<p>He all,
I’ve been accepted to both Bing and UNT as well as the UNT Honors College. I’m planning on majoring in Applied Behavior Analysis, a major that both schools are known for. I am really having a hard time making a semblance of a decision for a couple reasons. Basically…</p>
<p>UNT: accepted into Honors, AMAZING program that I get to start major specific classes as a freshman (and has this amazingly published professor who I’ve met and is cool), great financial aid, really nice atmosphere, far from family, HATE the location</p>
<p>Bing: invited to Freshman Research program on neuro degenerative diseases, very good program but don’t get into major classes till junior year, less financial aid, neutral atmosphere, LOVE the location, close to family, I want to live on the east coast and build my career there</p>
<p>Academically speaking it seems like UNT hands down, but I have a hard time getting my hear (which belongs to Bing’s location) to agree. I feel like at UNT I’d do great, but always have a twinge of regret. At Bing I will probably be very happy and probably be regret free. I do NEED a masters to become board certified so the finances do come in a little. I can afford both, but may not have enough for grad school if I do Bing, whilst I definitely will if I go to UNT.</p>
<p>Help?</p>
<p>If you want to work on the East Coast Bing would be a better choice, but if you need grad school and UNT is cheaper, I see the dilemma. Does UNT have study away programs or exchange programs that would let you spend a semester in the Northeast? Would you be able to get summer internships near your home? Those may mitigate the potential problems related to wanting a career in the North and going to school in the South. Where do UNT’s ABA graduates go to grad school?
Can you give us Cost of attendance at each, after scholarships (but before any loan)?</p>
<p>UNT has a great Master’s program aswell. I am not sure about grad school, I am interested in possibly doing it in the UK as I am also interested in making my career over there. I would come home during the summer at either school as I have a volunteer/possible work place here at a disability center.
for UNT with scholarships it’ll be about 13,500 a year
for Bing, I haven’t got my aid package yet so without aid/scholarships it’ll be about 34,000
both of those include housing costs
I don’t want to take out loans, but if I have to…</p>
<p>Wait till you have the aid package from Bing (I assume you’re OOS too and don’t have any possibility for tuition exchange?)
However, considering the costs, I’d go with UNT, unless your parents can pay the Bing costs without loans (you can take up to $5,500 in loans and have a work study job for about $2,500, if that helps. You shouldn’t go above that.)</p>
<p>I have a college fund that will cover Bing completly, but I may not have enough left for the entirety of grad school, whereas at Texas I’d have enough for undergrad, grad, and some leftover</p>
<p>Bing graduate here and have to say you are the only person I’ve ever heard say they love the location lol. Have you visited both schools?</p>
<p>It seems to me that your biggest concern about UNT is the distance from your family. I get it. Most of the schools my S is considering are pretty close to home but one is really far. However, it is a direct flight and only about two hours which makes coming home for a weekend doable. Perhaps this is true for you at UNT? </p>
<p>Usually I recommend Bing as a solid education at a decent price but given it is the more expensive option for you…and by a lot…AND you feel that UNT has the better academic program for you, I think that what you need to do is to make yourself comfortable with being so far from home. Fly first class. Go home for Columbus Day weekend. Make sure your family visits. It may take some time to adjust but you will get used to it and you’ll probably have an adjustment period at Bing too. Just because it’s closer to home doesn’t mean you will settle in to college life any easier! </p>
<p>It seems to me that your worst case scenario is you just don’t feel it at UNT in which case you still have the option of transferring to Bing. </p>
<p>That said, I’m also a big believer in going with the gut. If you visited UNT and you honestly can’t see yourself there and don’t feel it’s a good fit then forget about it.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Update
I received a 10k a year (40k total) scholarship from Bing today. This brings Bing’s total cost down to 24,000 a year. Still higher then UNT’s 13,500 a year, but better.</p>
<p>and Sandkmom: I am from California, so Bing is actually farther from me, but I have extended family about a 3 hour drive from Vestal. I don’t mind being away from family, but the aunt and cousin I would be near in NY are very important to me. My cousin and I are both on the Autism spectrum and I have never had the opportunity to spend a lot of time with him, and when we do meet we get on very well, so he is probably a bigger part of the decision than logic dictates.</p>
<p>Can your family afford the $9,000 difference? Because it sounds like you’re leaning toward Bing (esp.with your relatives nearby). Another plus for Bing in my opinion is that, if you choose to add another major, it’ll be very well recognized throughout the Northeast. If you’d rather work in the South/Southwest though, UNT remains a good choice.
What do your parents think?</p>
<p>I’m confused. You are from California, but your family is closer to you if you go to NY over Texas? </p>
<p>JoBenny - the OP is from CA, but has extended family in NY, which makes Bing more appealing than UNT where there is no extended family nearby.</p>
<p>RagingShadow - </p>
<p>Only you and your parents can determine whether or not $9000 more each year is worth it to you for Bing. What part of CA are you from? Do you already have the winter wardrobe necessary for Bing? If not, add the cost of that into your calculations.</p>
<p>If you are sincerely committed to ABA, working with Professor Famous and his/her group is can be more useful for your future career (and grad school hopes) than working with Professor-not-so-famous at a college/university that you like better. But, you need to make certain that there are other faculty members with decent reputations at Professor Famous’ institution in case your situation with Professor Famous doesn’t work out, or he/she drops dead or takes a sabbatical while you are there. If Professor Famous has a national reputation, there will be no problem with you getting into grad school in a different part of the country. The same holds for Professor-not-so-famous. Career contacts tend to be more local, but chances are that Professor Famous has contacts all around the country. Ask the UNT career center where students from that ABA program end up.</p>
<p>You indicate that would like to make your career in the UK. Unless you have a UK or EU passport, that is pretty unlikely. Do some research on what it would take to get the kind of work permission that you would need to have in order to work there. And, if you do have a UK or EU passport, maybe you want to think about applying now to ABA programs in the UK so that you can build up the professional network that you will need there.</p>