S25 will be BME first and foremost. Will take extra couple courses to position himself to apply to medical school in the future.
We know CWRU well being a dual degree from the 90s, and S23 attends GT now so we have a decent handle on GT. Also visited UVA, and S25 could be equally passionate about any of the three as all are great in our mind (no shade on any school!).
That writtenā¦ let 'us have itā¦ what would you do? What are tidbits, pointers, considerationsā¦ yes our S25 will make the decision himself, but we are here collecting data, inputs, insights, information. THANKS!!! Genuinely appreciate any knowledge!
NOTE: S23 present 2nd year/junior at GT in BME and pre-med holding 4.0, doing research with Emory, working in ER for clinical hours, etc. S25 is at least as smart as S23 and we only need see willingness to āgrindā day one in college almost no matter the school.
My vote is between GT and CWRU. For the intended major UVA isnāt worth the extra cost (IMO) and both GT and Case are stronger in BME and cheaper!
Does yous son have a preference? I donāt think he can go wrong but I think heād have more supports for pre-med at Case. And more flexibility if he pivots.
Where are you from? All things considered, would your kids prefer or not prefer to be at the same school? Would it make travel to/from school for breaks, etc easier? These may seem minor, but worth considering, if all else is pretty equal between Case and GT. No reason to consider UVA, IMO.
Not familiar with CWRU. No comparison between Georgia Tech engineering and UVA engineering. My son had that decision to make, toured both including separate engineering tour at UVA, and the contrast in facilities and opportunities is dramatic. Georgia Tech has the number two BME program behind Johns Hopkins for undergraduate. UVA is top 40.
Also, UVA engineering has a surcharge for engineering majors of about $10,000 over arts and sciences tuition. Is that included in your estimate?
I believe you have a child at Georgia Tech already? I canāt imagine the opportunities coming out of UVA engineering have any comparison to the ones coming out of Georgia Tech. It honestly blows my mind. And I say this as a UVA grad who loves UVA just not the best place for engineering.
100% agree with your comments. UVA more of a total university (poly sci, etc.) whereas CWRU and GT are more STEM based with UVA OOS being costly.
Agree CWRU might have more premed support, but GT has enough support based on S23 so as parents weāre comfortable with what they offer.
I think its going to come down to his preferenceā¦ 90 minute drive from home or a 2 hour flight from homeā¦ either wayā¦ cannot go wrongā¦ and we look them in the eye and say okay, youāre passionate about this school, its who you want to be, then we support him 100% once decision made and we move forward.
First and foremost is budget, can you afford all - and potentially medical school - without crimping your lifestyle/retirement?
On its surface, you should eliminate UVA but if budget isnāt a consideration and they like the feel of campus - itās very different than the other two - I mean, itās your money so that would be a personal choice.
As a major, biomeds make less than other engineering majors so that might be something to account for in ROI. And that wonāt matter where you go - on average, that will be the same thing - vs. other engineering majors at the school.
But not everyone excels in every environment. Being in Atlanta is different than Charlottesville - or a few miles off downtown Cleveland.
Best of luck - wow, thatās three awesome choices.
I actually wouldnāt classify Case as STEM based. They have a very robust arts and music program and plenty of students go there for liberal arts degrees. I know lots of students who went there for non STEM degrees. IMO, thatās one of the benefits for students who may not be 100% sold on their area of interest because Case offers a ton of flexibility with changing majors.
I hope you will circle back and let us know what your son decides! He has great options!!! Congratulations!!!
Thanks! Good things to consider. Budget is not an issue for undergrad or med schoolā¦ weāve been blessed and also disciplined with planning since the day kiddo born. That written, saving $30K a year is still saving $30K a year. I get itā¦ I suspect only the super few in the top 0.1% of incomes/wealth wouldnāt blink an eye at $30K!!!
Weāre there tooā¦ and I think S25 has UVA third on his list based on your reasons and cost (again no shade to UVA).
I personally would like them at two different schoolsā¦ now I know they wonāt cross paths muchā¦ if at all (I went to CWRU with my brother and we saw each other like 9 times total). Again me personally, Iād like them at different schools. This will be for him to decideā¦ and as a parent thereās pros/cons that I will have to think through.
I do feel GT is more āelectricā versus CWRUā¦ but that is from me who lived at CWRU for years and yearsā¦ so CWRU feels like normal/baseline to meā¦ and I thin this is just my perception but NOT realityā¦ so when I do a tour as a 50 y/o alum of CWRU I see nothing unexpectedā¦ where when I tour almost any other university I feel more electricity so to speakā¦ random but I have chalked this up to being in my mind only.
Yep!!! I remember you from two years ago, and also recently! (I hope we had pleasant exchanges) As a parent, UVA is out b/c GT/CWRU more BME opportunities and UVA more expensive (yes the $85K included the surcharge).
Money is not an issueā¦ eh, well, it is, weāve prepared well and sacrificedā¦ but like I replied elsewhere saving $30K/120K is a thing for us. And again, I adored being on the UVA campus and so too did S25 and my wife. Loved Asados and the hotel the Graduate or Collegiate or something.
GT is very hard to keep good GPAā¦ but older son is doing itā¦ and sweating out one tough cookie class each semester but pulls it out so far. We do a fair amount of load and gpa management to try and hit the sweet spot so he only has one oppressive class per semester. I think after this yearā¦ he has two brutal classes left and heās saving those for senior year so if he does get a B in two classesā¦ his med school applications are mostly processedā¦ doubt an offer rescinded to two total Bs in undergrad.
CWRU I feel having been there myself, Iām confident my son would get all Aās as he is way smarter than me and I snagged a 3.55 or somethingā¦ and yes yes, I could be wrong here.
Glass half fullā¦ if he picks GTā¦ we already have the GT swag for gameday!
Nice to have great choices. The average GPA at Georgia Tech across all majors is a 3.6 according to their latest report - believe it is for last year. GPA is not a problem for many students even with full social and extracurricular lives. My oldest held onto a 4.0 for five semesters but graduated with a 3.9. Current sophomore has a 3.9 plus after 5 semesters (summer start (admitted to fall but changed) and summer abroad). He got that B out of the way earlyš. All that being said getting a med school GPA at Georgia Tech is definitely doable, as your oldest is experiencing.
Not sure how available shadowing hours are at Georgia Tech versus CWRU, which is something to definitely consider as those can make or break a med school application. As you probably know, research is readily available at Georgia Tech for anyone who wants to participate, which can also be important for med school applications.
I donāt think thereās a wrong choice between his final two. Congratulations on two great options!
For premed, if money was not an issue, Iād probably consider which school I would get the best grades, see which campus is the best fit (culture, vibe, food, dorms, weather, size), college with the most opportunities to work, intern, shadow at the med school, and which school statistically places the highest pct. of med students.
Congratulations on your 3 great options. Well done. I would personally go for GT (even though my D21 is now in UVA). GT is a much more selective school. Itās well known both nationally and internationally. Of course I donāt have real first hand info except for the research on GT (hoping that my D25 would have a chance but she is waitlisted).
Thatās my parent vibe tooā¦ yes yesā¦ those in the knowā¦ appreciate UVA for what it is and have high respectā¦ but most others just are like okay, neat. But when one says GT or I wear GT for my older sonā¦ people are always stopping me in airport, or whatever. Kind of more āpopā so to speak. Pretty sure UVA is off his list after this weekend (hard for me to see that occur on one hand).
Yes, real meaningful research at GT ā¦ son is doing an Emory / GT lab nowā¦ and will be published (obviously heās not the lead researcher)ā¦ but its progress.
Wow, tough call between Case and GT (not sure why UVa is even in the running, given his goals and the extra cost).
How does he feel about the cold? Are there things like music that he wants to do, or sports, or certain hobbies? Does he like art? Is there a material difference in class sizes or housing?
Iām not sure this matters as this kid is planning to apply to medical school. This is just the undergrad major he has chosen for the time being.
Fact isā¦CWRU and GT and UVA are all fine for those with a premed intention. This student can take the required courses for medical school applicants at any of these colleges.
At this point, I would take medical school out of the equation. This student needs an undergrad school where he will be happy, enjoy being for four years, and where he feels he will thrive. Any of these colleges can fill that bill.
He needs to look at the characteristics of these collegesā¦and find the one that suits him best.
Adding, what a wonderful gift your student is receivingā¦in that you can and will fund any undergrad school of his choice. Some parents wonāt do that even if they can afford to! I hope he gives you a huge thank you and a hug!
just not the best place for engineering.