<p>I am facing somewhat of a dilemma. Should I attend a public university like UC Berkeley (I probably will get Regents) or should I attend a private university like UPenn Wharton (If I get in)? </p>
<p>Berkeley costs 20k while UPenn would cost 50k. To be honest, I am after the prestige and opportunities, but are the opportunities at UPenn worth 50k a year? At Berkeley, I would also easily graduate in 2-3 years since I have almost a year of community college courses under my belt and several APs as well. </p>
<p>I know, I know: “It is your own personal choice.” but I would like to hear some opinions from people who have already gone through the process and especially parents. Is UPenn or any prestigious private worth the additional 120k baggage?</p>
<p>Well, I chose between UC Berkeley where I did get Regents and Cornell University where I had absolutely no aid. I was admitted to Berkeley’s Bioengineering program and Cornell’s Electrical and Computer Engineering. I also took several (13) AP exams and several community college courses. I will also graduate in 3 years easy. I come from an upper-middle class family with a heavy mortgage debt.</p>
<p>First, although this deviates slightly from the post, community college courses and AP classes in no way compare to actual university classes.</p>
<p>Anyway, a lot of it is personal preference for the schools. Which public and private schools are you deciding between? Berkeley and UPenn? Or like Berkely and like UPenn? Another factor is what major are you applying for? For Engineering, take Berkeley. For business, I’m not so sure.</p>
<p>As for my decision, I chose Cornell Engineering. Both school’s were very well respected in Engineering and despite the cost difference (yes I was in-state), I chose for the private school. Why? Some of it was to have a change of pace. I lived 20 minutes from Berkeley. Some of it was to have the next big adventure. What better way then to immerse yourself in a place where you didn’t know anyone and got a chance to start from scratch? But the largest difference was that I believed Cornell would offer me more than Berkeley can in terms of academics. Berkeley is a large public school that does not have much money to offer to undergrad organizations. I believed that Cornell’s variety of project teams and undergraduate research opportunities would help me further my future goals.</p>
<p>Do I think it was worth it? Yeah. If I had to make the decision again, I would make the exact same one. I’ve been working with a professor on a research project already even though I’m a freshman. I’m being challenged academically on every level. I’m developing as a person socially and philosophically. Yes it is difficult here and yes I complain about engineering, but that is what I set out to undertake, a challenge.</p>
<p>But this isn’t to say that Berkeley is a terrible place. I can’t compare what life would be like at Berkeley because I’ve never experienced it.</p>
<p>Choosing between Berkeley and UPenn is not a “dilemma” - look up the word.
I’d say it depends on your major, and have you checked out the schools?</p>