u/Feisty_Visual_8193

I‘m planning on majoring in Mechanical engineering. I was previously committed to Temple due to it being my lowest cost option. But I just got off the waitlist for Virginia Tech and it’s been my dream school for so long. They gave me almost no money even though I have a -1500 fafsa SAI. I’m going to call on Monday and try to appeal. But I have until the 20th to make a decision.

Do I roll the dice with Virginia Tech and pay the deposit and hope they give me more money. Or do I stay committed to Temple even though they have a much weaker engineering program?

VT subreddit is strict and my post won’t reach as many people in a megathread. So, I’m trying to post this everywhere I can to get help ASAP

I just got off the waitlist and I’m an average student but I have a -1500 sai on fafsa. And I got almost no money from VT and it’s my dream school. I can’t imagine being in that much debt with no parental support. What do I do? Are appeals known to work in situations like this?

College decision is really stressing me out. I’m almost 100% committed to Temple for MechE (mostly due to very low cost) but my biggest concern is city life

Everyone always says that big cities are the best for opportunities, but I’m curious what the perks of Temple are in particular

I haven’t gotten to tour Temple, I have friends that go to UPenn. And I’ve been to Philly for concerts. I’m from rural Maryland and I’ve had very limited exposure to “city life” other than traveling to Baltimore for frequent concerts/hangouts. I live about a 45 minute walk from a rofo and nothing else

Never had to navigate a city other than the same couple blocks I’m always around. Never used public transportation or had to live around that many people. Am I cooked? Or just freaking myself out?

I’ve gotten a lot of mixed reviews so far. Some saying it’s amazing and others saying it’s terrible if you’re not from Philly. So, I’m conflicted

I’m considering rushing but other than that what are good ways to get accustom?