Dear All
My son,who is interested in pursuing - Computer Science and Engineering. is admitted to University in Virgnia and
we "were ’ all set to fly to US , until recently , when we received admission from HKU (university of Hongkong) with 80% Scholarship. Of course , US university is to be fully paid by us
We are stuck on which way to go.
- We have all the rankings from QS and other to look at and HKU is much better ranked. However , there is a huge cultural difference between Hongkong and US, plus the challenges in terms of food (we are vegetarian) .
- Hongkong university mainly Mainland Students other than the locals , so true International Environment is not there.
However, there is huge cost differential. Any suggestions and word of wisdom from experienced boarders are much needed.
thank you all for replies .
I don’t see a reason to send your S to Virginia for undergrad. If he does his undergrad there, does well, and makes sure he can speak English (and speaking it really well would help a lot), he can come to US for grad school.
I agree with the above. Your son will receive an excellent education in Hong Kong for a fraction of the cost of Virginia. If he still wants the experience of studying in the US, he can try for graduate school (and a funded program.) The money you will save is significant. Use some of it to send your son on a great trip, as a way of saying “thanks - and congratulations” 
Hong Kong has grocery stores and various ethnic restaurants, so it should not be too hard for a vegetarian to find food. The public transportation in Hong Kong is extensive and convenient to use, so getting to grocery stores and restaurants should not be a problem if the HKU student wants to go beyond what is on or near the HKU campus.
I agree. Save the money for graduate school in the U.S. instead. In four years the money in the bank will grow and can be used for future education expenses.
Very different student experience.
Where is he a citizen of?
For the vast majority of students, the QS rankings mean little. Rankings in general are fairly useless, so make your choice based on other reasons. Comfort and money are two excellent reasons to select Hong Kong University.
Only 5% of the students at UVA are international, so your son wouldn’t be getting an international environment, he’d be getting an American environment. I would have him go to Hong Kong U. If he decides later that he would like to study in the US, he can get a masters or a PhD and have it funded by a university.
Our local university, University of Toronto, has a lot of foreign Asian students. Many of them struggle, and then drop out because of the culture shock. They struggle with the language, the food, living arrangements etc etc. University life is hard enough without adding culture shock. It sounds like Hong Kong U will give your son the best start.
Thank you for the response . We are Indian living in Tokyo, my S speaks very goog English and Japanese, he went to an international school here.
My S’s goal is to have US education and wants his own Startup after college. He thinks early entry into US might be good for him.
Question about UVA (university of Virginia). Is he directly admitted into his first choice major? From years ago, if I remember correctly, all the new engineers take the same curriculum and then at the end of their second year, they must request their majors.
Has he already eliminated other US schools?
I just saw in previous threads that SGinTokyo is referring to Va Tech in which case, I believe there are many international students there. Much more than at UVA.
Hi. My S is admitted to VATeh , in General Engineering. So i guess there are many International .
He is already connected with many via Facebook Page for Class of 2019.
VATech admits all in GE General Engineering and then can choose the major in Second Year with GPA is 3.0 ( which should not be difficult) . I think , this is the case for most of US colleges.
He was admitted to Seven US Schools and decided on VATech - has all the Visa in place .
BUT it is fully paid option .
Then we got this offer from HKU - 80% Scholarship .
Final Goal of my S is to study in US .
So, Cost is a big difference . I need help to make a Holistic and Informed decision .
thank you all for your guidance .
If it’s VTech, I would choose the cheaper option of HKU and aim for a graduate program in the US.
Even at list price for international students, HKU is about US$27,000 per year, which is less than Virginia Tech which approaches $45,000 per year.
http://www.als.hku.hk/admission/intl/admission/admissionHK4
http://www.admiss.vt.edu/apply/expenses/
An 80% scholarship would cut the cost to about $5,400 (if 80% off all estimated costs) or about $12,400 (if 80% off tuition only).
But if his goal is to join the work force in America immediately after graduation, wouldn’t the undergraduate education in a U.S. Institution and a U.S. University degree be a significant help? For CS or Computer engineering, one doesn’t necessarily need a graduate degree. With a foreign undergraduate degree, he either needs to enroll in a graduate program in a U.S. University or find an employer who is willing to sponsor his work visa, which is possible but more difficult for an individual without much work experience. Some things to think about…
@PurpleTitan , thanks for the response. Any concerns if it is VT that i should know ?
@panpacific, thanks for the response. With US Undergraduate Degree , My S can work for 1 year as OPT , then opt for Work visa .
What we learned is that Work Visa category / Quota for US Undergraduate is different than the one you apply from outside of US .
@panpacific, it would actually be harder for an international student to get sponsored to work in the US after just an undergraduate degree, from what I understand.
Exactly. OPT will buy him time and give him a chance to gain some industry experience to become more employable here in the U.S.
@PurpleTitan: True, but getting a degree from HK would make it even harder, IMO.