2015/16 College Help Thread
 

So seniors in high school are in the midst of looking at schools and writing their applications, so I thought it would be a good idea for mentors and alumni to represent their schools in order for their to be a place for seniors to ask questions. Hopefully this will make picking a school easier for kids.

I'm at Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY, which is highly focused in Engineering and Buisness. Clarkson is very into FIRST robotics and has a whole dorm floor dedicated to kids who were in FIRST, as well as mentoring teams 229 and 5240. If anyone has any questions feel free to comment below or PM me, or you could also talk to Libby Kamen, Angry Eric, Justin Foss, or one of the other Clarkson alumni on here. And last year the application was free, so there's no reason not to apply to this great school!

Now show support for your school and help the seniors out!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a sophomore Mechanical Engineer at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN. I would be happy to answer any questions about our engineering program, or the school in general. Also, I'm hoping there are a few band geeks on CD, because I play in the Band of the Fighting Irish, Notre Dame's marching band. There isn't an absolute ton of FIRST alums or FIRST programs at Notre Dame, but it is an absolute blast and the engineering program is great.

Notre Dame's most prominent program is by far our business school (Mendoza College of Business, ranked #1 in the country in undergraduate business), but we also have strong programs in engineering, science, arts and letters, theology, and philosophy, as well as incredible study abroad options, and a unique approach to community-based dorm life (most of our students never even move off campus!).

I'd be more than happy to answer any questions about Notre Dame, just shoot me a PM! Best of luck to all the seniors in their college searches, and GO IRISH!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm currently a Junior studying Software Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in Platteville WI. Platteville is home to Team 171, and the team meets in the University's new (2008) Engineering Hall. Team 171 is run by an elected board of 8 college students. In my opinion, the experience we get as college students in leadership and organization is just as valuable as the experience you got in high school.

In addition to the more common engineering disciplines, Platteville offers degrees in Software Engineering, basically a more rigorous Computer Science degree with more emphasis in math and system design, as well as degrees in Environmental Engineering and Engineering Physics, which is sort of a cross between Mechanical and Electrical Engineering that expands to include a lot of really interesting fields like acoustics or nanomaterials.

Platteville has a total enrollment of around 8000 students. The class sizes are very reasonable, the largest class I ever had was my first year chemistry class, with around 60 kids. All classes are taught by professors, most have fewer than 30 students

Platteville also has a program called the Tri-State Initiative that offers near in-state tuition prices to students from Iowa and Illinois, as well as a similar agreement with Minnesota. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions, and good luck!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Great idea, Jay!

I'm in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. You can find Michigan near the top of any ranking of the nation's top public universities (although I hate to disagree with alum James Earl Jones, who says we're the best in the world).

You get to live in Ann Arbor, one of the best college towns in the country. Our sports are pretty okay. We have one of the best basketball coaches, the largest football stadium (which is actually getting filled these days), and the most creative hockey student section. Oh, and you get to enjoy Harbaugh Insanity.

There's always been a big FIRST presence here, but not much organized support until now. If you decide to come to Michigan, you'll get to join the best new collegiate FIRST program in the country. Among other things, this year we're hosting a kickoff, extending university resources to local teams, reimbursing mentor/volunteer travel expenses, etc.

Michigan is also one of the most expensive public schools in the country, particularly for out-of-state students. Don't let that entirely discourage you, but personally if I were from somewhere else.. I'd go somewhere else.

Feel free to send me a PM or an email with any questions.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm currently a Mechanical Engineering sophomore at North Dakota State University. I have nothing bad to say about NDSU whatsoever. I've absolutely loved my time in Fargo thus far. With a base tuition right around $7,000/year it's pretty hard to beat for the cost. NDSU's best college is by far the College of Engineering (not that I'm biased or anything :D). In terms of national ranks, NDSU's engineering program is comparable to that at the University of MN. Fargo is often rated as one of the top college towns in the nation, and it's easy to see why once you visit. It's also pretty fun to be able to say "Back to Back to Back to Back National Champions in FCS football."

I also started Bison Robotics at NDSU last year, and it has absolutely blown up. We went from 24 members in our inaugural year to around 90 members this year. Robotics is kind of taking over the engineering department here. Before I leave NDSU I'm sure it'll be not only the largest engineering club at NDSU, but also the most heavily supported by the college and by local industries.

As for what we do in Bison Robotics, we are a volunteer focused, competition based organization with a lot going on. Volunteer events include mentoring local FRC, FLL, and BEST Robotics' teams, running STEM camps for kids, and traveling to the Minneapolis and Duluth FRC regionals in Minnesota. I also hope to get a number of Bison Robotics members down to the new Iowa Regional and Champs. Oh and we also do Robot in 3 Days! The GreenHorns Ri3D team is comprised solely of Bison Robotics members. As for competitions Bison Robotics is doing the following: NASA Robotic Mining Competition (aka: Lunabotics), AIAA's Design/Build/Fly, quadcopter competition (we actually have 3 quadcopter teams that are going to compete), National Robotics League Battlebots Competition, and ION Autonomous Snowplow Competition... like I said we have a lot going on.

If you're looking at NDSU and have any questions please PM me or email me at ryan.j.swanson@ndsu.edu

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Hey! I'm Eric, I'm going to University of Minnesota-Duluth. I'm a double major in the College of Liberal Arts, so don't ask me about robots. If you do have robot questions though, I can direct you to my friends who are in CSE or any other program. I don't really know what to say about UMD besides how great the Multicultural Center is. I basically live there.

There's sports, which I know nothing about, but there's a lot of speakers and Brown Bag (lunchtime with a speaker) events. We also have an MPIRG group at our school which is the best.

LDiDomenico goes here too so he might be a better person to DM if you're not a total sjw like me. Feel free to DM me if you are a total sjw, or just curious.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

This is a neat thread.

I'm currently a senior in Computer Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology, aka Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech is a public school right by the heart of midtown Atlanta. Georgia Tech's College of Engineering is one of the best in the country and world, with many of our programs ranked in US News' top 10 lists. It's primarily an engineering school, but we also offer a variety of other majors in science, business, and liberal arts. The quality of education you would receive at Georgia Tech is top notch. We also have a unique culture and our traditions, from our Fight Song to our mascot. Everyone, regardless of major, gender, age, or race, who attends Georgia Tech is a Helluva Engineer.

In addition to that, our campus is located in Atlanta, one of the most diverse cities in the USA, and with a booming engineering and software market. Most of our students will find themselves with a job offer halfway through their senior year. We also foster the development of hundreds of startup companies and organizations, through our startup center and Invention Studio. We also have a huge robotics program, the GT Robojackets, who participate in battlebots, robocup, and mentor FIRST teams around the area. In addition to robojackets, we have other engineering and competition teams such as SolarJackets, HyTech Racing, and GT Motorsports. We have hundreds of clubs for students to join and meet new people, make friends, and even industry connections.

If you have any questions about GT, feel free to pm me and I'd be happy to answer!

#THWG

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Currently at Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston, MA. It's a small school with a solid Co-Op program in one of the greatest college locations ever. Feel free to pm me if you're interested in WIT or Boston in general, I'd be happy to answer any questions.

I also have friends at a lot of the other schools in Boston, and can direct you to them if you need it.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Anybody have any info for Purdue, U of Wisconsin- Madison, U of IL- Urbana/Champaign, Iowa State, or Rose Hulman? I know each of these 5 schools are respected for their engineering programs, and I've done my research & visited campuses, but I was wondering whether any CD user had any inside info/experience regarding their engineering programs or just the school in general.

I'm pretty much in the process of applying to these schools at the moment.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

PM me for more information on Rose-Hulman; I'm a junior ME/Robotics student. I also run the FRC program at the university.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Although I am a CS student, I know quite a lot about Purdue's Engineering program from friends in the program. PM me for any more info about their program - I can tell you that the First Year Engineering program is tough (but nothing an FRC alum can't handle;)).

As far as FIRST is concerned, there is a large number of FRC alums on campus (I've met some from plenty of Indiana teams as well as some from Cali, PNW, MAR, Michigan, and plenty others), and Purdue has a long-running FIRST program that is part class and part service - students in the program attend leadership lectures, etc. for class credit as well as helping mentor local FIRST teams, running competitions, and PR.

Purdue is a great school, especially if you want to attend a large university. Along with the huge engineering program and state-of-the-art equipment and labs, Purdue has over 900 extracurriculars about anything you want to do (I'm in Jazz Band, Pep Band, Game Dev club, and one of the competition Rube Goldberg teams). The food is also good...

I also know U of Illinois is a great engineering school from my visit there a few years ago. It seems to be fairly similar to Purdue in most respects although their liberal arts school is a little bigger and Purdue's science/engineering program is a little bigger.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Great thread!

I am currently a junior mechanical engineering major at Michigan Technological University. Michigan Tech is a public university located in Houghton, Michigan. MTU is primarily a STEM school, but we have degrees ranging from forestry to the arts. There is a large presence of FIRST Alumni - I see team t-shirts everywhere.

The quality of education at Tech is excellent, and employers take notice: we had over 370 companies at our last career fair. The unique Enterprise program allows you to replace your senior design credits with a larger, interdisciplinary team working on projects for industry clients. Michigan Tech is also recognized as one of the safest campuses in the nation, thanks in no small part to the friendly attitude of the students.

The main campus is small, about a 10 minute walk from end to end. Located in Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula, Tech receives a lot of snow, but we embrace it. There is a lot to do in the winter, with the highlights being Broomball and Winter Carnival. We even have our own ski hill with free lift passes for students!

I definitively do not regret my decision to come here.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about Michigan Tech!

Edit:
As a final thought, you are going to get a great education at any of the schools that are/will be mentioned in this thread. Pick the school the you believe will fit you the best. The reason that I chose Michigan Tech is that it just "felt right" when I first visited it, but it isn't for everyone. Visit the schools that you are interested if possible.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Similarly, I am also a Georgia Tech student, except I am a Freshman Mechanical Engineering Major. I'm also an out-of-state student, member of HyTech Racing (Formula Electric) at Georgia Tech, and secretary of the GT Roller Hockey Club. So while I probably won't have quite the same depth of knowledge about Atlanta, GeorgiaFIRST, and a few other things as Anupam does, I can definitely also answer questions, especially related to other engineering competition teams and Mechanical Engineering.

Definitely PM us if you're considering any type of engineering!

GO JACKETS!!!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

U of IL - Urbana/Champaign has a robot competition exposition (though they're changing the contest name last I heard).

I'm Chris, currently a mechanical engineering/computer science senior at Michigan Tech University. It's a relatively small school that's highly ranked for engineering and salaries of graduates. We get a lot of snow and it's far from your parents if you live near Detroit.

We have a student org (Copper Country Robotics) that mentors local teams and connects students with event volunteering. We have 3 FRC teams (857, 2586, 5486), 1 FTC team (10723), and about 9 FLL teams.

Edit: Ninja'd a bit by the other Chris, but I talked about FIRST, so that's something.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm Brian, and I'm a freshman studying computer science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

It's a great school with great students and a great name, especially among employers. Companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple, and Boeing have had recruiting events and tech talks during my brief time here so far. My classmates are really bright, talented people. I've met so many FIRST alums from countless different teams.

RPI students mentor two FRC teams: 2791 (who I have been working with) and 20. There are also a number of other teams within easy driving distance. RPI hosts the Tech Valley Regional, which draws local teams and some from out-of-state (including 195, 303, and 1923 last year, and possibly 359 next year). There's also the RPI Center for Initiatives in Pre-College Education who run many STEM outreach activities for young people, including FLL mentoring.

I love RPI and would be happy to answer any questions about the school!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I graduated in 2013 with a B.S in Computer Science from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Ended up doing tons of FIRST stuff in College, and now live in Chicago. I'm pretty sure the CS program has changed slightly (as far as requirements/courses) but feel free to ask and I'll do my best answering or at least directing you to good sources.

There's a robotics centered RSO that competed in CARD (FIRST College demo), and competes in Battlebots, VEX, JSDC, and others. It's called iRobotics they also volunteer in FIRST things....

For FIRST-y things, there's a FRC team that loves college mentors Ctrl-Z, FLL Qualifier, and FLL State Champ. Plus numerous FLL teams (including a class at UIUC you can take to mentor teams), and a rookie 2015 FTC team.

Ask questions if you've got any specifics.


Also for Purdue FIRST-y things (since I was there this weekend), they have one of the most well-established FIRST college orgs I've ever seen that we tried hard to emulate called Purdue FIRST

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Thanks for the responses everyone!

I've looked into Purdue's FYE program.. I've also heard their Engineering program is rigorous, but that's one of the reasons I'm applying there- it's no wonder why they produce so many great engineers.

I knew Purdue had a FIRST presence, but I didn't know University of IL - UC had one, so thanks for informing me! It seems like almost all of the schools I'm applying to has a FIRST presence.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a sophomore CS student at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, which is one of the largest research universities in the country. Just about all of our engineering or technical programs are highly ranked, and we have a very large FIRST presence here-- both with GOFIRST (which both builds robots of our own and does a lot of outreach to local teams) and the many on-campus FIRST related events held here (two regionals, kickoffs for FRC and FTC, volunteer trainings and team workshops).

We're also very affordable, whether you're from in state or out of state, and the Twin Cities are fantastic, even if it is cold here for a decent chunk of the year. Definitely take a look at us and feel free to PM me with any questions.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Is there anyone who as attended the Colorado School for Mines? I visited their campus this summer and was pretty impressed with its robotics lab as well as location.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Some free advice (worth everything you paid for it): It really helps to use the correct name for a college you're interested in. In this case, that's Colorado School of Mines. Yeah, I know, nitpicking--but it does help when doing, say, an internet search.

I don't know anything about that college, other than the name, and I know the name because of the rivalry football game between the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (my alma mater) and CSM, which is nicknamed "The Battle of the Miners" for somewhat obvious reasons.

And if anybody is interested in SDSM&T, feel free to ask me.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a Freshman Music Composition Major, computer science minor at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. I know it's not typically regarded as an "Engineering school" but that's simply because it's a liberal arts university.

Since we aren't a research school, our professors are focused on teaching as their primary goal. Beautiful campus, good food and a good social life. JMU hosts the State FLL competitions and the local high school has a team that'd be happy to have some excited mentors.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I went to Caltech for undergrad and had a great experience. The courses were hard, but the school funneled a lot of resources into helping students get through them to minimize the number who fell through the cracks. It wasn't a meat-grinder like (I've heard but don't know first-hand) some places are.

Regardless of which school you go to they probably have programs to help you when you're struggling - be sure to look for them! Engineering school is hard, but if you can pass your classes, line up interesting co-ops or internships, graduate, and land your first job, then Engineering is a fun and lucrative profession.

Another thing to consider is that you'll want to balance your hands-on training (which FRC is great for) with your heavy-duty analysis training. Caltech went a little overboard on the analysis in my opinion, but their Mechanical Engineering department does have a hands-on FIRST-like competition every year for undergrads. You'll have far better job options in the working world if you're strong in both theory & practice.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I have a few friends who go to UIUC, PM me your email and I might be able to get you in touch with them!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Are there any WPI students/alumni here who'd be willing to talk about the 5 year BS/MS in robotics engineering program?

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I know some alumni that I can get you in contact with if you want to shoot me a pm. But there might be someone else on here.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I graduated from the University of Michigan in December of 2014 with an undergraduate degree in Industrial and Operations Engineering and a Program in Entrepreneurship. I actually ended up getting my current full-time IE job through a sponsor for the team I coach, so I can personally say that FIRST will not only help you get into college, but it will also help get you employed too.

First person in my mom's family to graduate college to graduate college, so had to learn a lot of thing firsthand, and did a lot of stupid things along the way simply because I didn't know any better. Feel free to ask me anything; I'll tell you everything what NOT to do.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I am also a helluva engineer at Georgia Tech, more specifically, a second year biomedical engineering major with a focus in undergraduate research. I am a team leader (basically a super cool TA) for the GT1000 freshman seminar class that has a focus on undergraduate research and innovation, so if you have any questions about transitioning to Tech, I'm your person! I currently work in a lab at Emory (we have a joint BME department) working on several DNA origami projects. I am also still very much involved with FLL, FTC, and FRC in Georgia and currently mentor team 4468 here in Atlanta as well as volunteer at wayyyyy too many FLL and FRC events (is that even possible?). If you have any questions about Georgia Tech, biomedical engineering, or college in general, please don't hesitate to message me! #THWg

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm currently a freshman at Iowa State in mechanical engineering. I only have a few months under my belt, but if you are interested I can try and be of some assistance.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm open to answering questions about Syracuse University. We offer substantial financial aid and have great programs here, as well as amazing resources on campus. Shoot me questions if you want a school with a ton of things to do outside the classroom! Solid sports culture here as well.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a senior (computer engineering) at Iowa State. I'm not very good at rattling off information but if you have questions feel free to PM me.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I am a Purdue Industrial Engineering alumnus and a 4-year alumni of Purdue FIRST Programs, their FIRST mentoring organization, as referenced earlier in this thread. Feel free to PM me if you would like information about either the university or my experiences in Purdue FIRST. I'm a Purdue college recruiter for my company in addition to my regular engineering job, so I have stayed relatively up-to-date with current events at the university.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a second year Mechanical Engineering student at Rochester Institute of Technology, a member of RIT's Ultimate Frisbee team, and a mentor for FRC Teams 20 and 5254.

RIT is a great school with a great culture and a top-tier coop program. Very good engineering education, computer science, and game design programs, as well as decent liberal arts and business colleges for those who are so-inclined, but want to study where your studies are heavily integrated with technology and engineering.

Message me if you have any questions about RIT!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm Currently a student at York College of PA, and would love to answer any questions anybody has about this school. Unfortunately I do not have that much information on the engineering program here, but would be willing to answer any other questions anybody might have!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Katie is being modest. Please message her!

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Since no one from MIT has spoken up in this thread yet, I will chime in. I am an alumna of MIT (Class of 2012, Materials Science & Engineering). I had a great experience there and I would love to go back again at some point. Feel free to PM me with your MIT questions.

I also did an MS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Connecticut while working, so if you have questions about full-time vs. part-time grad school, mechanical vs. materials engineering, etc., I can help with those too.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I am a Drexel University Mechanical Engineering alumnus (Class of 2009). I went through the 5 year Co-Op program and loved the experience and insight it gave me. As Mechanical Engineering is quite broad the co-op’s not only allowed me to find the industry that I love it also gave me insight into fields of work that I was not as excited about. Please feel free to PM me any of your Drexel, Co-Op, or Drexel Co-Op questions.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

If you are interested in Virginia Tech, feel free to message me with any questions. I am a Junior in Aerospace Engineering, but I should be able to find someone that can answer your question for the other majors.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

I'm a freshman in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin! I'll edit this post later with some general information when I have time but feel free to PM me questions when you have them. It's an awesome place and I'm glad to be here.

Re: 2015/16 College Help Thread
 

Freshman at MIT here! Currently missing my team back at home.

PM me any questions about anything ever like admissions or life because it's still pretty fresh for me hahaha