- PowerScore Staff
- Posts: 13
- Joined: Mar 31, 2017
- Tue Apr 04, 2017 2:22 pm
#33905
What follows is the transcript of a conversation between a student, Lindsay, and one of our Admissions gurus, Dave, regarding Lindsay's question about whether it is better to wait for higher ranked schools or go with cheaper options in Oregon:
Lindsay: “Hello, I would love if you could give me some insight on my current situation. I'm currently on the waitlist for University of Washington, Boston University, Notre Dame, and UC Irvine. I'm waiting to hear back from UC Davis, William & Mary, and USC. I have received a full ride scholarship offer from Willamette University in Oregon and a $22,000 per year scholarship from the University of Oregon.
I currently live in Oregon, and have a job at the Oregon legislature that I really enjoy. However, I was hoping to leave Oregon. The Oregon schools are much lower ranked than the waitlist schools. If I get off the waitlist for any of the higher ranked schools, do you think it would be worth it to attend one of them instead of the cheaper, lower ranked Oregon schools? I appreciate any insight you may have!”
Dave Killoran: “Hi Lindsay, Thanks for the question! Your situation is so open-ended right now that's it's really difficult to provide any insights until some of the options become clearer. You have three schools that haven't weighed in yet, and so those could be options, and if one gives you a good financial package, the debate might end right there
Same thing with the Wait List schools--I don't know what your personal priority list is, and it could be that one of those schools is you dream, and so if you get admitted you might just take it.
The starting point here should be for you to really work out where you want to go--the list of schools you applied to is quite wide-ranging, and I don't get a sense from it what your interests or priorities are. so, you need to make sure you know where you really want to go, and why. The second step would be to break down the financials in the same way I did for Mary above. Third, isolate your career goals and compare them to the job placement info for each school. Narrow the field so you can see what really matters to you.
As for the Oregon schools (and as a full disclaimer, my sister-in-law lives in Portland, I love Oregon in general, and on top of that I personally am a huge Ducks fan), it depends on whether you want to live and practice in Oregon after graduation. An Oregon degree will play well in the Pacific Northwest, but if you are going to DC or Philly or NYC, it drops off the table as far as recognition. So, the answer there depends very much on you and your goals. Thus, to provide any helpful info, I'd need a lot more info from you, and it also may be that we need to wait for more schools to give you firm answers and WL updates. Please let me know what you think. Thanks!”
Lindsay: “Hello, I would love if you could give me some insight on my current situation. I'm currently on the waitlist for University of Washington, Boston University, Notre Dame, and UC Irvine. I'm waiting to hear back from UC Davis, William & Mary, and USC. I have received a full ride scholarship offer from Willamette University in Oregon and a $22,000 per year scholarship from the University of Oregon.
I currently live in Oregon, and have a job at the Oregon legislature that I really enjoy. However, I was hoping to leave Oregon. The Oregon schools are much lower ranked than the waitlist schools. If I get off the waitlist for any of the higher ranked schools, do you think it would be worth it to attend one of them instead of the cheaper, lower ranked Oregon schools? I appreciate any insight you may have!”
Dave Killoran: “Hi Lindsay, Thanks for the question! Your situation is so open-ended right now that's it's really difficult to provide any insights until some of the options become clearer. You have three schools that haven't weighed in yet, and so those could be options, and if one gives you a good financial package, the debate might end right there
Same thing with the Wait List schools--I don't know what your personal priority list is, and it could be that one of those schools is you dream, and so if you get admitted you might just take it. The starting point here should be for you to really work out where you want to go--the list of schools you applied to is quite wide-ranging, and I don't get a sense from it what your interests or priorities are. so, you need to make sure you know where you really want to go, and why. The second step would be to break down the financials in the same way I did for Mary above. Third, isolate your career goals and compare them to the job placement info for each school. Narrow the field so you can see what really matters to you.
As for the Oregon schools (and as a full disclaimer, my sister-in-law lives in Portland, I love Oregon in general, and on top of that I personally am a huge Ducks fan), it depends on whether you want to live and practice in Oregon after graduation. An Oregon degree will play well in the Pacific Northwest, but if you are going to DC or Philly or NYC, it drops off the table as far as recognition. So, the answer there depends very much on you and your goals. Thus, to provide any helpful info, I'd need a lot more info from you, and it also may be that we need to wait for more schools to give you firm answers and WL updates. Please let me know what you think. Thanks!”