Wow, that was a whirlwind week! Just got back from visiting the last 3 out of the 4 grad schools I applied to. Alright, so what's the verdict? Well, I definitely am glad I went, since it's that "gut feeling" that brought me to a great school like Cal Poly 5 years ago, and I think it is the most important part of choosing a school. Academics, rankings, blah blah blah...none of it means jack if you personally don't feel a school is right for you. That's why I went out of my way to travel to each place and meet with people. That and, well, it gave me an excuse to go on a mini vacation to 3 cool places!
Each of these schools is very different, but I decided that as a good engineer, I can't just decide the whole thing based on my instinct. Okay, well maybe like half of it is instinct. The other half? Pros and cons, data, and other analyses that I've written up and amassed over this trip.
So here we go. Before any of these schools graded me, I decided I would grade THEM, using some basic categories. Of course, I'm a push over as a teacher, so I gave out As and Bs only lol. Let's see how they fared, shall we?
UCSB | |
Campus Size | B |
Cost | A |
Housing | B |
Program | B+ |
Research / Professors | A- |
Facilities | B |
People | B |
Outdoor Activities | A |
Surrounding Area / Environment / Weather | A |
Commute | A |
Being "Green" | A |
Purdue | |
Campus Size | A |
Cost | B |
Housing | B- |
Program | A |
Research / Professors | B |
Facilities | A |
People | A- |
Outdoor Activities | B |
Surrounding Area / Environment / Weather | A- |
Commute | B |
Being "Green" | B- |
Georgia Tech | |
Campus Size | B |
Cost | A |
Housing | B+ |
Program | A |
Research / Professors | A- |
Facilities | A |
People | A |
Outdoor Activities | B- |
Surrounding Area / Environment / Weather | B- |
Commute | B- |
Being "Green" | A- |
Washington | |
Campus Size | A |
Cost | A- |
Housing | A |
Program | A- |
Research / Professors | A |
Facilities | A |
People | A |
Outdoor Activities | A- |
Surrounding Area / Environment / Weather | A |
Commute | A |
Being "Green" | A |
U-Dub!
So there you have it, the cat's outta the bag. I plan on moving to Seattle this fall and spending the next few years grabbing my MSEE and enjoying the rain :-P
What's next? Housing? Financial aid? I'm taking a rest! I've been working full tilt since I came back from Europe, writing essays, filling out apps, talking with professors and traveling. Frankly, I'm beat. I am so happy to just be complete with everything. Now I actually will have time to work on my circuit board hobby and even my book! Not to mention the celebrations that can now begin. Sweet :-)
Actually, now that I think about it, I'm amazed how much I can accomplish when I start churning my wheels. Europe...grad school...who know's what's next? I'm excited to see what new adventures come with grad school, and I'm excited to see what next big thing I take on.
Until next time folks, thanks for checking in, I will catch y'all later!
-StM
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