PennState

What have you guys heard about PennState? Does it carry a good reputation? Is their electrical engineering program good? Its ranked 19 in the country and since its a state college, tuition will be like $17,000. I also have a $2,000 scholarship per year (as of starting my senior year). I mean being ranked so high with 47 proffesors and being [relatively] cheap... I think it might be good.

I've visited campus like 4 times, it seems really nice. What really impressed me (along other things) was its EE rocket program in which you build an actual rocket to go and carry an experiment.

What are your thoughts on PennState for Electrical Engineering? Are there any alternative colleges around PA (within a day driving distance) that have stronger/equal programs?

Thanks!

To me their is more to a college then just their ranking in a particular field. For example I plan on transfering to Unversity of California Davis for Computer Engineering instead of UC Berkley because I don't like the atmosphere at Berkley's engineering schools.
Does Penn State allow you to sit in on classes (sometimes called auditing classes)? If they do (or you can find a professor that'll let you sneak in) go and sit in on some classes. Do the professors themselves teach the class or do they have TAs doing the lectures?
Personally if you like the college and the professors then thats more of a reason then their standing.

JoePa needs to freaking retire before he dies on the sidelines.

Carnegie Mellon, UPenn, etc. There's a ton. Just depends on your grades and what you can afford. Go to princetonreview.com and check out the schools.

echo golfinguy... there are plenty of good schools in that area, although I would say that Penn State does have a very good rep. My brother graduated from there and I got accepted there, but went elsewhere. My sister is going to UPenn this fall, but then again she has a lot of scholarships.

Penn State is a good school both for engineering and a lot of other things. Degrees from there have a lot of respect around this area too (MD/PA).

BTW, what area are you from? I'm from South-Central PA (currently living in MD).

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Degrees from there have a lot of respect around this area too (MD/PA).

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that is what I would say is one of the most important things about a college : its level of respect. For example, I am going to the university of Texas Austin this fall for computer science and theoretical mathematics because it is #7 in the nation in CS and in the low tens for mathematics; however, I am not sure how well employers in say MA,MD, and the other North-Eastern states view the college or even if they are aware of it. My suggestion for you Speedy would to find a college that has good academic credentials, is affordable to you(by which I mean that it is priced at a reasonable rate depending on how much you are willing to go into debt), and has a good reputation where you are planning on finding a job(for example, some areas of the country I have lived in are somewhat snobbish about which college they will accept graduates, of course that experience is mainly concerning medical schools).

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Originally Posted by ober

(MD/PA)

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When I first read this I thought of Medical Doctor / Physican's Assistant for some reason. Oh how I hate the mornings :)

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Originally Posted by EvBladeRunnervE

that is what I would say is one of the most important things about a college : its level of respect.

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So, if you went to a uni that was ran by, oh I dunno, a mafia crime syndicate, you'd get the most respect? :p

Just a few other things I would suggest you consider, since I recently had to go through the same process.

One, the number of people at the school, if I remember correctly, UPenn is a huge school with alot of people.

Also, you might want to consider the town/area around the school, since its going to be your home for four years.

Personaly, I think finding a place where you will be comfortable for four years is more important than where the school is ranked.

At least the best substitute for it. :p

I'm from Mt. Lebanon, PA; sub-urb of Pittsburgh. I'm not sure where I want to apply for college. My list goes: PennState, CMU, Lehigh, Cornell, Havard (for business). I believe I have what it takes to get into any of those schools but I'm not sure whether my list is something that will actually help me in the future.

I want to major in Electrical Engineering and obtain an MBA. If that means PennState for 4 years then 1-2 years in Havard, that'd be real cool. Any ideas?

Yes, get the idea of a 4 year engineering degree out of your head :) Almost every single engineering student I know is going with a 5 year plan so they will actually be alive afterwards ;)

Haha, what does that mean? So they get enough expertise to live? Or so that they pass/get all their credits since its so hard?

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Originally Posted by Dalren

One, the number of people at the school, if I remember correctly, UPenn is a huge school with alot of people.

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Just a small point... UPenn != Penn State. Penn State is equal to any major state school in numbers (University of Michigan, Ohio State, Tennessee, etc.). UPenn is very hard to get into and is not as large. Penn State has a LOT of branch campuses all over Pennsylvania, where I'm not even sure if UPenn has any branches.

The size is a big point to consider though. Do you want to talk to your professor, or his/her assistant? ;)

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Originally Posted by Thantos

Yes, get the idea of a 4 year engineering degree out of your head :) Almost every single engineering student I know is going with a 5 year plan so they will actually be alive afterwards ;)

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That's not entirely true. I took 5 years to get my engineering degree, but my school also made you graduate with about 40 more credits than any other school. You really should be able to do it in 4 if you stay on top of your work.

Oh I'm not trying to say its impossible just very hard.

What I meant was that most engineering courses are pretty intense and its easier to go with a 5 year plan and allow yourself some breathing room.

I have 2 friends who went to penn state, and both said they received exceptional educations.

One got his degree in nuclear engineering, and immediately got an engineering job when he graduated (back in 96).

Another friend of mine got his degree in telecommunications, and now works as a programmer.

Anyways, penn state has an exceptional engineering program (from what I've heard). The only disadvantage is that is in a very large school (35,000+ students), and you may definately want to take the advice (above) and sit in on some of the classes.

Some of your intro classes will probably have 1000+ students, and some of your engineering classes will probably have a few hundred.

Howdy,
I sat next to an Penn. State EE prof on a flight from Albuqueruqe to Salt Lake last week, The guy seemed pretty cool to me. He was checking a PHD students paper on his lap top during the flight. He had no problem letting me read the paper and explaining what it was about.

M.R.