What college should I choose as an Engineering major?

collegebownd
Mon, 29 Mar 2021 12:07:21 +0000

AnonymousCarrot:

Yeah, I can “pay” both Cal Poly and UW’s cost of attendance, but it’s just that I will have to pay them back upon my graduation (I am borrowing money from my parents and relatives). I am an international student from South Korea, and unfortunately, all of my options in Korea are very limited and unviable.

When you say “do not expect to stay in the US after graduation,” are you saying that it is almost impossible to get an H-1 Visa by getting a job? As far as I know, there is no policy that requires South Korean international students to return after graduation. Also, I have no intention of going back to my home country for getting a job; my plan is to get a job in the US after graduating from college.

Let’s be clear: Relying on H1B without a graduate degree is a bit risky. You will have 12 months of OPT on your F1 after you graduate. If your graduation coincides with an economic slump, it will be even riskier. Bottom line, you’re probably looking at getting an MS after graduation (which is a great option). Many universities support MS students financially (and waive their tuition) because they make good teaching assistants. So you’ll be looking at six years of school before you can start paying your family back. This has the added benefit that you may start at Cal Poly (cheaper by your numbers), use some F1 CPT to put research under your belt at some other university during summer, and then apply to grad school to a top school (like UW or UCSD).

No luck with SNU, KAIST, POSTECH, etc? BTW, kudos to you for being willing to jump continents in pursuit of your ambitions; that’s pretty courageous.