I am creating this thread for my brother (unable to make an account at this time, so I will relay information back to him), who is grateful for being able to decide between attending Notre Dame and the University of Washington, Seattle, for this upcoming year. The cost for UW is ~35k per year, and Notre Dame is ~20k per year, but both are affordable, and cost is not a factor.
He was admitted to Notre Dame as an ECE major through direct admission and to the University of Washington as Engineering-undeclared (all students in Engineering start as this), but we have heard it should not be hard to get ECE after.
He wanted to know about the pros/cons of deciding between these two options. UW is ranked higher in Engineering, with a strong tech market in Seattle, but Notre Dame has a higher rank overall and would offer a strong alumni network. From talking to other students, it seems Notre Dame is more lively, and once he visits campus, he will get to know more. He visited UW this past weekend and also really liked the students and vibe, so it seems he has no strong preference for student culture one way or another and is more than fine with both.
He was wondering if he continued to be committed to Engineering, would he find strong employment opportunities if he graduates from Notre Dame, since it seems ND is known strongly as a ‘business school’ and less for engineering? Are there any other important considerations we are missing in making our decision?
We are grateful for these options and thank you all for taking the time to respond with your insights. Please let us know if there is anything further you need clarification on. Thank you!
Engineering is actually pretty popular at ND, something like 1 out of 7 students graduate with a primary major in Engineering. Of course that doesn’t quite compete with Washington in terms of the sheer scale of the Engineering program, but it is not at all an afterthought at ND, and I would not be worried about things like competing for internships if he does well.
I tend to think of ND as a strong fit school, but since in this case it is notably less expensive, it could also just be an equally-good fit school, and still be a great choice. A visit is therefore a good idea.
As a final thought, a decent percentage of kids end up switching out of Engineering for one reason or another. So I would at least seriously consider the hypothetical question of where he would rather be if he eventually decided to do something else.
Agree with the others – visit and go with the college that feels like the right fit. This is a case where two reasonable people could make two different choices. Congrats to your brother on the excellent acceptances.
I wouldn’t say UND is known for business -well it is but not just business. Both are excellent. The department rank doesn’t matter and certainly the school rank doesn’t. Lots of fine engineering schools outrank in the dept their overall school rank.
UW said in 2024 65% were employed. 7% were still looking. This was 6 months after graduation. We don’t know what percent participated in the survey although for the university they know the outcomes of 57% of the kids. They don’t list salaries.
I put below the list of who was top hiring companies at UW.
At UND they have the two majors separated so I chose both. Their knowledge rate is 95% with 83% employed and 10% in school. They don’t show a seeking but I’ll count that as other - 2%. Their two biggest outcome states were Illinois and Indiana but only 19 total.
The median salary was $83.4k, reported from 35 of the 49 respondents. I put their largest companies and industries below.
Don’t use US News rankings - they are popularity surveys of academics with no formal data used - such as selectivity, outcomes or salaries.
Needless to say, this is like choosing haagen daz or Ben n Jerry’s. Both are yummy so choose which you like but do realize UND is catholic and may have a deeper core curriculum if a concern.
Placement data | UW College of Engineering suggests that ECE has recently been non-competitive to slightly-competitive to enter for engineering undeclared students at Washington.
I’d also have your brother look at the 4 year plan of study for both schools. ND has a number of theology and philosophy requirements. Great for some students, not as good for others. Engineering there also seemed a bit more theoretical and less hands on when we visited. There is also a strong emphasis on service.
I think if you visit both you will have a strong feeling about one or the other. UW being a big state school and ND being a smaller medium sized religious school. You can absolutely be happy there if you aren’t religious, but it is a big presence. I think the real draw of ND is the community, the dorm system is very special and the school spirit is amazing! If you are drawn to that, you’ll love it.
I see, okay, we’ll see how he feels after he gets to visit, hopefully. He may not be able to before the commitment deadline due to scheduling and traveling issues, so we wanted an outside perspective beyond the virtual tours. Thanks for your input!
He was leaning towards ND as of now, but has only been able to go to UW Welcome Day so far. He loves the environment and student culture at ND, but he also likes the emphasis on Engineering (and funding for research) at UW. It is probably going to be a tough choice either way.
I noticed that our local ND club is hosting an event for accepted students who can’t go to revisit day, check instagram for your locaL club! Happy to answer any ND questions as a recent grad parent, my son absolutely loves it!
I think people forget - while you’re looking for the top or best - the truth is, kids can have great experiences at a multitude of schools.
He should go back to UW, stop kids on campus outside engineering, and chat - if you’re nearby. The Welcome / Admitted student events often have great content but they are also sales pitches. If he goes back on a regular day and actually chats kids up, you might learn a lot more - especially at the engineering building.
