<p>Just wanted some input on WPI or Virgina Tech (mechanical engineering)?</p>
<p>I think cost should be a top priority. If they cost the same amount for you, I’d probably pick WPI for the class sizes. But if VTech is more than 5-10k cheaper I’d probably go with VTech.</p>
<p>well they have some vast differences. At WPI you would have a more personal connection with the professors and it will feel like more of a tight-knit community. I don’t know much about VTech but its a large school so you can expect very large lecture halls and a more research-focused university.</p>
<p>Not sure about V-Tech but most schools do not have the 7 week quarters that WPI has. That will likely be one difference, along with smaller class sizes and a tighter knit community. Look, too, at their humanities requirements. WPI is very flexible. No prerequisites (although you will have guidance evidently) And many ways to fulfill the breadth requirement without taking English 101 or the like.</p>
<p>I don’t know if Virginia Tech is more research focused than WPI… They’re both Polytechnic colleges.</p>
<p>Go to WPI. It’s a lot better than V-TECH. U can’t compare WPI with V-tech.</p>
<p>^ Actually I take that back. After seeing this engineering school report, I would say that go to V-tech, they rank higher than WPI. (gasp) What?? I know I was surprised to see that as well.</p>
<p><a href=“http://polycentric.csupomona.edu/campus_news/usnews_engineering14th.pdf[/url]”>http://polycentric.csupomona.edu/campus_news/usnews_engineering14th.pdf</a></p>
<p>Know how they were ranked:</p>
<p>“The rankings are based solely on a peer survey of deans
and senior faculty that asked them to rate each program they
are familiar with on a scale from 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished).”</p>
<p>In other words, I don’t think it means too much… IMHO. Now if it were rankings of employers that hired engineers and rating the readiness of the graduates for the job I would be interested in THOSE ratings.</p>
<p>By Top New England Colleges to pay you back…
- MIT [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=11]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=11)
- Harvard University [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=10]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=10)
- WPI [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=9]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=9)
- Yale University [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=8]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=8)
- Dartmouth College [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=7]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=7)
- Brown University [Top</a> New England colleges that pay you back - Boston.com](<a href=“http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=6]Top”>http://www.boston.com/bostonworks/galleries/universities_with_top_starting_salaries_2008?pg=6)
and so on…</p>
<p>These are 6 universities in New England where the starting salaries are the highest. </p>
<p>Other ranking names WPI as 9th in the nation in top colleges to get rich…
[In</a> Pictures: Top Colleges For Getting Rich - Forbes.com](<a href=“In Pictures: Top Colleges For Getting Rich”>In Pictures: Top Colleges For Getting Rich)</p>
<p>From here it is obvious that someone recognizes hard work that is being done on WPI…
Now back to the topic:
If you like colleges where professors will be focused on each individual because there are not too many of you, then go to WPI. If you like large universities where you will meet many ppl and do projects in large groups then go to Virginia Tech.</p>
<p>Whitesnake is quite correct. The largest difference between WPI and VTech is most likely size.</p>
<p>I don’t think the fact that WPI is highly ranked for starting salaries actually means much. engineering majors always make a lot of cash regardless of what college they attend, and as WPI is one of the few colleges that has mostly engineering students, the school will obviously have a high starting salary. This salary information doesn’t nececarily mean that WPI’s engineering program is of the same tier as Yale’s and MIT’s.</p>
<p>^ Yeah, I second that. I mean according to the list on Boston.com Wentworth ranks #9 among new-England schools. Are you kidding me? Wentworth?? It’s like a tier2 (may be 3) school, and there are way better schools in NE area than Wentworth (like Tufts, BU, NEU, Amherst, Wellesly, Umass Amherst etc). I think the only way, that school is on that list is because it’s an engineering school and engineering majors usually makes a lot of money coming right out of college. But the case about WPI- I think it’s a little different than Wentworth. WPI is way better school than wentworth and it’s good to see that it’s being recognized. But as gekmax said above— “I don’t think the fact that WPI is highly ranked for starting salaries actually means much. engineering majors always make a lot of cash regardless of what college they attend, and as WPI is one of the few colleges that has mostly engineering students, the school will obviously have a high starting salary.”</p>
<p>A lot of students coming out of non-engineering schools have to go to graduate school, which makes comparisons difficult. </p>
<p>IMO the best way to measure student opportunity is to measure per capita endowment, or how much money the students give back to the school. Unfortunately, that will favor the schools which produce a few rich people who can give back millions, as opposed to the school that produces lots of middle class people. But it’s the best metric we have, it applies to all schools, and it cannot be cheated.</p>