<p>Is it worth doing an M.S. a ta top school like Columbia/UPenn even if their tuition is 5-6 times the cost of a state school? </p>
<p>The practical relevance is if it’s worth me putting in a lot of effort to get really high GRE scores; my current scores are 500 verbal, 640 math which is good enough for a state school, but if I wanted to get into UPenn or Columbia I’d need higher math - I’d be willing to put in the effort to get higher scores if it’s worth it.</p>
<p>It will depend on your field. The Ivies are not necessarily the best choice.</p>
<p>If you are seeking a professional master’s degree, the public universities, such as Michigan, Berkeley, and UNC, offer better bargains. This is especially true if you’re a resident in any one of those states.</p>
<p>I’m interested in a Masters in Biomedical engineering.</p>
<p>The SUNY schools have cheap programs; I’m particularly interested in SUNY CCNY because it is in a good location, has a decent program and is very inexpensive.</p>
<p>My goal would be to complete a masters, and then decide if I want to go on to a PhD or do work in industry. Please let me know what you think.</p>