<p>I just got deferred from University of Miami so my second choice is the University of Tampa, mainly because I got a good scholarship there. Does it really matter in the future if i say i got my _____ degree from tampa instead of Miami? I mean in the long run I will be saving a WHOLE lot of money so i wont have any bills from college but what I’m really trying to ask is if I will get a better job if i graduate from a more superior college.</p>
<p>You ewill find that there are many roads in life that will take you to the same destination.</p>
<p>I’ll tell you this, my sister was a graduate of the Univeristy of Tampa, went on to attend graduate school at Columbia (masters and PhD) and was happily making a very nice 6 figure salary before she left to teach (which is her passion and a profession that she truly enjoys)</p>
<p>It’s not saying the degree is from so and so, it 's the caliber of the instruction. If you attend a higher caliber university it is likely you will be with other very bright youngsters. This will help you on a daily basis, your vaocabulary will grow and improve and your matter of expression,.Your depth of thought will improve from being with other bright minds who read for pleasure and are deeper less irrational thinkers. Class size will be smaller and more classes will be taught by full professors, less teaching assistants.No way can you learn more in a class of 300 taught by a prof you can’t understand. All this has the payoff when it’s time to apply to professional school. The entrance exam will be easier.You will be a much better prepared law or medical school student and this in turn will affect your new skills. Making the Law Review is no easy task and this in turn will lead to a better job. (BUT so you get a better job- then that means more hours and less time to enjoy life.)</p>
<p>you do have a point but is it really worth it? I mean my parents aren’t going to pay all of my college expenses and Miami is VERY expensive, around 40-45,000 a year total while tampa is about 25,000 year. Plus I got a scholarship to tampa for about 1/2 of the tuition. I don’t want to graduate college and have to worry about paying for it.</p>
<p>Boy, Backhandgrip’s comments sure make me glad I didn’t attend an elite private college. </p>
<p>I don’t know about University of Tampa, but I know from my own college experience that there is a great value in attending a school with students from diverse backgrounds, who bring with them other interests and talents and the value of experiences beyond and apart from being academic superstars. I know that my son decided NOT to apply to Ivies, despite urgings from his teachers, when he realized that the extremely competitive selection process would weed out all but the kids with the highest grades and test scores – and - as he told me - he simultaneously realised that the most interesting people at his high school (in his eyes) were NOT the ones with the highest grades and scores… in other words, he didn’t want to attend a college that weeded out the kind of people he liked best in high school.</p>
<p>I went to a highly competitive law school (at the time, one of the top 5 in the country) so I have experience sitting in a challenging classroom among the “best and the brightest”… and in my view, that’s over-rated. At it’s best, it was stimulating and challenging about 20% of the time. But many of the “brilliant” profs and students were essentially narrow-minded people so impressed with their own intellect that they couldn’t recognize a new or original idea if they saw it. Lots of big words and theories, not too much grounding in reality. I wouldn’t begrudge anyone the choice of the elite school for that reason… but,er, University of Miami isn’t exactly the same as an Ivy. I mean, your question wasn’t whether you should choose Tampa over Harvard or MIT. </p>
<p>Your education is what you make of it. If the only way you can learn is to be led by others and to bask in their brilliance, then perhaps you need to find your way to a place filled with academic superstars. But if you are self-motivated and self sufficient, if you know how to read and use the library and the internet – you will find success in any college environment you choose. It is true that in some cases, the professor will be less than inspiring, and if it is a subject you care about you will have to make up for the prof’s deficiencies through independent reading – the course syllabus will probably have some “suggested” or “optional” reading that will help guide you on that journey. On the other hand, some of the best, most dedicated teachers are working at lesser-known colleges and universities - you are certain to run into some of them along the way.</p>
<p>In any case, you have been admitted to Tampa, deferred from Miami. So your choice is to (a) accept 1/2 tuition scholarship at college that wants you, (b) hope that you can somehow get into a school that will cost you three times as much, and has already let you know that they don’t particularly want you. </p>
<p>If you have to make a decision now in order to keep the scholarship, then I think you should feel comfortable accepting Tampa’s offer. If not – then it is always best to keep your options open – spend more time now visiting Tampa and getting to know about the courses and programs it offers, but don’t make a decision until you have the final word from Miami.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot calmom. I appreciate the detailed response. I guess I’d do better at Tampa but the question isnt really about diversity and narrow-minded people, to me it’s about value. Both Tampa and Miami claim that they have students from 50 states and 100 countries (something like that). My dad said I would be crazy if I didn’t choose Tampa, (and money isn’t really a problem) haha so that kinda puts a lot of pressure on my decision.</p>
<p>Did you apply to U Fl? of New College in Sarasota? They are almost free to Bright Scholar students</p>
<p>GTA, what does Miami offer that Tampa doesn’t? What is the value of that?</p>
<p>If you are thinking of the relative prestige of the degree … then I just have to reiterate that Miami isn’t Harvard. It is not going to give you the kind of degree that is going to open all that many doors. Of course the college degree is valuable, but basically everybody in Florida is going to have their own opinions about the schools, and the farther you go out of state, the less likely you are to encounter people (or potential employers) who have heard of either school .</p>
<p>But the question really isn’t about the degree - it is about what the colleges have to offer YOU. What do you want to major in? How do the departments compare? etc. In other words, what exactly is it that Miami has that is worth $30,000/year annually more than Tampa (I’m assuming that with the 1/2 tuition scholarhip at Tampa, your costs there will be reduced to about $15/K …but if my math is wrong, just plug in your own numbers).</p>
<p>Personally I don’t think there is much to debate with the “value” question – Tampa is clearly a better “value”… but only if it is a college you want to attend. As to the employability issue: the best path to a good job will be through work experience you gain in college, through summer jobs and internships. It has very little to do with the college you attend – but if you are really concerned about that, then the place to find information is via the college’s career services office.</p>
<p>ha i know miami isn’t harvard but i guess my standards are a bit lower. yeah I think I’m just goin to go to Tampa, plus I can join the golf team there, which miami doesn’t even have.</p>
<p>GTA255
You have a wonderful opportunity with a scholarship at U of Tampa - not so sure why you might think that U of Miami will put you in any better standing. You make of your education what you will - seek out all the opportunities that the school of your choice has to offer - and you will find that those opportunities will equate with an experience at another college. College is exactly what YOU make it to be - by seeking out a more strenuous curriculum - by taking upper level courses - by participating in your chosen major as much as possible - you will find that the degree from U of Tampa has the same value as from U of Miami!!! Your choices of grad school will be the same from either school should you choose to go that route. </p>
<p>Gotta say this - graduating from an ‘‘elite’’ school has no more ‘pull’ and holds no guarantees than graduating from a ‘‘state’’ university in many cases. The top of the pile at an elite school would also be the top of the pile at state U’s - and the bottom of the pile at either will still be at the bottom of the pile - still no guarantees there either. A stellar college career at a state U could far outway a just-get-buy elite college career - and the diploma will still be the same no matter where it is from. In the real world - in most cases it won’t make a difference.</p>
<p>It may be a good idea for you to really seek as much info as you can from the school that really wants you - and is willing also to finance your education a bit. All colleges have opportunities - gotta seek them out - and make the absolute best of whatever situation you land in - to help creat and improve your standing where ever you go - Good Luck!!!</p>
<p>ha college is what you make of, i’ve heard that many a time</p>
<p>The vast majority of college educated adults in America are graduating from schools like Tampa, and although boards like this one make it seem like ‘everybody’ goes to an elite school, the truth is, HYPS may be great schools, but they are not superior schools. And in the long run, graduating without a lot of debt is a much better proposition than graduating with a ton of debt, and in the end, you only get out of a school what you put into it - it isn’t the school you attend that makes your college experience superior, it is you, and what you choose to invest in yourself, no matter what campus you are on.</p>
<p>well i guess ill make tampa then, i dont want bills after i graduate</p>
<p>“”“ha college is what you make of, i’ve heard that many a time”“”</p>
<p>This is exactly right!!! - if you don’t make much of it - you won’t get much from it either!!! That is completely up to each and every student who seeks to further their education - you are there to get as much out of it as you can/want to or you just get enough to get by and a diploma - nobody else can do any of that for you - so ya!!! it is what YOU make of it in all aspects!!!</p>
<p>Just like high school - you get out of it what you can/want - it is completely up to each and every student - hope you appreciate what you have had in order to get to where you want to go in life - cuz it is in your lap now.</p>
<p>yeah i shoulda made more of high school, oh well, i got college to worry about</p>
<p>Just curious GTA, what is your intended major? Do you plan to live in Miami when you graduate?</p>
<p>Outside of Florida, there would be no advantage to UMiami–but inside Florida and in Miami in particular, the private school ‘connections’ MIGHT be very valuable for CERTAIN fields.</p>
<p>actually im really undecided and have no clue what I want to do. I plan to live in florida after I graduate. and btw tampa is also a private school so either way i guess i’d have connections</p>
<p>These two colleges are in diametically opposite places. A lot of the Miami mentality is out there doing the nice clubbing scene in Miami . From what I know you will find a nice crowd at Tampa.</p>