Columbia vs University of Florida for Biomedical Engineering Master

[Klo]

I was accepted to Columbia Univ. and UF. UF would be in-state tuition, Columbia would be full price. Can someone tell me Pros and Cons. I am not familiar with Columbia and it's surroundings. Thanks for any input.

[ghanada]

I am contemplating accepting an offer at Columbia BME for a PhD. If you can, you should visit! I personally LOVE the campus. It is very small so space is always an issue, but it is beautiful and in a cool part of the city. The program is a bit young (about 10 years old or so) so it is still gaining reputation. However, Columbia is like a top 15 engineering school and the BME program is right around top 15 as well. I only spoke to current PhD students so I can't comment on the Masters, but everyone is generally happy and doing well. One thing you should note is that I view Columbia BME as more focused on business and consulting rather than biotech industry. I am not sure what your plans are after the Masters, but if you like the business side of engineering Columbia is great.

Columbia is definitely a stronger program than UF, but whether or not it is worth the price tag is a serious question to consider. If you can get subsidized grad housing (not guaranteed, preference goes to PhD students) the cost is like $1100/month for a fully furnished room in a 2 or 3 bdrm apartment, which is really good for the area it is in. Otherwise, depending on where you live you can easily drop like $1500-2000/month if you have to find something on your own.

If you have any other questions you can feel free to message me.