Hi everyone!! This is my first post on College Confidential, but I’ve been a regular viewer of posts for the last year or so. Just wanted an opinion on these two schools (Saint Rose and Oneonta). I live in NY and want to become an elementary school teacher, and have been accepted into both (Oneonta with a full tuition scholarship and St. Rose with $19,000 scholarship). I was just curious which school is better for elementary education (I have other choices, but these are my main two right now). Thanks so much!!
Well, cost-wise, a full tuition scholarship at Oneonta sounds like a better deal. Your costs there after tuition will be around $14,000 a year. The scholarship at St. Rose leaves you to pay $24,000 a year. So after four years that’s a $40,000 difference. How will you finance what’s left over?
One big difference is that St. Rose is located in Albany, which is a medium-sized city and New York’s state capital. There may be more opportunities for off-campus things, both professional (internships, volunteering in schools, other civic programs focused on education) and social (there are other colleges in the Capital District, too). Oneonta is a smaller city - really more of a town, which can be a really nice, bucolic setting for college. It’s not that far from Albany - about an hour and 15 minutes by car, but that’s relatively moot unless you do have a car.
They both seem to have good elementary education programs that will get you certified to teach elementary school in NYS. Really, it seems to be a matter of choice, assuming that the $40,000 difference doesn’t mean a lot to you.
Oneonta definitely has a solid reputation as a teaching school in NY. If you plan to stay in the area, you should be completely fine with it. If it’s going to be the difference between taking out loans or not, I’d lean towards that.
Thanks so much for your input/answers!! I really appreciate you taking the time to read and reply to my post. I just wanted to know your opinion on my other college choices in New York State (I applied to schools in other states as well). I applied to and have been accepted into Russell Sage College in Troy (with a large scholarship) and SUNY Cortland. I was curious what their reputations were and how their programs compared to St. Rose’s and Oneonta’s. Thanks again!!
My opinion just as a NYer is that Oneonta has a better reputation in general than Cortland, but I don’t know about the specifics of their programs.
The Education Department is very strong at Oneonta.
Please do not go into debt for elementary education. This is one of the tougher K-12 positions to get a job in (in contrast to HS math or science teaching positions, for example). Both Oneonta and St. Rose will prepare you and get you NYS certification. What matters is what you do once you are in college. Get good grades, possibly volunteer if you can at a local elementary school, get to know your professors (they often have connections for job placement), and do well in your student teaching placements. Good student teachers can capture the attention of the principal which can lead to a position if there are openings. And once you get further into your studies, consider getting multiple certifications, such as reading, special ed, etc. to make yourself a stronger candidate. Good luck!
Thank you so much to everyone who has responded. I really appreciate your input and advice.
I would recommend Oneonta over St. Rose. My philosophy is that the curriculum is designed and implemented by the Regents, who also run SUNY, so you are getting the material right from the horse’s mouth, so to speak.
Have you applied to Plattsburgh, which has a direct admit 5 year master’s program?
You probably wouldn’t have to stay up there if you chose not to. My D, who went to Plattsburgh, student taught in Manhattan and lived at home.
Thanks for your input, everybody!!