I know its something WPI boasts about, and helped me look at the 37k tuition a year as an investment rather than major debt.
You need to look at it as both an investment AND a major debt. What I'd do is think hard about what field you want to go into, and then look at how competitive that field is. If the field is very competitive, you probably want a prestigious undergrad (or if you want to go to law or medical school, go somewhere that will give you a high GPA and prepare you for the MCAT/LSAT).
Do you have any cheaper options that are comparable to WPI? What state are you from? If you are in say, Michigan, it might not be a bad idea to go to a community college and then try to transfer into U Michigan.
My major is Civil Engineering. I already did 2 years at a local college and would be transferring to WPI, so I wouldn't be in as much debt, but still a lot (30k, the average WPI student indebtedness, assuming 2 years at WPI).
I am from Florida and was accepted into University of Florida, which has a great engineering program, but lacks the "hands-on" education, small classes, project curriculum that I desire in my education and what I hope I can get at WPI. What it has over WPI is a well-known name and a better graduate program. I DO plan on getting my Masters at a prestigious school, which means even more debt. I know I am doing what is best for my education, but I am going to end up being at least 40,000 in debt when I am done with school, with little help from parents.
al, I have caught you multiple times telling people to choose the more affordable option over WPI. Is this because WPI hasn't met up to your expectations? From my experience at a large public school for 2 years, I can tell you that WPI seems like the ideal environment for an undergraduate education-and I THINK is worth the debt.
Even Stanford engineers are having a hard time getting jobs right now.
Education should be so much more than getting a job once you get out. Do you know that most people do not end up in the field in which they matriculated?
civegn, FWIW, we believe it is worth the debt for us for our S. But not because of the employment prospects once out, but for what appears to be the eduation and learning environment provided for a kid like ours.
Unfortunately, I guess, no one knows if it is "worth it" for someone else. $40,000 is a lot of debt. And definitely should be considered carefully. Best of luck with your decision.
al, I have caught you multiple times telling people to choose the more affordable option over WPI. Is this because WPI hasn't met up to your expectations? From my experience at a large public school for 2 years, I can tell you that WPI seems like the ideal environment for an undergraduate education-and I THINK is worth the debt.
No, I wouldn't say caught. It's not that I don't like WPI, it is a great school, and it has met my expectations. But you can't just ignore the cost factor, especially when engineering firms aren't particularly concerned with what school you went to.
I am also interested in any responses. WPI was one of the first schools to catch our eye for BME, and we actually have a recent graduate from our HS who attends there. He was looking at Boston College, a Jesuit college, but found WPI along the way when he learned that BC didn't have engineering. I do not know him personally, but I flagged down his mom when I saw her WPI sticker in the window. Her son really enjoys the school. He has joined a fraternity, met a girl, so there is some social life there, which is surprising for an engineering school. I have heard from the dad's coworker that they don't read Shakespeare there, it's a very tech school, but this is just secondhand knowledge. My husband has attended meetings up in the Worcester area and really liked it. The Boston area is supposed to be strong for BME, which is my son's interest, so it's still on the back burner as a possible apply. As for aid, though, the mom did tell me that her son, who was a NMF, only got his NM money. That's it. Only a couple of thousand. They did not qualify for any need aid. They do have at least one other son, so it's not like they're blowing everything on their only child, but they are both attorneys, although that doesn't always mean they're rich. Of course, we all know, you don't have to be rich to be turned down for financial aid.
Good luck with your search.
I will say this, in general, that as a parent, I am willing to pay for my son to get an education that will lead to a job. I am particularly interested in schools with internship/co-op programs. Unfortunately, in these times, having a degree does not guarantee you a job, and I'm even hearing that intern hiring is down, so we can't even count on that now.
I'm hesitant to say how "hands on" I think WPI is because I haven't attended any other 4-year schools.
But a typical class goes like this:
You have lecture for one hour, every day. A handful of lectures will have more than a 100 people. Some will have 20-50 people (typical), while a few will have less than 20. In a large class with a large lecture, there will be what's called a conference for one hour each week, where you're in a much smaller class with a TA or a professor who doesn't give the main lecture. Some classes will have a lab, which are generally around 3 hours in the lab and 2 hours doing a lab report afterwards. Every week you're given a problem set which is worth only a small percentage of the grade, but which prepares you for the tests. If you're lucky, the professor will also give you old problem sets with solutions that will give you insight into how to solve the new problem set.
I had hesitated getting involved in this discussion because, for the most part, my experience to some might be "ancient history".
WPI has one of the original project based learning models. They were on the cutting edge of this type of education 30 years ago. I went to WPI in the early '80's. When compared to what my peers did at other schools, WPI was SO much more hands on than any other school. Maybe not freshman year as much (back then), but by the time I got into Junior Year I noticed a big difference in what I was doing than what my friends were doing at other colleges.
Upon graduation I was put in an engineering "pool" and I must say that I floated right to the top of that pool because of a few things. First, WPI taught me how to learn - not just how to take tests or write a report. Second, the project based work prepares you with the necessary skills you need to think critically, work with others and communicate effectively - these are the BIG THREE that employers are looking for. When you get out into the "real world" there will be a problem to deal with, but the answer isn't clear and you have to know how to look at an issue, figure out what else you need to learn about before you can solve the problem and plot out what you need to do. All by working with others at the same time. Most fresh grads in my pool had no clue how to do any of this. They knew their engineering formulas and could work problems, but as undergrads had not done any major project with others.
Having said all that, many schools now do have a bit of project work along with the studies these days. But it isn't as extensive as WPI. WPI now has project based learning even for their freshman (pros and cons of these can be found in the "GPS and PLC" thread).
If you are someone who likes to develop your own path and choose your own way, WPI is a good fit for you. If you are into "traditional" engineering education and like things in a neat package where you are told exactly what the requirements are, you can still get that at WPI, but you might want to look someplace else because that really isn't what WPI is all about.
My son will be heading to WPI in the fall. Not because that is where his parents went, but because he is a free spirit who did a very "hands on" high school pre-engineering program at a vo-tech school. The thought of going someplace where everyone in the engineering program takes the same exact classes for the first 2 years nauseated him. He would be bored silly if he couldn't branch out and try something different or get involved in something more hands-on. He is signed up for PLC for the fall because it is the type of environment that he learns best in...
I guess what I'm trying to say is the investment is worth it if the WPI environment is a good match for you. You are the only one who can answer that. I do wish we had more current WPI students and grads monitoring CC, but unfortunately it is the same answers from the same people a lot of times. If you want to connect with some specific grads or students, give the admissions and alumni office a call. I know a lot of us are on the "on call" list for prospectives to talk to as alumni reps. I'm sure there are some younger folks doing the same thing these days. Or send a private message and I'll see who I can come up with for you. I was just hanging out with a few of the more musically inclined WPI students (both undergrad and grad) last night at auditions for a local theatre company...
