I got into a State school with full ride and possible a 5k stipend. But I also got into University of Southern California with all my tuition and fees covered, what should I do?
One side of me wants to explore LA and USC, but the other tells me financially speaking the state school is the way to go.
Any thoughts?
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Depends, first of all, on your financial situation. Can you afford room and board at USC without taking on debt?
If you can afford USC, then the question is whether it’s worth the additional cost.
While USC is an excellent school with a solid engineering program, I don’t think you could find anyone who would argue that its MechE program is better than all public university MechE programs. There are more than a few that have at least as strong a reputation from the standpoint of engineering academics.
So it depends, as well, on which state school we’re talking about.
And on what you’re looking for in a college experience, upon which you haven’t elaborated.
And on top of all that, you’ll need to consider the context of the pandemic and how that will alter what you’re able to get out of each experience.
So USC would be about $19k per year after tuition and fees are covered by scholarships or grants?
How much can you and your parents afford before debt?
Which state school?
Exactly. UIUC, U Michigan, UNC, GTech, Purdue, UT Austin, UMD, UCBerkeley, UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UW, Wisconsin, NCSU, VTech, OSU, and UMN are all as good or better than USC in engineering. A full ride + $5,000 at any of those is a no-brainer, no matter where else you would have been accepted.
In this situation, and depending on your finances, I would go for the state school for any of the colleges above, as well as Penn Sate, Arizona State, UVA, UFlorida, VTech, CO, School of Mines (depending on major), and a few others, depending on your specific major.
The advantage of paying $60,000 or so less, as well has having some extra cash is an amazing opportunity, since it will also allow you to do a wide array of additional activities, choose internships without caring about compensation, and other things.
USC is offering online classes in the fall. How about your state school?