Caffeinated Chemist

I created an account just to reply to this. hahaha I am facing the exact same, and exact opposite situation right now. I have a great gig in Washington D.C. working as a government chemist while I attend George Mason University. What is similar to your situation is that the facility where I work is very prestigious. It's like name dropping. I say I work here and the doors of opportunity open for me. In fact, I'm fairly certain I'll get into Tech because I spoke with the admissions director and upon finding out where I work, said he would make sure I got in. However, my current research is not what I want to do with my life. What is opposite from your situation is that I'm planning on going to Tech because their research is EXACTLY what I want to be doing with my life. Despite the fact that where I am now is more prestigious, I've decided to leave based on my belief that the topic of my dissertation will have a bigger impact on what I do with my future than the name of the institution at the top of my diploma. In summary, if you want to go to a more prestigious school, you will probably earn more starting, but you may not get to do what you want with your life. I suggest KU because you'll get to do the research you want. I hope this was helpful!