The University of Buffalo is a great option! I encourage you to use the NPC.
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Is the name “The University of Buffalo” or “The University at Buffalo” ?
State University of New York at Buffalo. https://www.buffalo.edu
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My daughter attended. It was called the State University of New York at Buffalo.
They have phenomenal engineering and computer software departments. UB is very underrated and people seem to ignore it because of weather concerns. But our daughter saw it as an adventure, and had her room decor reflect where she was from in Southern California (4 foot surfboard memo board, palm trees, tiki torches).
During winter breaks, she came home, so she experienced snow, but was able to directly take flights from Buffalo to California. In good weather, the commute from the university to the airport was about 15 minutes.
She ended up double majoring in what we call, in the UC system: “EECS”
She was, initially, going for med school, and Buffalo, at the time, had an honors program that almost guaranteed entry into the upstate New York med schools.
Then she took a bio engineering course and decided that she really liked engineering so she switched majors; it took her five years in total to do the dual major but she knew that, in California, the EECS major is a common major at the UC’s and private colleges for employers.
I don’t think UB does this any longer, but she received a full ride at Buffalo and she knew that we had two more students to fund for college. She was admitted to top 10’s and the UC’s but she chose Buffalo because of the possibility of direct med school admission.
It’s one of the few schools where you really get bang for your buck.
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+1 to doing NPCs. I don’t know about a number of these but I do know UIUC gives hardly any aid to OOS and therefore would not meet your budget. However, something else you may want to consider - especially if you are looking at a 4-year total and can perhaps be more flexible in year 1 - is that some colleges lock tuition for 4 years while others raise it annually, and some (like UIUC) lock both tuition and housing costs (the latter assuming you stay in university housing for 4 years which admittedly few do) for 4 years. So one that looks a bit more expensive initially could end up being cheaper by the end of the degree.
Another thing fee-wise to consider is when you think you might get your green cards. If it is not before your student turns 21, bear in mind that they would have to transition to F1 at that stage, and that could affect fee status for colleges that grant instate tuition rates to H4 visas but not for F1. Again, that is something to double check by institution.
With any school (public), check the COA for international - and available merit.
Buffalo is very coy on international merit amounts for international - so while a school may be right for a US student, even if you need to call, make sure it fits for international.
For tuition, room and board, they are showing over $54,000 - don’t forget travel, insurance, etc. They have a Flagship and Presidential that internationals qualify for but don’t share how much they are.
So you should inquire if the schools makes the list.
Buffalo is cold.
I’d ask - where does the student want to be and what do they want in a school. Nothing wrong with Buffalo but I think there are enough out there we can find a safety or two to meet the student desire in what they seek.
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Here is what SUNY at Buffalo says about aid for international students:
Available Support for International Students
Merit Scholarships: Incoming international undergraduate students are automatically considered for merit-based awards, such as the Flagship Scholarship, during the admissions review process. Highly exceptional students may also apply for the Presidential Scholarship through the University Honors College.
The school does not offer need based aid to international students.
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That’s why our daughter liked it.
Coming from 70 and 80° weather, DAILY, in Southern California we were surprised that she chose it.
Upstate New York is beautiful. She was able to experience things like seeing the seasons change.
Things that are common place for the residents there, were things that she had never experienced and liked!
She got a big kick out of having to buy a winter coat.
Housing was not an issue. Getting to and from classes, using the tunnel system, was not an issue, but it was a new exciting experience for her.
You never know where you’ll end up working. If you can’t step out of your comfort zone occasionally, then your life will be very limiting.
Plus, if the price is right, beggars can’t be choosers.
Their programs are respected. She’s always had a job ,even in this current economic trend. There were two companies battling for her about three weeks ago.
She has never regretted attending UB.
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Excellent suggestion. As I was reading this and saw RIT (which is excellent but likely too costly) Buffalo, Binghamton, and Sony Brook came to mind. All excellent and all likely to come in around the budget number.
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H4 students at Buffalo are evaluated as OOS students, not international students.
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The student prefers Georgia like weather but also flexible to move to colder places if gets good options. He wants to go to a school where the CS program is strong with research opportunities in Freshman/Sophomore year, strong co-op/internship opportunity, should have decent placement and starting salary (90k+), preferred student teacher ratio is < 20:1.
Budget is <$40-45k
Can you elaborate on what you mean by this?
US colleges facilitate the job search by hosting career fairs and supporting students with resume reviews, interview preparation, etc. (varies by college). But they do not actively participate in placing students in jobs, as happens in some other countries.
Additionally, unless your student receives their green card by then, they may unfortunately face challenges finding an employer willing to sponsor them.
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For tuition or for admissions? There’s a difference between the two. If the latter that would be very unusual.
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For admissions they are considered international because they need a Visa to reside in the country.
For tuition they are considered as OOS because their Visa type is permitted to apply for residency. If they resided in NYS they would be considered in-state for tuition purposes. Because they live in Georgia on a H-4 Visa they would pay normal OOS rates and are eligible for OOS scholarships. Georgia is not a SUNY Match state so that unfortunately isn’t an option for them.
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From the NPC page it says the NPC does not apply to international students. So the question is if your H4 visa situation counts as international or not.
The University of Notre Dame Net Price Calculator is primarily intended for incoming domestic undergraduate students. This calculator will not provide accurate estimates in the following situations:
- Families owning one or more businesses or farms
- International students
- Divorced/separated families
- US citizens who earn foreign income
- Students receiving athletic scholarships
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Then how to determine net price for international students?
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Since they meet need call and ask.
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I’ll take a contrarian view here and @DadOfJerseyGirl addressed.
My kids - my son struggled at Bama (in engineering) to get his first internship, went back a second summer and had 5 or 6 offers by xmas - but sent out 3 resumes a day - for however long. He turned down interviews second semester and the intern company.
My daughter went to - no one will call it big time College of Charleston, took part in their Fellows Program (a sub group of Honors), worked for our state, a think prominent thank in DC during a semester there. She left her legacy on the school - the club she started to help resettle refugees is going strong two years gone - led by a Ketner Scholar like she was.
You know who finds jobs - sure, kids with contacts etc but kids who bust their a$$. I remember reading a story from a parent on here whose kid went to N Georgia - and was hired by google. My friend in Nashville - his niece wen to UT Chatt and got hired by Oracle in Nashville. Companies typically pay what they pay - so my son started at the same salary (not CS) as kids from top schools and not top schools - they hire from all. Top is a word because of magazines, rankings, and more - sure, some schools are more selective but in many ways it’s made up. But yes, salaries are higher in the Bay Area than Reno or DC than Atlanta - it costs more to live, etc. so salary alone can’t be the indicator. Well it can be but it shouldn’t be. That’s an average or median - yours may be above or below or not find a job at all.
No one better for CS (or close to no one) than Ga Tech and let’s hope, if he likes it, he gets in. They show a median salary of $123.5K. They also show and I don’t know when they took the snapshot, that 25% of kids in 2025 that wanted jobs couldn’t find jobs. Purdue was just over $103K but had 11% still seeking. A reputable school - too much for you - but UMN - says $85K.
You seek safeties - with Ga Tech and UGA as the desired.
I understand and don’t disagree with @aunt_bea on comfort but I asked because all kids are different. Sure, it’s great to mix it up but some want nothing to do with cold. So why would your kid, if that’s the case, pursue a cold state/school. That’s where a Bama/UAH/MS State/TN Tech - whatever come in and there’s others no doubt. The intent is you don’t attend any - but they are “safe” choices.
Find the right school for your student. Most will have research. My son’s college GF researched all 5 years at Bama (through Masters) - there was more opportunities than kids. My daughter wasn’t technical - but lots of opportunities - she wasn’t interested. Where you have tenured faculty or faculty wanting to be tenured, you’ll have research. Many put research ahead of teaching.
Your goal should be to find the right fit - size, environment, weather, curriculum and more - that you can afford.
Your kid is on the hook for the rest.
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This student is on a H4 visa. Cannot do internships. Technically if they change to F1 they can, but the CPT rules (the work authorization that is required for internationals for internships) have changed so that authorization is only now given for internships that are an integral (compulsory) part of the degree. (GT has not quite updated their website to reflect this yet but has linked to the new rules and says it will update next month to reflect the changes for the next round of CPT authorizations.) I don’t know much about GT, is your student looking at a program where an internship is required to complete it? Note that a number of other colleges have already updated their websites to reflect the new CPT rules. (For example of another on your list, UIUC is here F-1 Curricular Practical Training (CPT) | International Student and Scholar Services | Illinois International | Illinois )
Obviously if your student gets a green card none of the above re CPT matters.
Looking at that list it seems that the issue is with foreign income (see US citizen note on that) rather than status per se. You should definitely call to clarify but I’d expect that if your income is vanilla salaried US income (no foreign earnings, no own business etc) and no other issues highlighted such as divorced parents, it probably won’t be that far off what the NPC is showing.
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u Cincy shows $51k with $5-$15k in merit possible.
It’s a co op school. You might find out how they help with the new rules described in the previous post.
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