So I have a merit scholarship from Michigan State that covers tuition, room & board, study abroad, books and an assistantship for four years - the whole shebang. I also, however, have a low enough household income where going to an Ivy league would be almost free on financial need.
Big 10 school on merit scholarship or Harvard/Stanford on financial need? Mind you I have no idea what I want to do with my life, but I already have the credits to be a college junior.
Computer Science major most likely. No Har/Stan admittance but a girl can hope she’ll have to make that decision come April. Yeah main reason I haven’t blown off MSU yet is because of the credits, allowing me to enter with a Junior standing.
That MSU deal is very appealing, for sure, and as a CS major, I think it makes even more sense, as that’s a pretty strong department. If you get into H or S, though, you might think twice–Stanford’s CS department is remarkable, as are its ties to Silicon Valley. @RylesTor
Would you actually be able to use all of your credits to graduate early? A lot of kids enter state colleges with sufficient to be juniors in terms of standing. But based on limitations on using certain pre-college credits towards graduation. In addition certain classes need to be taken at a given school (for instance chemistry classes for chemistry/chem engineering majors).
If you want to apply to other schools, do your homework and read about them and choose based on fit. If the NPC indicates Harvard and Stanford would offer lots of aid, chances are the other elites would too: Princeton, Yale, Columbia, Chicago, MIT, etc. Decide what type of physical, social and academic atmosphere you’re looking for and choose accordingly. A virtual free ride at MSU would be hard to pass up – I’d probably settle for nothing less than a top-10ish LAC or top-20ish private U (all of which are known for giving great aid). So we’re clear I’m talking about:
Private U’s:
Harvard
MIT
Princeton
Stanford
Yale
Caltech
UChicago
Columbia
Penn
Brown
Cornell
Dartmouth
Duke
Johns Hopkins
Northwestern
Carnegie Mellon
Emory
Georgetown
Notre Dame
Rice
Vanderbilt
Washington U
Obviously, this has to be contingent on getting admitted…
Do you want to graduate early (though piles of AP credit at colleges that give credit units for it usually do not line up with subject requirements well enough to graduate 4 semesters early – you are more likely to be able to graduate 1-2 semesters early if you want)?
If yes, presumably you want to enter the workforce (or a PhD program) as soon as possible…
If not, then it would seem that the costs are not too different due to MSU, Harvard, and Stanford all being almost free. Something to consider would be maintaining the scholarships / financial aid over the subsequent years:
How high a GPA does MSU need to renew the scholarship?
Is there the possibility of your parents’ income significantly increasing to the point of reducing H or S financial aid, but not adding to the amount that they can contribute? (e.g. if your parents are unemployed, but could possibly find a high paying job, but the high pay would not be available to contribute to college because it is needed to pay off debt accumulated during unemployment)
Fulfilling some lower level subject requirements with AP credit may allow you to take additional electives or advanced courses if you choose to stay the full four years (at any of the schools). However, if you plan to take more advanced courses for which the AP credit substitutes for a prerequisite, you may want to try the college’s old final exam for the course that you will skip to make sure that you are ready for the next course.
Stanford CS is highly regarded, and has a local recruiting advantage for Silicon Valley computer companies. However, it is a very popular major; the introductory CS courses are huge.
Personally, I don’t see the rush to graduate in two years. Even if you could technically finish all your credits in two years, if the entire four years is free why not take advantage of the time? A full four years in college gives you time to do internships, learn new skills, explore other areas of interest, study abroad, get research experience, lead on-campus activities and basically do a lot of stuff that will enhance your resume for future opportunities in your career. You could add a minor or double major; learn a new language - basically, do anything.
Anyway, if the costs were the same, I personally would absolutely choose Stanford or Harvard over Michigan State. Michigan State is an excellent school - and the experience is very different. If you wanted to follow big sports or have a big state university experience, then that’s your choice. But the recruiting and career opportunities out of an elite school are unparalleled, really.
^^^You do realize she said CS major? Thus only BS degree and then hit the workforce. IF she wants to go for a higher level then she has a head start on that as well.
If the tuition is almost free at Harvard/Stanford, the opportunity cost here is hitting the workforce early vs 2 more years at a top college. You are going to be working for many years but you only go to college once, I’d take the time to enjoy college but that’s just me.
While junior “standing” through AP is an achievement for a HS kid, AP is piece of cake compared to actual college courses at top schools.
