It’s been a long time coming. Finally, after learning that I received Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s ‘Rensselaer Medal’ back in the spring, I got something in the mail from RPI. It contained the news that I’m guaranteed a $60,000 scholarship at that school over four years. Unfortunately though, I’m not sure that I’m interested in a technical institute over a traditional university. Also, I’m still unsure about what I want to do or major in.
Opinions about tech schools in comparison to universities? I really need some help with this one.
Honestly, if it were me, I’d go. But you are you and not me. The way I see it is you were given an oppritunity to attend one of the most top rated engineering schools in the country.
It’s up to you where you want to go, but one advatage is you will enter the work force with money in your pocket. What other universities/colleges are you looking at? Another advantage is this shows you will get excepted to other top schools.
If you’d like, my dad is an engineer and would love to debate the topic, I can ask him if you’d like.
You’re better off at a university. More of a choice of majors, in case what you thought you wanted to do isn’t really what you want to do. Also, any major you can do at a tech school will get you hired no matter where you go. Look at it this way- University for your 4 year degree, tech school for any grad work. Besides, the people at a tech school are, uhhh… Well, they go to a tech school. Yeah, socialization isn’t the point of college, but without a decent social life, you’ll go completely loco faster than you can say “integration by parts”.
How the frick did you frickin get this scholarship?!?
Since I’m a-lookin’ for a Doctorate in Mathematics (or Philosophical Mathematics if they have it) I’d a-go there in a heartbeat if I had that there scholarship. Is it transferrable? lol jk
Seriously though. I want that mon-ay.
I was also thinkin’ aboot Columbia, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, U. of Rochester, Colgate, and NYU (to go hang with my kind of crowd… HAHA)
Cornell has the luxury of freeze-your-ass-off the other colleges just don’t seem to offer.
I also haven’t counted out colleges in Canada & Britain…
but I haven’t researched any, either.
Oh, yeah, good (i.e.- The name doesn’t start with SUNY) public universities tend to offer more in scholarships while costing less. UConn is 15 grand less than RPI, and I got 19 grand a year in scholarships/grants. All the while having someone who worked on a nobel prize winning team teach me basic chem. They go a little crazy at pulling really good faculty, too.
So I’ll add UConn to my list, maybe
I think I’ve said this to you before, Ricky, but it bears repeating: Don’t worry about the scholarship money too much at this point. My safety schools made a big deal about merit scholarships and my need-based aid from Amherst turned out to be the same or more than any of them. (Of course Amherst has a reputation for being generous, as you know, but most aid packages computed with the fasfa will be somewhat similar.)
I’m not worrying yet. I’m worrying about not knowing about whether to focus on tech schools or universities.
I’m highly leaning toward the latter, but that sways depending on whom I talk to, since I’ve been talking to plenty of geeks at the Academy recently.