<p>I applied to a bunch of schools for an MS in electrical engineering. Unfortunately I didn’t get into the public flagship at my state but I got into my in-state alma mater as well as some pretty good OOS schools.</p>
<p>To be quite frank, I didn’t enjoy my experience at my alma mater as an undergrad. Part of it, admittedly, is because I was a commuter but that aside I thought the program was poorly ran and the campus was depressing. If my undergrad is of any indication as to how my graduate studies would be then I know that I wouldn’t like it. I can’t see myself enjoying my studies at my alma mater. In addition the list of companies at the career fair isn’t impressive whereas I looked at the list of companies attending the career fairs at some of the OOS schools I was admitted to and they contained many more companies that I can picture myself working for. I’m guessing that after my first job the school I go to for my MS probably isn’t going to matter much, but I do think that if I were to attend my alma mater that it would take me longer to get a foothold into the companies that I would want to work for and that I would have to do more drudge work along the way to get to where I want to be.</p>
<p>Currently I don’t have any debt. I’m lucky to have parents who paid for my undergrad studies. The thought of taking out a loan to fund my graduate school intimidates me quite a bit though. I think I’m probably looking at a $50-60k debt when I get out if i were to go OOS. My parents say that it will be worth it but I’m skeptical. If I were to attend my alma mater I could probably get away with paying half that (maybe) and probably none if I were to commute (I really don’t want to commute again). I’m not looking to get into a PhD program after this or anything so the school that I go to for my Master’s will probably be the one that makes the biggest impression on my potential employers.</p>
<p>BTW, the OOS schools I’ve been admitted to are ranked in the 30s for graduate engineering and electrical engineering rankings according to US News but my alma mater is ranked at high 60s for the general engineering ranking and 70s for the electrical engineering ranking. My alma mater has kind of a regional reputation in my state but few people outside of my state heard of it whereas the other schools are quite well known nationwide.</p>
<p>Has anyone here attended an MS program as an OOS student? Do you regret your decision or are you satisfied with the choice you’ve made? How much debt did you accumulate? Any comments in general? Thank you for reading this far.</p>
<p>I was in a similar situation. After hearing the opinions of many of my professors and industry colleges, I came to the conclusion that unless you are attending a “top” school, it is not worth paying the premium.</p>
<p>Of course, there a few schools out there whose reputation is in reality much higher than the rankings give, in which paying the premium may be worth it. Not sure if your school is one of those.</p>
<p>There are a few “wow” schools out there for employers, and for everything else, more weight is placed on your individual experience, skills,etc.</p>
<p>For 50k, it is absolutely not worth it in my opinion.
As for me, I took the cheaper option rather than 50-60k “higher” school, because outside the top 10 or 15, employers may not value the rankings.</p>
<p>Do you mind telling us what field you are interested in?</p>
<p>Hello DCM 4000,
Thank you for your response,</p>
<p>Ugh. I think my message was deleted, or something after I had a good long page typed up. Let me try again…</p>
<p>“After hearing the opinions of many of my professors and industry colleges, I came to the conclusion that unless you are attending a “top” school, it is not worth paying the premium.”</p>
<p>Yeah, the more I mull things over the more I’m coming to this conclusion as well. My major is EE and I’m going to be studying VLSI most likely, or computer architecture.</p>
<p>The OOS schools I’m applying to are ASU, UMass - Amherst, CU-Boulder and UF. I don’t want to mention what my alma mater is after having knocked it so much - I don’t want to hurt the feelings of anyone who may be reading this and attending the school. As I said before, however, it’s got an in-state recognition but probably not many people have heard of it outside my state. I don’t think any of them have the “wow” factor you mentioned but they are respectable and well recognized engineering schools, or so it seems to me. I have $30k saved up which I think would cover living expenses for 2 years. For CU-Boulder I think I would need a $55-60k loan for tuition. I’ve pretty much all but eliminated that as a potential choice yesterday. As much as I try to justify it in my head I would have a huge financial hangover afterwards still paying off the loans 20 years after I die. I haven’t been offered any assistantships as of yet and while it may be possible that I might get offers in my second year, it’s not guaranteed and it seems like a pretty big gamble. Another possibility is that I might be able to get in-state tuition my second year, but again that seems like a gamble and highly unlikely in my opinion. I think if I were to go OOS it would be Umass. The tuition is considerably cheaper there than CU - Boulder and might cost me something like in the ballpark of $40-45k in loans. My alma mater is the most financially appealing. If I were to commute then I might possibly not have to take out any loans but I can’t get over how miserable I was when I had to attend school there.</p>
<p>Do you believe that I would be at a huge disadvantage applying for jobs online at big name companies like, say, Intel with a degree from a lowly ranked, humble, school than if I were to be applying with a school ranked in the 30s? Would I have to work my way up more and start at some lower position? Or would I have many of the same opportunities as people with more prestigious schools on their resumes if I just show prospective employers that I did well in school?</p>
<p>I apologize for any typos but this is the second time I’m writing this post and I’ve re-read it several times (both this post and the one that didn’t make it through) and so this will have to do.</p>
<p>I appreciate your feedback DCM 4000. Thank you.</p>
<p>You will notice that although intel recruits at some of the OOS schools you mentioned, they also recruit at some very low ranked schools, lower ( or equivalent) to your alma mater. (Oregon state, new Mexico state,etc). This means that ranking is not as important to them as technical competence. </p>
<p>I know someone who interviewed at intel, and came from a school lower ranked than yours. He didn’t get the job because of one reason: he missed some technical questions. That fact that he got interviewed tells us that the school ranking didn’t matter. He had very good research experience though.</p>
<p>Companies don’t give high positions people from higher ranked schools and low positions to lower ranked schools for equivalent resumes. They either hire you or they don’t for a given position. </p>
<p>At this stage, you are better off doing an exceptional job at your alma mater: stellar grades, research experience, etc than getting into debt. </p>
<p>Also, if you don’t want to commute, why not get a room close to campus.
I’m sure you will be much happier during your time there. And being there will allow you to spend more time studying, interacting with professors, making connections, gaining research etc.</p>
<p>Well as much as I hate to admit it, it sounds like you’re right. I was kind of hoping someone would talk me out of going to my alma mater but as I was typing my first post everything kind of came into perspective and I realized that sticking it out with my alma mater for 2 more years is probably the best choice for me. It’s just that I hate my undergrad school SO much! I’ll still think about it some more but I think I’m going back to my alma mater - never thought I’d be saying that but here we are. Thank you for the advice DCM4000, I hope you have a nice weekend.</p>