[ZipTie3182]

Hi CD,
I was wondering from current engineers how important school ranking is for engineering programs when looking for jobs after college. I'm trying to narrow down my list of schools to apply to in the fall and wondered if it would be worth it to go somewhere "top 10" and pay more money than to go somewhere lower ranked but still a school with a good engineering program and pay less.

I know rank is not the only factor in choosing a school, but I was just wondering how much weight it should hold in deciding.

Schools with good co-op programs are at the top of my list since I would really love to get (paid) work experience while still in school.

A school I'm looking at in particular is Florida Tech since my parents are moving to FL after I graduate and I'd like to be close to home. I haven't heard much about it in terms of reputation but they seem to have a good co-op program with companies like NASA and Pratt & Whitney among others. If you have an knowledge of their program that would be great as well!

My main issue with schools is that I'm looking for schools that have decent mechanical engineering programs as well as graphic design (as a minor) since I'd really like to pursue it in college. Most tech schools don't have programs for graphics so it's really hard to find smaller schools that have both. Carnegie Mellon is at the top of my list since they have very high ranked programs for both fields, but it's very expensive and since it's so competitive I don't think I'd get a good enough financial aid package.

Any feedback is appreciated, thanks in advance!

-Anna