My top two schools right now are GMU and UMD, and I am planning on doing a Bioengineering major and Comp sci minor/double major no matter where I go.
GMU is in-state for me and UMD is out-of-state.
I’ve heard that UMD is much better for engineering, but I want to know if its worth it.
Thank you so so so much!!!
Price (after any applicable financial aid grants and scholarships) of each? How much can you afford before loans?
If you mean that UMD is much more expensive: no, it’s not worth it. You won’t recoup the difference in entry level salary. So if your parents don’t mind paying the difference out of pocket and it won’t impact their lifestyle, sure, why not - but if it puts a strain on your parents or if they’d need to take a loan for you, it’s pointless.
What’s the cost differential or net cost at both?
*Net cost$ = (room&board tuition fees) - ( grants, scholarships)
Do not subtract any loan.
Did you get into any honors or scholars program?
The "is it worth it"question depends on your family finances. Can your family comfortably afford UMD (no hardship, no loans) and are they willing to pay for you to attend either school? If the answer to both questions is yes, then you can choose – otherwise I expect GMU will be the better option.
I have 2k per annum off in GMU and 1k per annum off in UMD. I have enough family support for 20k per annum, anything else would have to be fulfilled through loans.
What is your net cost (after any aid or scholarships) at GMU and at UMD?
39k per year at UMD, 10k per year at Mason
UMD is not an affordable option.
Go to GMU.
Seconding this^.
There’s no benefit in attending UMD and solid downsides to the loans your parents would need to take for it.
GMU is a solid university, with great ties to the DC/Nova area. No regrets 
and congratulations !
One year at UMD would pay for all four years at GMU. Moreover, you would have to borrow about $80,000 over 4 years to attend UMD.
That is true, but I agree with the posters above that it’s not worth $80k in loans. You’ll do fine at GMU.
Go enjoy your four years there and don’t look back. Best wishes!
Engineering is relatively* unique:
If your program is ABET accredited then assume it’s solid - there’s a national standard with requirements, which universities use to devise their degrees, so that all ABET accredited programs must graduates who won’t produce design&engineering catastrophes. 2/3 students give up because it’s exacting - but no country can afford engineers who can’t hack calculus&physics so if it’s too hard for them, there’s no adjustment. So, it’s not like GMUs program will be watered down compared to UMD.
In short, GMUs program meets national standards for Engineering, is well respected and will not be easy on you.
Furthermore, their concentrations within Bioengineering (i.e,
Biomedical Imaging and Devices (BMID)
Computational Biomedical Engineering (CBM)
Neurotechnology and Computational Neuroscience (NTCN)
Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (BNM)
Bioengineering Health Care Informatics (BHI) )
Are all thought with professional outcomes in mind.
There’s no situation where UMD is worth 4 times that.
(* relatively unique because of course there are a few other subjects with national standards, but Engineering is where it’s widespread to the point ABET accreditation is necessary for employment but is considered sufficient regardless of university, making Engineering an equalitarian field.)
Means that out of these schools, only GMU is really affordable. The amount of loans for UMD would require parent loans, which are generally a bad idea.
Thank you so much!
I see, that’s really reassuring. I’ll look into the concentrations. Thank you!
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