Daughter got into both UVa engineering and Va Tech engineering. Yay. They are both fine programs, and I know she’ll do well either way. But can anyone share any substantive differences between the two? I can’t tell if she’s guaranteed acceptance to her first choice of major at UVa (she would be at VT with a minimum GPA). Anything else that would help us distinguish between the programs and make a decision is appreciated!
Are you in or OOS. I’ll assume by the name in state but if OOS, obviously cost is a huge difference.
Size and environment are huge differences. Not just campuses but the departments - UVA engineering will be smaller.
Not sure if Va Tech requires this: Before they graduate, 100 percent of UVA Engineering students must complete a research project that demonstrates their analysis and judgment.
I don’t see anything about secondary admission at UVA but you can reach out to engineering and ask.
Best of luck.
What kind of engineering?
Thank you! We’re in state, yes.
She is undecided but leaning towards either mech eng or computer eng or computer science.
I’m guessing you have or will visit both? Obviously the campuses and surrounds are different. And you can have an academic meeting to suss out further info.
Your student can also meet student ambassadors to get the true low down.
Both options will offer excellent academics. I would let her choose which school feels like the better fit (including acceptance into her preferred major if that is an issue anywhere.) If possible try to revisit both.
Congrats to your D on these wonderful acceptances.
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Well @happy1 just beat me to it. I will go further. If you need a tie break Va Tech is ranked slightly higher. Lol.
I would have her go online to the schools Facebook page and connect with some people. Definitely go visit but maybe shadow a student for half /full day. Are her peeps there? Does she feel comfortable there. Kids that are comfortable do better on campus.
Also compare clubs /activities and opportunities. Make a spread sheet for all of us…
I hear from engineers that Va Tech is like a diamond in the rough.
Both school websites should have outcomes for each specialty and which companies hire on campus. I bet their very similar.
If she can’t really decide… Who’s pizza is better 
How sure is your D that she’ll stick with her potential majors? If she could see herself moving out of STEM, then I give UVA the edge. That said, my engineering kid loved being in a STEM centric school.
Take a look at the four year plan of studies for her intended major at both schools. We found a big difference between other schools in gen ed requirements, sequencing differences, and differences in freshman and senior design classes.
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Man what great choices to have… congratulations!
I got my grad degree from UVA engineering and my son goes to Virginia Tech. I like both schools very much, but they are very different in feel. I don’t think you’re going to suffer from the quality of education at either, nor have to worry about a huge difference in opportunities and outcomes. Have you visited both schools… you should definitely do that.
Virginia Tech is much bigger, so there are a variety of students that go there. UVA isn’t super small either, but there is more of a “preppy” vibe… it’s big on history, and there are some pretty cool traditions that go along with Mr. Jefferson’s university (basically, if that’s they type of thing you like, then UVA is fantastic, but if you have strong aversion to that, then it might annoy you).
Substantively - UVA is pretty great at everything. Wonderful history, pre-law, biology, political science, business school, etc. Really great alumni network. Top notch facilities. Good research opportunities.
Virginia Tech has one of the prettiest campus’ I’ve seen. The school spirit is really strong, so many kids we met just love their school. Great food. The engineering program is very, very strong. And all of the STEM classes are good. I think their business school is pretty good as well. Very good forestry program. Their other majors are good as well, but I think most people would give the edge to UVA. You won’t hurt for research opportunities, and the engineering fair they have every year is amazing - lots of opportunities to find internships.
I think it ought to come down to which school you daughter feels more comfortable at after visiting the schools
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@ParentVA , I strongly second this. UVA and VT are very different. Do a deep dive on first year course syllabi as well as course progression, requirements and research opportunities. UVA does not have secondary entry to get into different engineering majors. UVA is much easier to switch between schools and has interdisciplinary minors/etc. UVA Engineering was such an obvious winner on all these fronts that D23 did not even apply to VT. The same decision is made by many top Engineering kids from various HS in our area. We are also in-state, and also have dozens of colleagues with kids who have gone through each school that helped us dig into the curriculum and outcome differences. I predict CC is not going to like this answer, because CC tends to over-inflate “rankings” for Engineering, but all that matters is you and your kid have to be comfortable. Congrats on two big wins!
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If they are instate for VA, both of these schools are at the instate rate.
Both of these excellent colleges in VA would be fine! Congratulations, and isn’t it great to be a resident of a state with such wonderful instate public options!
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Instate rates can vary quite a bit. UVA is significantly more expensive than tech. I did a quick calc because I take out their estimate costs for books, transportation, etc. but housing/food plus tuition/fees looks like it’s $45K vs $32K.
At least for someone like me, that is a lot! To others, maybe not so much. And both schools are stingy with scholarships.
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Well…hopefully both are affordable for this family.
That’s quite a hefty surcharge for the college of engineering vs arts and sciences at UVA.
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