Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is OP - DC didn’t want to go to UMD because we live very close to it and they wanted to get farther from home. Major will be in engineering (EE, CE or ME).

We have visited or are scheduled to visit all the campuses - I know the schools have very different vibes. I’m purely asking about reputation of the schools and their perceived value.

If you mean how they're ranked, here you go:

Virginia Tech - 14
Case Western - 42
RIT - 57
Drexel - 64
WPI - 64

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/engineering-doctorate?schoolName=Virginia+Tech&myCollege=engineering-doctorate&_sort=rank&_sortDirection=asc

USNWR can be an input, but for engineering, I think salary information will tell you more about what employers think of engineering graduates of these schools. You can get that on College Scorecard.

Anonymous wrote:DC has been accepted to VT. We are OOS and DC does not want to attend our in-state school (UMD), which we’re fine with. DC is deciding between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI. They got merit aid at all of the private schools that brings the cost below VT by about 10-15k per year.

I don’t know much about engineering schools, but VT seems to have the best rep among these. But is the rep worth the extra cost? We can afford it - no loans involved - but I’m questioning whether there’s any extra value in the VT reputation for engineering if DC would be equally happy at one of the other schools.

VT isn’t worth $40,000-$60,000 more.

I would probably pick between VT and Case. Both are good schools. Don't think the outcomes will be different. Your child will prefer one or the other.

Neighbor is an engineering student at Case and likes it. He was not interested in flagships so he may be different than your child.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would pick UMD and pay for grad school.

OP has made clear UMD is not on the table. Read and answer the question presented.

“DC is deciding between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI.”

I live in MD no OP and None of my kids wanted to go to UMD. It is 13th grade. Meaning so much of kids HS goes there and so close to house and does not have a college town campus all three refused to attend.

As they said I want to go away to school not go up the block. My one kid is in VT now and likes it a lot. Her UMD friends from HS has visited twice already as VT has a lot of Frat parties, the Football games the bars for 18 years olds to go to. It is more fun. Not that is a reason to pick a college but in the mind of a 18 year old that is a big part.

Anonymous wrote:I would pick UMD and pay for grad school.

OP has made clear UMD is not on the table. Read and answer the question presented.

“DC is deciding between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI.”

My son went to VT for engineering. Had a good experience. Got a great job. We are in Connecticut. I know WPI well.
In my opinion, there is a benefit to school size in engineering. Usually means more research, more electives, more alumni, etc. Size is a benefit of VT.
I'm a big fan of Virginia Tech: beautiful campus, relatively low cost of living, great school spirit, good career placement, top 20 engineering.
However, your student has to be ok with Virginia Tech being in a rural area.

To answer your question -- I don't know that a VT engineering degree is worth more than the other programs you named. Prestige is less important in engineering than in other fields ... unless you're at MIT, Stanford, Berkeley and a few other schools and even then I'm not sure it matters.
I advise that your student decide based on which school they like best. If they are excited about VT, I think it is worth the extra money, but more because your student wants to be there, than from the program being significantly better than the other schools you listed.

Academically for engineering, I would rank VT first, then Case Western and WPI, then Drexel and RIT.
I have a friend whose son went to Case Western for engineering. Solid program. Does your student want to be in Cleveland?
WPI is a good program. Worcester is OK. Their curriculum has 2 major projects; one junior year and one senior year. I know lots of WPI graduates that have done well.
RIT is cold in Rochester and I think leans more toward engineering technology than engineering but that may have changed.
I don't know Drexel. Think they may have Co-op.

Anonymous wrote:VT. Just a better and happier place/campus and engineering school.

+1

I feel like VT offers the best student experience overall and has a solid reputation with loyal alumni network. But the other schools are great options too, so congrats to your student on having such outstanding possibilities.

If you would like to compare these schools by post-graduation opportunities, this analysis provides a Career Outcomes column:

College & University Rankings in 2026 https://share.google/D50IyRsOabSGS4JoV

RPI, at 52nd nationally, placed higher than Virginia Tech, at 61st, for example.

VT is the highest ranked for engineering and seems like the most fun campus environment. Does your DC care about football/basketball games, etc.?

Anonymous wrote:"between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI", VT is ranked high and known nationally for engineering in general, in top 5 for industrial engineering and top 12 for mechanical and aerospace engineering. Case western is known for biomedical engineering and Healthcare research related, but ranks low for mechanical engineering, like 40th to 50th.

UMD is better ranked for computer science, but that’s about it. UMD is low energy and student body lacks bonding, large segment are commuters, and even MD residents get confused between Baltimore and College Park campuses.

The further west one goes out of state, like Midwest, west coast, etc., many know or heard of Virginia tech or UVA, but these other universities will need a lengthy introduction.

Disagree. No matter the rankings, people tend to be more familiar with local universities. Unless you're working somewhere extra snobby.

I work at a company with thousands of engineers in the Midwest. VT is known and respected but because people from VA are rarely interested in moving to our metro, a VT degree has no extra prestige or pull here. Sometimes there is contract work with specific VT professors, but that's true of other schools as well. Many of our engineers are educated locally or in immediately surrounding states. There's no need for locals to leave to get good in-region jobs. There are specific schools that are best if you want to leave the region.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC has been accepted to VT. We are OOS and DC does not want to attend our in-state school (UMD), which we’re fine with. DC is deciding between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI. They got merit aid at all of the private schools that brings the cost below VT by about 10-15k per year.

I don’t know much about engineering schools, but VT seems to have the best rep among these. But is the rep worth the extra cost? We can afford it - no loans involved - but I’m questioning whether there’s any extra value in the VT reputation for engineering if DC would be equally happy at one of the other schools.

if your child got into UMD, and you are in state, you should accept, take your money and run! I know VT well and it is not is once was. It is an extremely depressing place from November to March. UMD kids are getting good jobs at high salaries. Join the parent groups and you will see a lot the VT kids who are having big issues.

We did not apply to UMD. We live adjacent to College Park, so I completely understand why DC didn’t want to go there.

What are the parent groups? Are they on Facebook?

"between VT, Case Western, Drexel, RIT and WPI", VT is ranked high and known nationally for engineering in general, in top 5 for industrial engineering and top 12 for mechanical and aerospace engineering. Case western is known for biomedical engineering and Healthcare research related, but ranks low for mechanical engineering, like 40th to 50th.

UMD is better ranked for computer science, but that’s about it. UMD is low energy and student body lacks bonding, large segment are commuters, and even MD residents get confused between Baltimore and College Park campuses.

The further west one goes out of state, like Midwest, west coast, etc., many know or heard of Virginia tech or UVA, but these other universities will need a lengthy introduction.

Personally, I would seriously consider WPI. It is private, smaller and probably has better resource. Even though both VT and WPI are test optional, WPI has higher average SAT. I agree that for engineering, what you know during the interview is more important than the school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is OP - DC didn’t want to go to UMD because we live very close to it and they wanted to get farther from home. Major will be in engineering (EE, CE or ME).

We have visited or are scheduled to visit all the campuses - I know the schools have very different vibes. I’m purely asking about reputation of the schools and their perceived value.

If you mean how they're ranked, here you go:

Virginia Tech - 14
Case Western - 42
RIT - 57
Drexel - 64
WPI - 64

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/engineering-doctorate?schoolName=Virginia+Tech&myCollege=engineering-doctorate&_sort=rank&_sortDirection=asc

Yes, I guess I’m asking whether the ranking/reputation is worth the extra money. I’ve read on here that prestige maybe isn’t as important for engineering? If DC likes Va Tech and WPI equally, is the “better ranking” of Va Tech worth the extra money?

Anonymous wrote:This is OP - DC didn’t want to go to UMD because we live very close to it and they wanted to get farther from home. Major will be in engineering (EE, CE or ME).

We have visited or are scheduled to visit all the campuses - I know the schools have very different vibes. I’m purely asking about reputation of the schools and their perceived value.

If you mean how they're ranked, here you go:

Virginia Tech - 14
Case Western - 42
RIT - 57
Drexel - 64
WPI - 64

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/engineering-doctorate?schoolName=Virginia+Tech&myCollege=engineering-doctorate&_sort=rank&_sortDirection=asc