- #1
Oriako
- 107
- 1
Hello,
Next year I intend to enter into the Bsc Honours program in Astrophysics at either University of Calgary (where I live), University of Alberta, or University of British Columbia.
My marks are as follows:
AP Calculus: 100%
Pure Math 30: 94%
English 30: 90%
Physics 30: 96%
Social Studies 30: 92%
Chemistry 30: 85%
With an average of approximately 93% (when including Chemistry), I will be guaranteed two primary scholarships (Rutherford Scholarship: ~$2000 and President's Entrance Award: $2500). I will be eligible for others and may potentially receive extra money for tuition but I'm only counting on these two. With the first year's tuition in the bag and $30,000 from my parents would I be able to make it through an undergraduate degree living away from home in residence at University of Alberta or University of British Columbia? Is it worth it?
Costs of Living Away From Home
University of British Columbia:
Residence and Living Expenses: ~$11,000 per year
Educational Costs: ~$7000 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$72000
University of Alberta
Residence and Living Expenses: ~$9500 per year
Educational Costs: ~$6500 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$64000
Costs of Living At Home
University of Calgary
Residence and Living Expenses: FREE
Educational Costs: ~$6000 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$24000
Just looking at these expenses it automatically becomes clear that I should choose to go to University of Calgary and stay at home, completely on the financial side of things. But, there are reasons for moving out and completing my undergraduate at U of A or UBC.
1) I want to move out. Living in residence and having to take care of myself and my own responsibilities will help me grow as a person and be very beneficial to maturing. I feel that I will do better at school if I move away as there will be little to no distractions.
2) UBC and U of A have superior programs and are more prestigious universities, there are more undergraduate research opportunities at these institution than there are at U of C. I have researched this thoroughly and know this to be the case.
3) U of C is notoriously a horrendous school for first-year students, the drop-out rate is something like 40% and every year bad reports come out from national surveys (such as Macleans maganize) ranking U of C last in a multitude of categories such as, "Would you recommend this institution?", "If you were to take your degree again, would you go to the same institution?, "How was the educational experience?". U of C ranked last in all three of these categories (and more) with approval rates of 17% by students and even lower amounts saying they would recommend it to their friends. This seems like a bad omen and I personally know people who say most professors are bad teachers that only care about research and the majority of first year classes are taught by foreign professors with heavy accents.
-
I intend to maintain near a 3.7GPA and will be studying my life away for the next four years to be able to get into graduate school so that I can complete a PhD in something related to Physics (one can never be sure, but it is my tentative plan).
To set myself up for this path, money is a huge barrier but I'm sure I will be able to make it. There are many scholarships I can tap into and my family is willing to support me, I just want to avoid a large student loan at the undergraduate level at all costs. One of the benefits at U of C is that with an entrance average of 90% there is a $2000 scholarship offered that is renewable (over 4 years) if at least a 3.7GPA is maintained.
-
I'm sure I will have an even tougher time financing graduate school, but I need to complete my undergraduate at a good university that will prepare me for research and maybe even allow me to participate in some of my own in 4th year. These are my major concerns, hopefully I didn't hit you with a wall of text crit!
I appreciate any responses.
Thank you very much,
-Sam Reid
Next year I intend to enter into the Bsc Honours program in Astrophysics at either University of Calgary (where I live), University of Alberta, or University of British Columbia.
My marks are as follows:
AP Calculus: 100%
Pure Math 30: 94%
English 30: 90%
Physics 30: 96%
Social Studies 30: 92%
Chemistry 30: 85%
With an average of approximately 93% (when including Chemistry), I will be guaranteed two primary scholarships (Rutherford Scholarship: ~$2000 and President's Entrance Award: $2500). I will be eligible for others and may potentially receive extra money for tuition but I'm only counting on these two. With the first year's tuition in the bag and $30,000 from my parents would I be able to make it through an undergraduate degree living away from home in residence at University of Alberta or University of British Columbia? Is it worth it?
Costs of Living Away From Home
University of British Columbia:
Residence and Living Expenses: ~$11,000 per year
Educational Costs: ~$7000 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$72000
University of Alberta
Residence and Living Expenses: ~$9500 per year
Educational Costs: ~$6500 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$64000
Costs of Living At Home
University of Calgary
Residence and Living Expenses: FREE
Educational Costs: ~$6000 per year
Total Costs (4 Years): ~$24000
Just looking at these expenses it automatically becomes clear that I should choose to go to University of Calgary and stay at home, completely on the financial side of things. But, there are reasons for moving out and completing my undergraduate at U of A or UBC.
1) I want to move out. Living in residence and having to take care of myself and my own responsibilities will help me grow as a person and be very beneficial to maturing. I feel that I will do better at school if I move away as there will be little to no distractions.
2) UBC and U of A have superior programs and are more prestigious universities, there are more undergraduate research opportunities at these institution than there are at U of C. I have researched this thoroughly and know this to be the case.
3) U of C is notoriously a horrendous school for first-year students, the drop-out rate is something like 40% and every year bad reports come out from national surveys (such as Macleans maganize) ranking U of C last in a multitude of categories such as, "Would you recommend this institution?", "If you were to take your degree again, would you go to the same institution?, "How was the educational experience?". U of C ranked last in all three of these categories (and more) with approval rates of 17% by students and even lower amounts saying they would recommend it to their friends. This seems like a bad omen and I personally know people who say most professors are bad teachers that only care about research and the majority of first year classes are taught by foreign professors with heavy accents.
-
I intend to maintain near a 3.7GPA and will be studying my life away for the next four years to be able to get into graduate school so that I can complete a PhD in something related to Physics (one can never be sure, but it is my tentative plan).
To set myself up for this path, money is a huge barrier but I'm sure I will be able to make it. There are many scholarships I can tap into and my family is willing to support me, I just want to avoid a large student loan at the undergraduate level at all costs. One of the benefits at U of C is that with an entrance average of 90% there is a $2000 scholarship offered that is renewable (over 4 years) if at least a 3.7GPA is maintained.
-
I'm sure I will have an even tougher time financing graduate school, but I need to complete my undergraduate at a good university that will prepare me for research and maybe even allow me to participate in some of my own in 4th year. These are my major concerns, hopefully I didn't hit you with a wall of text crit!
I appreciate any responses.
Thank you very much,
-Sam Reid