Hello,
I'm really struggling to decide between these two schools. They would both be OOS, but residency can be established in Washington after the first year and that's the only real reason it's a close decision for me. I am zoo focused and most likely won't change, but if I did it would most likely be wildlife/research related. I am leaning towards Kansas state. From what I hear and understand, KSU has a lot of zoo opportunities (sunset zoo, wildlife/exotics department) and great connections can be made there. The school building has been recently updated and is large with tons of space, which I personally care about and take into account. My girlfriend also goes to Iowa so it would be much closer to her (a 5-hour drive vs. a 5-8 hour flight with a layover).
Washington has a 4-year price of $242K ($240K AAVMC, $248K VIN), vs. Kansas state at $301K ($320 on AAVMC, $346K VIN). There are some things that don't really make too much sense to me. VIN has estimated the cost of living in Kansas costing $13K more. I've lived in Idaho and Oregon all my life and travel to Washington a lot (not the east side too often) and I would assume the cost of living in the Pacific North West is much more expensive than the Midwest, but I could be wrong. It seems like a lot of people say it varies widely at Pullman.
From what I understand Washington has great research opportunities and some good wildlife experiences and a wildlife/exotics department, but less zoo-type experience. I'm struggling to get more info from their site and I may go visit there in March.
The last thing is every field I'm currently interested in would more than likely be some sort of non-profit/not-for-profit type job and I would qualify for PSLF from what I understand. I need to talk to an academic advisor to make sure I understand it completely before I bank on this as well, but I think it should be considered when contemplating the financial differences.
Most people say go where its cheapest, but given that I'm interested in the zoo field I feel that connections made are very important even if the exotic experience is available at both schools, and I think at the end of the day the main difference is being closer to my significant other (who is in her second year currently) and the opportunities at Kansas state which some people don't see as that important.
Any thoughts, info, or opinions would be greatly appreciated!
I'm really struggling to decide between these two schools. They would both be OOS, but residency can be established in Washington after the first year and that's the only real reason it's a close decision for me. I am zoo focused and most likely won't change, but if I did it would most likely be wildlife/research related. I am leaning towards Kansas state. From what I hear and understand, KSU has a lot of zoo opportunities (sunset zoo, wildlife/exotics department) and great connections can be made there. The school building has been recently updated and is large with tons of space, which I personally care about and take into account. My girlfriend also goes to Iowa so it would be much closer to her (a 5-hour drive vs. a 5-8 hour flight with a layover).
Washington has a 4-year price of $242K ($240K AAVMC, $248K VIN), vs. Kansas state at $301K ($320 on AAVMC, $346K VIN). There are some things that don't really make too much sense to me. VIN has estimated the cost of living in Kansas costing $13K more. I've lived in Idaho and Oregon all my life and travel to Washington a lot (not the east side too often) and I would assume the cost of living in the Pacific North West is much more expensive than the Midwest, but I could be wrong. It seems like a lot of people say it varies widely at Pullman.
From what I understand Washington has great research opportunities and some good wildlife experiences and a wildlife/exotics department, but less zoo-type experience. I'm struggling to get more info from their site and I may go visit there in March.
The last thing is every field I'm currently interested in would more than likely be some sort of non-profit/not-for-profit type job and I would qualify for PSLF from what I understand. I need to talk to an academic advisor to make sure I understand it completely before I bank on this as well, but I think it should be considered when contemplating the financial differences.
Most people say go where its cheapest, but given that I'm interested in the zoo field I feel that connections made are very important even if the exotic experience is available at both schools, and I think at the end of the day the main difference is being closer to my significant other (who is in her second year currently) and the opportunities at Kansas state which some people don't see as that important.
Any thoughts, info, or opinions would be greatly appreciated!