When did Pitt become this area's safety school? Why no CMU as a top pick?

[Anonymous]

I truly feel like there is a wake up call lately. My child is in a private and many kids are actively looking for state schools with merit and honors programs. These aren’t poor kids either but kids with some money that will give them zero financial assistance but paying 70K a year for possibly 8 years is insane. Why spend a ton of money on CMU when you still need money for grad school. Pitt has been very smart. It gives merit, it has rolling admissions to let some kids in that might want to be one and done so they can enjoy their senior year. It offers immediate admissions into masters programs, it has a very fun down to earth feel to it, but their stats are growing and they are getting some great students. It is catering to donut hole families and people appreciate that. And then you get those kind of kids there.

CMU has very rich or heavy FA kids. Similar to many LAC’s and for donut hole families, they can’t quite afford it and they don’t really fit in. Go to Pitt, excel and go to a great grad school. Or stay there too!

[Anonymous]

PITT gave DC enough merit aid to make the net price comparable with UMDCP. DC still chose UMD (comp sci is arguably stronger) but PITT was a serious contender.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rolling admission, easy app, good merit scholarship, and stats driven process. That was our reasons. CMU is hard to get it and stingy with merit money. No safety.

+1

Also, the city of Pittsburgh is a draw. It is a wonderful city with a lot of culture and entertainment, at a relatively low cost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rolling admission, easy app, good merit scholarship, and stats driven process. That was our reasons. CMU is hard to get it and stingy with merit money. No safety.

This.

Reasonable distance from home.

State school which means DC TAG money.

City of Pittsburgh seems to love Pitt, and it is a nice city for DC who grew up in DC.

The Cathedral does take a little getting used to

Are you talking about the Cathedral of Learning? What about it is hard to get used to?

It's a skyscraper. With classrooms. That looks like an Art Deco office building inside. Great idea for in a city but to those of us who went to larger more rural/suburban universities, 30 stories of classrooms and offices is different.

Pitt alum here. The Cathedral was one of my favorite parts of campus!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I truly feel like there is a wake up call lately. My child is in a private and many kids are actively looking for state schools with merit and honors programs. These aren’t poor kids either but kids with some money that will give them zero financial assistance but paying 70K a year for possibly 8 years is insane. Why spend a ton of money on CMU when you still need money for grad school. Pitt has been very smart. It gives merit, it has rolling admissions to let some kids in that might want to be one and done so they can enjoy their senior year. It offers immediate admissions into masters programs, it has a very fun down to earth feel to it, but their stats are growing and they are getting some great students. It is catering to donut hole families and people appreciate that. And then you get those kind of kids there.

CMU has very rich or heavy FA kids. Similar to many LAC’s and for donut hole families, they can’t quite afford it and they don’t really fit in. Go to Pitt, excel and go to a great grad school. Or stay there too!

+1

Also recommend Ohio University, which fits the bill as well in terms of the OOS public with great programs and good merit aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is the OP. My question about CMU was why it isn't a school that you see top students apply to. People will list the Ivies, Swarthmore, Duke, etc, but you rarely see CMU listed as a reach school. It is an amazing school, and relatively close by. It is one of the most expensive.

I guess what surprises me here is all the love for PITT and not for CMU.

Pittsburgh has a handful of small colleges for students drawn to Pittsburgh. Students generally have the opportunity to take some classes at other college's in the city. Duquense, Chatham, Point Park

CMU:

1. how on earth do you know where other kids apply? I certainly don't know much about that for my kid's friends.
2. CMU is pretty hard to get into and a school for a stemmy kid. CMU and Pitt kids aren't the same. My kid didn't apply to CMU because even if by some fluke he got in, he'd be outclassed.

PP is likely not being nosy. Many area HS's use Naviance and publish stats on college applications from previous classes so you can see how many applied and how many got in to a certain school along with their GPAs and SAT/ACT test score ranges. It's a good starting point/tool for kids and their parents to help figure out where to apply.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Doesn't CMU have one of those "where fun goes to die" reputations? With a 4% acceptance rate to their college of engineering, and 25% or more of their students university-wide with SATs over 1560 and ACT of 35/36, it's just not an option for most people.

Pitt is easier to get get into than VA Tech and Maryland, but it also attracts plenty of students who are better than "middling" and they have a pretty high threshold for merit consideration.

My DC hated CMU. He got in, tho not for engineering/CS (didn't tour beforehand) and then spent a day shadowing a student and doing an overnight. He didn't like the vibe of the school/its students. Full of I Am Very Smart types. He is smart but likes to have fun and be social and he knew that CMU would NOT be a good fit. (He ended up at WashU).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Doesn't CMU have one of those "where fun goes to die" reputations? With a 4% acceptance rate to their college of engineering, and 25% or more of their students university-wide with SATs over 1560 and ACT of 35/36, it's just not an option for most people.

Pitt is easier to get get into than VA Tech and Maryland, but it also attracts plenty of students who are better than "middling" and they have a pretty high threshold for merit consideration.

My DC hated CMU. He got in, tho not for engineering/CS (didn't tour beforehand) and then spent a day shadowing a student and doing an overnight. He didn't like the vibe of the school/its students. Full of I Am Very Smart types. He is smart but likes to have fun and be social and he knew that CMU would NOT be a good fit. (He ended up at WashU).

My DC fits this description as well, and hated CMU during the tour for the same reasons.

[Anonymous]

OP must not know top comp sci candidates. Every one I've know has had CMU on his/her list.

[Anonymous]

Funny the one pp who has trouble getting used to the COL. It's often listed as a top cool college building on any campus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rolling admission, easy app, good merit scholarship, and stats driven process. That was our reasons. CMU is hard to get it and stingy with merit money. No safety.

This.

Reasonable distance from home.

State school which means DC TAG money.

City of Pittsburgh seems to love Pitt, and it is a nice city for DC who grew up in DC.

The Cathedral does take a little getting used to

Are you talking about the Cathedral of Learning? What about it is hard to get used to?

It's a skyscraper. With classrooms. That looks like an Art Deco office building inside. Great idea for in a city but to those of us who went to larger more rural/suburban universities, 30 stories of classrooms and offices is different.

Pitt alum here. The Cathedral was one of my favorite parts of campus!

Right! It is so cool. Just cutting through the first floor on the way from one part of campus to another is fun.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Doesn't CMU have one of those "where fun goes to die" reputations? With a 4% acceptance rate to their college of engineering, and 25% or more of their students university-wide with SATs over 1560 and ACT of 35/36, it's just not an option for most people.

Pitt is easier to get get into than VA Tech and Maryland, but it also attracts plenty of students who are better than "middling" and they have a pretty high threshold for merit consideration.

My DC hated CMU. He got in, tho not for engineering/CS (didn't tour beforehand) and then spent a day shadowing a student and doing an overnight. He didn't like the vibe of the school/its students. Full of I Am Very Smart types. He is smart but likes to have fun and be social and he knew that CMU would NOT be a good fit. (He ended up at WashU).

My daughter’s friend who only wanted CMU did the same thing. A shadow overnight and came home and said she was going to Boston U.

[Anonymous]

CMU grad here. I'm an alumni interviewer for prospective applicants, and I interviewed about 5 students last year. I thought all were well-qualified, but not of them got accepted. I think it's more selective than when I went there 20 years ago.

[Anonymous]

CMU is absolutely more selective that it was 20 years ago. How is that even a question?

[Anonymous]

I can't imagine going to CMU for a non-STEM degree.