McGill vs. CUNY vs. Cal Poly

mich92
Sat, 23 Apr 2011 03:54:11 +0000

I stared a thread on the College Selection board, but I got referred here.
Original: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1132976-mcgill-vs-cuny-vs-cal-poly.html

Since I won’t be hearing from the University of Waterloo’s architecture and planning programs until early May, I need to decide on my backup choice before May 1. I have three choices right now, and whichever one we choose here will be my university if UW rejects me. The choices are McGill in Montréal QC, CUNY in New York NY, and Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo CA.
I want to pursue a career in either architecture or urban planning.
If it means anything to anyone, I’m both Canadian and American but live overseas.
I’m going to tell you a bit about what I think about each school and show you the approximate price tag for the full degree (tuition, housing, meal plan, supplies, etc.).

McGill
I was accepted into the Faculty of Arts for U1 (sophomore year) where I would study for a BA (Hons) Urban Systems. That program is part of McGill’s small but highly regarded geography department. The urban systems major has an architecture option, which would enable me to take some classes at the School of Architecture (one of the world’s best).
I can either do all 3 years there, or transfer to an architecture program after a year (most Canadian architecture programs start junior year). It all depends on how I like it when I get there.
McGill has a very strong academic reputation and has been ranked the #19 university in the world and is #28 for liberal arts. Montréal is a great city in terms of diversity and livelihood.
The only bad things that I’ve heard about McGill are morning classes and the absence of a fine arts department. But neither of those things really bother me.
The only thing that worries me about this university would be the transfer process.
≈ $50,000

CUNY Spitzer School of Architecture (City College) & Macaulay Honors College
I was accepted into City College where I would study for a BArch. My CUNY offer allows me to study architecture at City College while taking honors classes at Macaulay.
If you haven’t heard of Macaulay, it’s an academic scholarship program. Full tuition, free MacBook Pro, $2000 yearly for housing, Cultural Passport (free/discounted entry to hundreds of arts & cultural venues in NYC), and a $7500 study grant (for research or study abroad). My counselor told me that there are a lot of great things that come from being a university scholar.
The BArch program lasts five years and I’m willing to go into the long haul for a professional program.
Most of the professors at the Spitzer School of Architecture were educated at Ivy League universities or the like. And a recent donation to the program has given the school some great new facilities.
Macaulay presents students with a lot of internship opportunities. Apparently, a lot of graduates go on to top-notch graduate schools.
I don’t know anyone who goes to CUNY, so the only people I’ve talked to who really know about it are current students (on the phone). They seem content, they’re a tad biased. Even though Macaulay students seem to be quite successful, I’m still a bit worried about the CUNY reputation.
Although studying architecture in NYC would be a great experience, living there is extremely expensive. The calculation below has accounts for my scholarship package, so it’s just an estimate on housing, food, and supplies.
≈ $60,000

Cal Poly
I was accepted into the College of Architecture and Environmental Design for the BArch program. This has been ranked the #2 or #3 undergraduate architecture program in the country.
This is a five-year program too. Yet again, I’m not too bothered.
Aside from the California weather, I was attracted to Cal Poly by its “learn by doing” education. The projects give students great practical experience. The facilities are great, and I’ve been told the local atmosphere is great too. From what I know, it’s a great college town. Not everyone is a partier and the quarter system keeps students quite focused. I also really liked that there are no TA’s.
What I didn’t really like what the lack of diversity. As per the statistics I’ve seen, most students are white Californians and there is about 1% international students. I took a peek at some of the architecture professors’ profiles and most of them went to Cal Poly. Even though that shows a strong sense of community, I might really miss the diversity I’m used to (I’m one of the 15 white people in my high school of 350).
Problem is, Cal Poly is significantly more expensive than my other options. My parents would reluctantly pay, but I don’t want to make them pay 3 times more for an education I can get elsewhere (if you know what I mean). I love the idea of Cal Poly, but I need to be convinced if it’s worth that much more.
≈ $140,000

I’m sorry for making you read all that.
Any advice or suggestions? Anything else I should consider?