Georgia Tech (OOS) or UVA (in-state) for Aerospace Engineering? Need to decide by April 30th. TIA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are more girls at UVA, if you are into that sort of thing

Maybe there are - but as a female engineer from UVa - I felt vastly outnumbered - but that was over 20 years ago Though I'm sure it's true at all engineering..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DD graduated from a big 3 just a couple of years ago and one of her classmates picked Va tech (rotc) for aero and one picked GT over UVA and VT. She's very happy with her choice of GT. She was one of those kids better at humanity subjects but wanted engineering. I think she had a lot of confidence because she had been exposed to women who worked in engineering and could imagine it as a life for herself. Personally I wouldn't cross off a school because there are more men but then, GT is not suffering the weirdness that Rennselear has nor the intensity of Cal Tech.

Not to scare anybody, but GaTech is very intense, specially first 2 years... Can't compare to other schools, but i bet much more intense then UVA or UMCP.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I get the aerospace thing, but in general, there is very little reason to ever turn down UVA in-state, given the still not unreasonable tuition.

Get out of this area and try a new city. You can avoid the lemmings from NoVA who think VA schools are the only option.

Uh, yeah, but when you have a terrific in state option like UVa, as the OP does, only a fool would take such an attitude about "lemmings."

This is the cult-like attitude about VA state schools that makes my skin crawl. Must get out of this area!!

Why do the instate schools bother you so much? Along with CA, MI, WI, and NC, I think VA has the best state school options in the country.

Don't squeeze Va in the same league with CA and MI. Not even close!

[Anonymous]

I really loved UVA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is OP. Very different social scenes. Ga Tech is 70% male and many internationals. UVA seemed the opposite. I got into engineering because I'm finishing my pilot's license and love flying. I'm good with calculus but don't "Breath it" so am concerned I'm not nerdy enough for Ga Tech. Where did you, 14:21, go to school?

Do you think you'd be more comfortable at one vs. the other now - outside of the classroom? Get along generally with guys? I believe they both have strong Greek systems if that appeals to you.

Personally, I wasn't crazy about calculus, but I loved physics, dynamics, etc. When the math was applied I enjoyed it much more. But I did really love physics. I also get along great with guys. In HS I had more guy friends than girl friends. So I never felt uncomfortable being one of a handful of girls in a large class of guys.

I went to Cornell for civil engineering. I was pretty set on engineering but there were plenty of other strong programs if I changed my mind.

FWIW one of my favorite co-workers went to GA Tech and he's brilliant and a super nice guy. So I'm professionally biased towards GA Tech. But one of my favorite neighbors went to UVA so there are nice people there too. I haven't come across any UVA engineers though...

So if you think you'd be uncomfortable at GA Tech I'd say UVA. If you think you can hack it then I'd say give GA Tech a try. It could really be your only shot at a top engineering program. It's much much much easier to transfer out than in. Give it a shot. Try to also get an internship this summer or next to get a feel for what engineering is like. If you don't like it then explore other options at GA Tech or transfer out.

You could try to analyze pros & cons. Make a list of criteria important to you and score each school in each criteria. Add up to determine the theoretical winner. Even if you don't actually decide to attend the winner, the process of going through that might help you think through it more. Also, try to live with the outcome for a day to see if you're ok with it (pretend you've decided on X). Then live with the other for a day to see how you feel about that decision.

It's tough, OP! Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here -actually I'm a girl. I didn't apply to MIT or Cal Tech (didn't think my subject matter scores were high enough) but got into Purdue and Penn. State ( my safety) for aerospace engineering.

Did you only apply to engineering programs? Any thoughts on what you'd do if not engineering?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I get the aerospace thing, but in general, there is very little reason to ever turn down UVA in-state, given the still not unreasonable tuition.

Get out of this area and try a new city. You can avoid the lemmings from NoVA who think VA schools are the only option.

Uh, yeah, but when you have a terrific in state option like UVa, as the OP does, only a fool would take such an attitude about "lemmings."

This is the cult-like attitude about VA state schools that makes my skin crawl. Must get out of this area!!

Why do the instate schools bother you so much? Along with CA, MI, WI, and NC, I think VA has the best state school options in the country.

I don't have an issue with in-state schools at all. It's the attitude about the schools here in NoVA that bothers me. The schools may be a good fit for some students, but parents are shoving them down their kids' throats. They won't even consider OOS schools. Call people "fools" if they disagree. The attitude goes beyond rational and seems like people are brainwashed. Anyway, there is a great big world out there and it'd be a shame to limit kids to only VA schools.

Good thing OP's parents are letting her explore many different options to find the best fit for her.

[Anonymous]

I agree. I only let my DD apply to a single in state school as an emergency financial backup. Luckily nothing happened and my DD was able to pick the OOS school she preferred. She is thrilled there and we are very happy for her. Still perturbed she didn't pick GT like I wanted her to but she made the right decision for herself and I respect that. People in Va do not want their kids to explore the world but to stay close and follow their footsteps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD graduated from a big 3 just a couple of years ago and one of her classmates picked Va tech (rotc) for aero and one picked GT over UVA and VT. She's very happy with her choice of GT. She was one of those kids better at humanity subjects but wanted engineering. I think she had a lot of confidence because she had been exposed to women who worked in engineering and could imagine it as a life for herself. Personally I wouldn't cross off a school because there are more men but then, GT is not suffering the weirdness that Rennselear has nor the intensity of Cal Tech.

Not to scare anybody, but GaTech is very intense, specially first 2 years... Can't compare to other schools, but i bet much more intense then UVA or UMCP.

Yup. If you come out of it and graduate you will be a great engineer.
'Engineering isn't for ninnies 101'

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is OP. Very different social scenes. Ga Tech is 70% male and many internationals. UVA seemed the opposite. I got into engineering because I'm finishing my pilot's license and love flying. I'm good with calculus but don't "Breath it" so am concerned I'm not nerdy enough for Ga Tech. Where did you, 14:21, go to school?

Well, UVa is more about the math and the theory behind things. GA tech would have more applied classes that might interest you more.

Don't worry about the class makeup. I was a gal in engineering grad school with mostly foreign students 20 years ago and I really enjoyed it. Foreign students are actually human beings as well and I enjoyed their company very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is OP. Very different social scenes. Ga Tech is 70% male and many internationals. UVA seemed the opposite. I got into engineering because I'm finishing my pilot's license and love flying. I'm good with calculus but don't "Breath it" so am concerned I'm not nerdy enough for Ga Tech. Where did you, 14:21, go to school?

Well, UVa is more about the math and the theory behind things. GA tech would have more applied classes that might interest you more.

Don't worry about the class makeup. I was a gal in engineering grad school with mostly foreign students 20 years ago and I really enjoyed it. Foreign students are actually human beings as well and I enjoyed their company very much.

And, OP you are obviously not dumb. You would do great at either school.

[Anonymous]

20 years from now, do you want to be an upper level aero space engineer or do you want to manage the engineers? That's your answer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20 years from now, do you want to be an upper level aero space engineer or do you want to manage the engineers? That's your answer.

This is OP. That is exactly what someone who studied aerospace engineering at UVA said to me when I toured. I do like business, economics and poly-sci as well STEM. Thank you everyone for your posts. I have been reaching out to some of the faculty on both campuses and trying to talk to them after I get home from school. Thank you for all your views.

[Anonymous]

You will regret uva. Let your parents decide if the money matters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get the aerospace thing, but in general, there is very little reason to ever turn down UVA in-state, given the still not unreasonable tuition.

Get out of this area and try a new city. You can avoid the lemmings from NoVA who think VA schools are the only option.

Uh, yeah, but when you have a terrific in state option like UVa, as the OP does, only a fool would take such an attitude about "lemmings."

This is the cult-like attitude about VA state schools that makes my skin crawl. Must get out of this area!!

Why do the instate schools bother you so much? Along with CA, MI, WI, and NC, I think VA has the best state school options in the country.

I don't have an issue with in-state schools at all. It's the attitude about the schools here in NoVA that bothers me. The schools may be a good fit for some students, but parents are shoving them down their kids' throats. They won't even consider OOS schools. Call people "fools" if they disagree. The attitude goes beyond rational and seems like people are brainwashed. Anyway, there is a great big world out there and it'd be a shame to limit kids to only VA schools.

Good thing OP's parents are letting her explore many different options to find the best fit for her.

It's just that a good bargain exists. Over the past 10 years UVA has become extremely popular. But of course: great out of state options exist. Hard to justify the cost, in my view, unless it's an Ivy, MIT, Cal Tech, or something like that. YMMV.