Which is not the same thing at all as a child choosing to go to a cheaper school on their own, allowing the parents to have a larger budget for another child.
UNC does not write committee letters for medical school.
I am an NC parent, and I would have to have very strong reasons to pay more for my child to attend a public university in another state if my kid is accepted to UNC and/or NC State. It comes down to two things 1) to what extent is the OOS university a better fit? 2) How comfortably can we as a family afford the extra cost?
Of course, ‘fit’ can be defined many ways – academically, geographically, socially. I think that’s where a family conversation should really focus in order to understand why you perceive fit as better at Auburn compared to UNC.
For me, the answers would have to be at least a 7 out of 10 on BOTH these criteria for me to agree for the OOS option.
This is not hypothetical – my S21 is looking at engineering programs at OOS publics other than NC State so we may be having this exact conversation in a year! We will allow him to apply OOS – esp. since engineering acceptance at NC State is very competitive even in-state, but making the case to attend an OOS public over State would need to be compelling. We are in the financial situation where we may say ‘yes’ – but, it will be a serious conversation for sure.
With the merit scholarship applied, Auburn will cost about $34,000 per year.
From my research so far, Auburn’s engineering program would be easier to transfer into, should I decide that is what I want to do, because of the course requirements. At NC State, the minimum requirements to apply to transfer into engineering only guarantee consideration, not acceptance into the program.
Yes, visit your cousin and spend time at the UNC campus. Chapel Hill is an awesome college town, walkable which you like, Big time D1 sports and great academics. These students will be your peers academically, less so at Auburn. If you ultimately want to pursue engineering after Freshman year you could always transfer to say NC State.
I would think long and hard about choosing Auburn over UNC-Chapel Hill. I completely understand where your mother is coming from. With that said, YOU are the one spending 4 years of your young life attending undergrad college so you have to be 100% committed to your choice.
Good luck, let us know how it goes…
Checking for clarity.
So Auburn will cost $34,000 a year…and UNC CH will cost $24,000 a year. Is that correct.
$10,000 a year is a good amount of money difference. Are you expecting your parents to pay the extra $10,000 a year?
How much is NC State for you?
OP, I am late to this party, but I completely understand your dilemma. I am an Auburn alum, and I also had the stats to go to a lot more schools. But the decider for me was that I had never run into an Auburn student or Auburn alum who didn’t love it. OF COURSE there are some, but that was my experience decades ago, and I still find it to be true generally. People really love Auburn, and you already do. It’s a perfectly acceptable school academically–it’s not as if you are choosing between UNC-CH and a third-tier juco. You will be able to do exactly what you want with a degree from Auburn, you will love your time there, and you’ll stand out a bit more than you would at UNC-CH. As for how to convince your mom, all you can do is tell that you love it and want to spend the next four years somewhere that you love. College can be a grind, which is something no one really tells you in advance, so anything you can do to make it less so deserves serious consideration.
“Auburn pluses you’ve expressed:”
You missed a big plus of Auburn:
“I love the atmosphere”
Given that, and assuming the OP didn’t love the atmosphere at the other colleges, it’s going to be tough to dislodge Auburn as the top choice.
“I don’t think she would be upset with me going for my degree at Auburn.”
If this is the case then OP should confirm the affordability and go to Auburn. You don’t want some one at college second guessing themselves.
@mjbryant – you are correct that transferring into engineering at NC State after starting in another major is very difficult. I think I saw stats representing single digit number of students who did so in a recent year.
@mjbryant Have you talked with your mom about being unsure about going into the medical field? This is your strongest reason for not going to UNC. You need to voice that concern no matter where you go. I think your biggest fear is disappointing your parents, but most parents want their kids to be happy. You are young, it’s okay to not know exactly what you want to do. Many people change their major- it’s good to know how easy that will be at the schools you are accepted to.
All of your choices are great schools. Before you choose have an honest talk with your parents about finances and your uncertainty about your major and the stress you feel to not disappoint them. Some of these issues don’t go away by simply picking the school they want.
That is all well and good if you are the one paying for it…but if you want me as a parent to pay more for a school that isn’t as “good” as another…why would I want to do that?
As others have pointed out, med school acceptance rates are not a reason by themselves to choose one school over another, and there are a ton of factors that can affect them. But, if your parent is hung up on stats, according to AMCAS records, MD acceptance rates for UNC Chapel Hill and Auburn are generally almost exactly the same. There are some significant differences between their applicants (for instance, there is a much higher percentage of UNC students who apply to med school), but again just the raw acceptance rate is about the same, and as others have pointed out, the best premed school for a student is the one where they will thrive: get good grades, take advantage of opportunities, present a good “Plan B” (like engineering).
I’m sorry but any of the multiple posters that have not heard of Auburn is lacking the requisite information to help here.
The impression I get is that money is a driving factor. There were multiple vague references to the cost difference and comments about merit aid bringing the OOS cost “close” to the in state school before OP acknowledged that the difference is at least $40k more. The benefits of each school only matter if her parents are willing) able to pay the difference. Has she ever actually said that they are? If parents can’t/won’t pay, no reasons we can give will change their minds.
I read the OPs responses again.
The OP has made clear that her tuition will be covered by the GI Bill and help from grandparents. The main argument I’m hearing from everyone here is that UNCCH is a better school. It seems that her mom’s objection is the same. The issue doesn’t appear to be financial. However, OP, it’s in your best interest to clarify 100% that the price difference is not a problem.
OP wants to persuade her mother that she feels Auburn is the best choice for her. Shouldn’t we help OP try to find ways to do that, rather than try to convince OP that UNCCH is a better school?
OP, if your parents are ok paying the cost difference, stick to your main argument. You really want to be at Auburn. Your college opportunities are what you make of them, and you will probably do extremely well there academically, which will help give you an advantage. Auburn has a 92% freshman retention rate, so they much be doing something right. The endowment is comfortable. You can get all kinds of information about post grad outcomes by using the Auburn career center links. They have job fairs and internships just like all colleges. Auburn grads are clearly going on to post-graduate jobs. Give your mom some facts so that she doesn’t just think you only care about sports and vibe.
Good luck, and I hope you end up at Auburn.