Advice requested for a dilemma

[Darmago]

in a few short months I shall be graduating from high school. I would like to go to a university and study engineering, specifically mechanical engineering with an interest in renewable energy. My dilemma is that I've been accepted to two schools, and I don't know which one I want to go to just yet, so I was hoping I could get some advice from members of warboards.

The first school is the University of Colorado at boulder. Its a well known school with a large campus and student body, it claims its engineering is ranked in the top 25 by some magazine or other, and has a program called the Residence academic program, which allows for smaller, more focused groups of people in the same major.

The second school is Colorado School of Mines. From what I've heard, CSM is very well known in engineering circles, it also has direct connections to NREL(national renewable energy laboratory) which is almost right next door. Its small campus and student body help it and hinder it(similar to the pros and cons of a large campus), with 4000 students studying something related to engineering, it's easy to stay on focus.

Both schools have beautiful campi(campuses?)

Everyone tends to tell me "decide by what you want in a college" to which my answer is, I've never been to college, how would I know what I like.

any and all advice is accepted.

[Wehrmacht]

which would you like to experience, the "Big" campus feel or the "small" campus feel?
the "Big" campus experience is probably more based around the school's sports, than its acadamics, while as the "small" school will either have no sports, or very few sports for your enjoyment.
the "small" experience will probably be better for completing your major, but you could find yourself bored to death between classes.
I personally go/went to a smaller college that plays AA football, so its not very big on the scene....

[Kingscrab]

Social:
Large schools are nice if you want to more socializing, and sort of be another face in the crowd. One problem I have found with a smaller school is that because there are such fewer people, if you end up not liking the friends you make, there isn't as large of a social pool to go back to. ie: Drama potential is much higher since you're stuck with em'. At a large school, there are more people to choose from and it's easier to get away from people you don't like.

Financial:
On a much more practical note, which one a) costs less and is b) offering you more financial aid? Personally, I'd steer that way...

[GenocideAlive]

Go to CU in Boulder.

Right now you want to be an engineer, and you want to work on renewable energy. 2 years from now, you may decide that this isn't quite what you thought it would be and there's far too much politics, math, science, or that renewable energy work isn't quite the exciting topic you thought it was.

If you go to CSM and it turns out that you don't want to do renewable energy anymore, I seriously doubt you're going to have many other options. They're a specialty school, so they'll have little in the way of anything else.

On the other hand, if you're at CU in Boulder, you'll be fine. They have a ton of programs and majors for you to delve into until you find the one you want. They also have a great campus, plenty of hot chicks, and they'll have social activities for you on the side. CSM is probably a bit closer to a hole in the ground (literally), and I wouldn't expect them to have much else.

Ultimately you'll have to look closer at each college for a final decision, but it's a rare occasion that someone goes to college, enters a program, and stays in it until they graduate. The average number of changes-in-major is something like 1.5 times per student. I changed my major once, and I know people that changed their major 3 times.

You think you know what you want to do, great. Don't confuse that with knowing what you want to do. In the end, if you're still torn, look at money concerns, and that may be able to solve for you. Otherwise, I wouldn't look at money first--look at where you want to go first. Worry about paying for it after you've got a choice.

[Darmago]

I'll be the same off financially no matter which school I go to, thanks to my grandfather, so that really isn't an issue. I wouldn't qualify for financial aid, scholarships maybe, financial aid no.

[ScottieIWU]

I agree completely with GA. While I'm a huge advocate of the small school experience over a large state university, I wouldn't suggest going somewhere that limits your options. I know people who still do not know their majors in their 2nd semester sophomore year. I know others that in 3 months went through 5 majors. You'll change your mind, and if not, you can always transfer out and do the rest of your degree at the small school.

I will elaborate on the small school experience, though, because I think it's noteworthy. The individual attention I recieve at my school (a campus of 2000) is one of the greatest things. I've had a myriad of personal issues that have gotten in the way of my education. I find it amazing that I was able to go to my professors and have conversations with them, each of them knowing who I am and noticing that I was struggling academically.

In the classroom, that individual attention has resulted in teachers who can gauge your strengths and weaknesses and help you overcome those on an individual level. I have never had and never will have a TA that teaches the class, and I think it makes all the difference.

But that said, don't limit your options early, make sure it's what you want to do before you commit. I have plenty of options of education isn't my choice, so it works out for me in the end.

[bloodbane]

flip a coin if you get desparate

[EvilEggCracker]

...

Flip a coin? FLIP A COIN?

"I'll just decide one of the hardest choices of my life with a COIN!"

Honestly, using a coin to decide choices is a bad idea. Look what happened to Twoface in Batman Forever. The coin was his undoing! (That movie sucked by the way; Jim Carrey rocked, however).