Worth the cost for GaTech [$51k] vs. UMD [$49k] vs. UNC [$60k]? vs in-state Oregon State [$20k] -- Computer Science

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Basically the question is in the title. I have to decide between these offers:

GaTech: ~51k/yr (admitted into CS)
UMD: ~49k/yr (admitted into CS)
UNC-CH: ~60k/yr (but work study is -3600)

Or, OSU (Oregon State) for probably some 20k/yr, no loans needed.

Is it worth the extra cost for any of these out of state options? Our family can maybe scrape by the 40-some thousand per year if I also take out max federal loans.

The other issu – although I was direct-admit CS for all schools, and im certainly interested in CS, i also could see a world where I want to go into law post-grad.

So my dilemma is that I know that the cheapest option is always correct if planning on law school. Yet I’m not sure if I want law school, and if I end up sticking in CS, then I feel like my prospects will likely be hurt choosing OSU. Is this accurate?

What would you recommend?

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CS degrees are marketable from any college. Consider that. You don’t need to go into debt or scrape together money. These colleges are all fine state flagship universities.

That being said…please discuss these costs with your family. It’s possible they are willing to fund your undergrad choice regardless of the cost. But make sure. There are families who will pay full price because they can and want to🙋🏼‍♀️. And there are families who won’t even if they can afford to.

If your parents say yes…please give them a huge hug and a big thank you.

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If you have to leverage, especially you personally, the answer is no. Go to OSU and be debt free.

If you got into GT, you certainly qualified for the honors college at OSU. It is one of the very best for engineering and CS students.

BTW, the top 10 employers of OSU CS grads is a who’s who of top companies: Intel, Microsoft, Amazon, Google, AWS, Boeing, Nike, Apple, HP, Meta.

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I’d recommend OSU.

I’m not a fan of debt.

If the family can’t afford it, it’s not worth it.

That said, others would argue that for nominal debt, a Ga Tech would be well worth it and perhaps so.

I just don’t like having a stranglehold on me - I’d rather breathe easy.

Here’s the other thing - I believe the student, moreso than the school matters.

You got into Ga Tech, UNC, and UMD.

I’m betting on you no matter which school you attend!!!

In the end, it’s a personal call - and there’s more involved - the others are far from home, their environments are different…taking ranking and cost aside, which of the four (assuming you visited), do you feel most at home?

Good luck.

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Freshman can only borrow $5,500 their first year. Parents are usually eligible to borrow up to the cost of attendance. How much debt are they willing to take on, where will money to pay that debt come from, what are the expected monthly payments?

Figure out exactly where money to pay for these options over the next four years will come from before deciding, some of these options when you dig into the details are probably not viable.

With no debt at Oregon, but a cost of 60k/yr at UNC-CH would you be asking your parents to take on 40k/yr debt? $160,000 in additional parent plus loans above the federal student loan limits of about $27,000 plus interest is a very big debt burden, particularly since you have an option that avoids debt entirely.

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I agree…your parents should not be expected to take out any parent loans for undergrad school. We would not have done so either. But again…family choice.

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Can your parents afford gaTech or UMD without loans? Because yes there are academic and environment differences, though you wouldn’t “recoup” the financial difference.

If your parents would need to borrow for you to attend these OOS universities, then, no, UMD and GTECH wouldn’t be worth it.
The 5.5k federal loans that you take on yourself would be OK if you felt okay about it.

Personally I’d pick Oregon State+ Honors and do very well (and use some of the “saved” money to help pay for an internship’s summer housing anywhere in the US including where housing markets can be tight like CA, Boston or NYC, and also for a semester study abroad/study away.)

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My family would be able and willing to swing the 40-something a year for one of the non-OSU options, which I’m of course endlessly thankful for – so I would be the only one going into debt, and it would be the federal limits of 5,500 first-year, 6,500 second-year, etc.

Assuming I do opt for one of those options, would any of them be preferable over the others in your opinion?

I was only able to visit UMD, and although it was a beautiful campus and nothing in particular rubbed me the wrong way, I was having such a bad day for other reasons that I ended up having a panic attack on the way back. So, although I have a negative association there, it’s definitely not fair. The housing I saw looked nice too, and of course it’s a large school with great options for me to pursue music and law as hobbies/minors.

I didn’t get to visit UNC or GaTech.

I know Georgia is probably the most “well-known” one, especially for computer science, but my fear is just that I’ll be shoehorned into the computer/STEM option, and not be able to pursue my love of music and law and history – maybe it’s a stereotype, but it’s still scary to think about every room being filled with compsci majors. Not to mention, because it’s so STEM-focused, there’s a comparatively tiny music program, same with law.

UNC-CH is the most expensive, but also the only one where I know someone who attends. She absolutely loves it, and she’s studying Psych but has been able to join orchestras, etc. – so everythink I know about UNC is positive right now. Especially it’s position in the research triangle also appeals to me, since I’m doing CS research right now at a local college and I love it.

Any thoughts? Would GaTech be the only one worth the cost/debt in terms of having the name on the resume? Or would Maryland/UNC be comparable as still well-known colleges in their own rights, with more broad opportunities beyond straight CS/Engi?

Thanks!

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If the most you can come up with is $40k with federal direct loans, then the non Oregon State options listed are $9-20k beyond that, which is higher than reasonably expected student work earnings from part time and summer jobs.

Yes, internships for CS majors can pay a lot more than that, but they are less likely in the pre-frosh and frosh-soph summers than later, and they depend on economic conditions.

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Sorry, I maybe was unclear – “40-something” refers to the difference between the cost and the loans. UNC is maybe the exception here, but for either UMD or GA, we could pay the 44.5 or 46.5 respectively.

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That statement is even more unclear. Can you say how much your parents are able and willing to pay, before anyone takes any loans?

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The day of your panic attack ? Was it not close to home related ? Something else?

If UMD didn’t do it for you, remove it. You have to start somewhere. UMD is urbanish …near but not in DC.

UNC is surrounded by society but not in the big city.

Ga Tech is big city.

Here’s the other thing - with CS companies laying off no one is assured of an Internship or job.

Someone recently posted that kids are applying to 150 jobs to find one - the source school - UNC.

No one knows what the world will look like in four years. You can know financially but not outcome wise.

So go with your gut but do know debt is a serious serious thing. You pay fees up front so you don’t clear what you borrow. You have interest etc. for years and years.

To me, if you suffer panic attacks and while I don’t know why, I wouldn’t choose UNC or Ga Tech. Why ? They are unknown to you.

I also wouldn’t make assumptions about not being able to fulfill other interests. CS will likely be rigid in curriculum but each school can show you a path to get you a minor, double major or otherwise. Ga Tech is not only strong in STEM but social sciences, business and more.

Same with orchestra. Research each school’s offerings for non majors.

If you’ve been to OSU and like it, it seems a big win in so many ways vs the unknown, especially if you suffer from panic attacks.

Good luck.

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I have no idea if this applies to you or not, but I have observed that strong students are sometimes given the message that they should go far from home for college, and that if you go to your state’s flagship you are selling yourself short. Personally, I don’t believe this is true because college is a big growth experience whether or not you go far from home. Again, I have no idea if this applies to you or not.

Best wishes to you! I think you will thrive wherever you go.

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I’m reading this as “if I go to UMD or GTech, my parents can pay the 40k difference with the cost of OSU out of pocket as long as I take the 5.5k federal loans”.

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I don’t believe The Ohio State University is under consideration. OP is weighing OOS options vs their in-state (Oregon).

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Unless I am missing something, UNC doesn’t seem affordable.

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:joy:Yes, autocorrect added that “t” to OSU-Oregon State (because typically I type tOSU I guess). Thanks for pointing it out, I edited it above to avoid confusion.

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It’s not worth it. Why pay extra money to go to a school that will (in the end) get you the job you want? Why not go to OSU instead? There are obviously big pros here.

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Congratulations on going to Oregon State. I agree with the honors program.

So you just saved your parents, if I am understanding this all, $40,000/year. $160,000 total that they can use for their retirement. Correct?

So this is your play. You go to Oregon State. You ask your parents to put $5,000/year or $20,000 total into an investment vehicle /growth cash fund etc for you. So at the very least you will have $20,000 plus interest to start your life with instead of being $30,000 in debt and your parents $160,000 in debt for no good reason.

If you get an internship you will make let’s say $20,000. It’s kinda nice having some money in the bank when finishing college. CS jobs can be harder to get now so get your AI on also.

Good luck.

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We’re from Oregon. My son went to Cal Poly, but one of his HS classmates stayed in state and went to OSU. He then went to MIT for his MS and now has a great job with an innovative startup in Boston. OSU won’t hold you back.

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