Is your relative willing/able to cover tuition to any school for all 4 years? Do they know the cost?
You reported needing grad school…maybe an MPH, maybe PhD etc.
Grades are important, but are only part of the process. You will also need glowing letters of recommendation, research, possible work/volunteer experience etc.
How will you do that as an online student at UF? You won’t be in honors, etc and will not have access to opportunities that other have.
I would choose FSU …unless money is of absolutely no concern to your relatives…at all….and your parents are ok with it (I would not be comfortable, but I do not know your family situation).
The PaCE program was created to allow more students to get degrees from UF by on-line learning and off campus living. It can also make for a more affordable education since the on-line PaCE is less per credit hour. A PaCE student will live off campus ( there are close options) but still be able to participate in clubs, internships and activities. So while not in a dorm for on campus housing a local student can still be very active in other aspects of campus life.
BUT the number of majors is very limited. And if you decide your chosen major is not a fit then your ONLY option is another major still within the PaCE program. ONLY go into PaCE IF you want one of the listed majors in the program and plan to graduate with that degree. Do NOT plan on changing majors. Do NOT expect to enter the program in a PaCE major and transfer to a new major once on campus–especially now it is very unlikely to happen as the program tightens up.
While the program requires two semesters…getting to campus in two semesters depends on how many gen ed credits the student starts with. All gen ed classes plus tracking courses for intended majors must be completed within the on-line period. Just make sure all your credits are accepted and your schedule keeps you on track to complete your major reqs within those two semesters.
So…it’s not the PaCE program itself that gives me pause…it’s the desires of OP to really go into public health or a science degree that is NOT related to the program.
It will truly limit their options to explore.
If I were OP…given the stated goals for a career…
Am I willing to have my major truly be statistics. And if not am I willing to compete as a transfer student to get into UF to obtain the major I do want? Or should I start where my options are greater.
What college experience do I want?
What is the cost/benefit ratio? Don’t just say “someone else is paying”. Nope. Them paying (as kind as that is) impacts their lives. And maybe ultimately yours. To save that money on undergraduate provides a source for graduate studies.
I’d look very closely at FSU. I think it would offer a great college experience with very obvious monetary plusses while affording those options for majors that the PaCE program does not offer.
Did you apply for the Benacquisto? If you are a Florida resident and a NMF, you should get it and be able to use it at FSU, SFU, or even for PaCE at UF. Is $65k better than FREE?
Free is not always best if there is an affordable choice that works better.
Imagine you need a car to go to work and someone offers you a car s.o is getting rid of, for free, with the catch that it is nearly dead and will die on you within a week or a month. Or you can get a used car that’s still working though banged up, for a third of the cost of a new car. Or you can get a new car at nearly full price. The best choice is the car that reliably takes you where you need to go.
In this case, PaCE doesn’t get OP where he wants to go whereas several possibilities do - so Benacquisto at a university where OP was admitted is fine, except PaCE. Emory is better than PaCE for OPs goals but is it affordable?
Despite UF’s rise in the USNews rankings – not really due to academic strength – Florida and Emory are not peers.
Emory is commonly grouped with schools like CMU, Rice, WUSTL, Vandy. Emory is quite a good private school. (I don’t typically compare publics to privates anyway.)
The U of Washington has a better academic rep than UF.
I think you have two great in-state admits with USF and FSU, at discount prices. Both are fine if you want to save some money. If that is not a need, Emory and Washington are both strong in your area of interest. Emory is closer to home, private (more hand-holding), and probably more flexible in terms of changing majors.
Sorry, I have no idea where you are coming from or why you seem determined to downgrade UF. It is absolutely a top public university in the US and is also top when you add in privates.
For a forum that continually tries to steer students from rank chasing in favor of what is best for THEM knowing there are many paths to a goal you appear to be determined to play a ranking game.
This thread in particular is geared toward a very short list of colleges for a particular student and what might be best for them.
UF has done a good job marketing that - see all the banners on campus - but it’s really not seen that way outside of US News.
It’s a fine school though - but the student has not really been admitted to Florida…not on a four year basis.
Best for the student would be USF or FSU - unless the family can afford to spend another $60K a year for no added benefit.
And for those (OP) who will say - going to a higher ranked school will help - note that MIllersville, Elon and others go to Emory for MPH…it’s what you do, not where you do it- that matters.
Shes speaking on reputation of the schools, UF does a great job at the other US news factors but its reputation score is far below an Emory and schools like it.
I mean no offense. I simply think that UF is ranked a bit higher than their academic reputation would dictate. I think that academic quality is the most important thing (should be…) in any ranking. The fun part is trying to measure it.
When I think of top public universities, it goes something like this in terms of academic rep: Berkeley, Michigan, UVA, UCLA, UNC, Georgia Tech, Wisconsin, Illinois, Texas, Washington, UCSD. This has to do with the advancements discovered at these schools/research expenditure, program reputation, faculty awards, what their grads have gone on to accomplish, nobels, pulitzers, etc. It’s not a needle that typically moves overnight.
What’s hard is figuring out how good a school is at teaching. But often flagships are judged on their research output and faculty/grad exploits – being on the cutting edge.
By “what you do matters more than where you do it,” does this directly mean that washing pipettes in a Florida lab won’t have any less value than washing pipettes as an assistant at the CDC?
In terms of post graduation outcomes, does it matter specifically what I accomplished with the research I did and where I did it, or does it just matter that I sought out a research opportunity? Would I have any advantage if I managed to network with people at the School of Public Health and CDC?