and though all the women i’ve talked to have said it isnt a big deal, it’s still something that doesn’t sit well with me. i dont really understand why wpi, a school with such good rankings and numbers, isn’t very selective and doesnt receive very many applicants.

basically what i’m asking is what have you/are you weighing when it comes to a decision? i could go to Umass Amherst and accumulate only 60K in total, then transfer or something. and northeastern hasn’t given my financial aid to me yet, so that will also factor in. would you say that these projected debts are way too high to consider, fine, etc? what should i really be looking at, basically. any opinions are appreciated, i’m just sick of having mental breakdowns LOL. thank you! :slight_smile:

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If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Stats are just stats. They don’t mean that’s what’s going to happen to YOU. As I recall, the percentage of students majoring in the humanities at WPI is tiny, which seems very limiting, especially if you’re a person who might decide not to focus in STEM. Trust your gut. Also, why not UMass Amherst? The difference in cost seems significant.

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@porcupine98 i think i lean away from umass amherst because i didn’t get into the honors program, and it’s a little but too large for me. it’s basically a city in itself haha. also, theres the “zoomass slamherst” stigma… which isn’t exactly a lie x:

4

@khaleesii You shouldn’t go to either of these schools- that debt is insane.

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@Qwerty568 seriously? How much debt is too much? I don’t really have other options at all.

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@khaleesii You may be able to earn your way into the Honors program at UMass later by virtue of your performance in UMass classes. It also benefits from the 5-college consortium. The money matters.

https://www.honors.umass.edu/admissions/apply-current-students

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Undergraduate students are not allowed to borrow that much – only about $5,500 the first year and $7,500 thereafter. The debt would be your parents. Go to U Mass-Amherst. It’s a Carnegie “very high research” university, and will give you a great education and access to lots of alumni. Employers hiring comp sci students are mostly going to look at your skill sets, not where you got them (except for the top handful of programs in the country like Stanford etc. – nothing on your list of options), since many people still learn programming on their own. Just be sure to get summer internships along the way and hone your skills, and you’ll do fine.

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@khaleesii There’s a federal limit for freshmen- about 25K- for a reason. Your parents would be responsible for the rest, and that would be a huge burden on them even if you plan on paying them back. I would steer clear of anything more than 50K. 120 K? 140 K? That’s ridiculous. It could decades for you to pay that off. Neither WPI nor BU are worth that. Go to Umass.