We are from NJ, so Rutgers is instate for us. We are fortunate that my kid has several choices so far (about 7 acceptances), and waiting for some more by the end of the month. Out of all the acceptances so far, we shortlisted the 4, and appreciate any opinions that will help make the decision. We are not too concerned about the $$ difference. The priority is education & research opportunities for Pre-Med. My DS is looking at BME or Biologicai sciences
UF - BME - Got into Honors with merit $
Rutgers - BME - Engineering Honors Academy in-state with merit $
Pitt - BME - Got into Honors with highest merit $
UIUC - Biology - No merit (No merit)
We are leaning more towards UF for its reputation, and honors program. However, not sure if we are ignoring any aspect that would change. We really loved Pitt for the amount of merit, hospital proximity for medical internships etc.
My and my spouse are educated outside of US, so the education system is new to us. Appreciate your feedback
Congrats on the great acceptances! Your kid will get a great education and have research opportunities at all of these schools so you can’t go wrong there.
If your kid wants to study engineering, go ahead and cross UIUC right off the list for not being the right major and having no merit aid.
Does your kid know what they might like to do if they change their mind about med school? Do you think they’d want to work as a biomedical engineer? It’s a great plan B for a pre-med and the degree is way more marketable than a bio degree for getting a job after graduation.
However, engineering curriculum is demanding, and it can be hard to maintain a high GPA. That doesn’t matter much for kids who plan to become engineers, but it matters a lot for premeds.
Med school is really expensive. How much would the cost of attendance be at UF, Rutgers, and Pitt?
Has your kid visited the schools? Does your kid have any vibes or preferences about the schools? If your kid likes Pitt and it’s affordable, I don’t see any reason to choose UF instead. I’m wondering how much cheaper is Rutgers than Pitt, and how does your kid feel about Rutgers. Again, congrats on great options to choose from!
Congrats on these fabulous choices! I agree about taking UIUC off the list due to not receiving merit.
I am confused about how the reputation of UF surpasses the reputation of the others. I don’t see it (nothing against UF).
I would choose Rutgers or Pitt, but that’s just me and he won’t go wrong at any of these schools. It will depend on fit…for him.
Given the possibility of med school, I would factor costs into the equation…once he looks at fit. Med school is very expensive. Grad school (if he ends up there) is also expensive. If he switches to biology and does not go to med school…he will likely be in some kind of graduate school. He can participate in research (if he wants) at all of these schools.
Is he leaning toward one in particular? Has he visited? He can achieve his goals at any of these schools.