MGH or Arizona State..

[speech19]

Obviously this question is my own personal conundrum! but i would love any feedback--im so torn! MGH is a wonderful program..endless people attest to this..however, it comes with one of the largest price tags >80k without even considering the living expenses of boston..

 

ASU is equally great.  However, may not have quite the hospital connections that MGH would have.  But the upside! ASU would be about 30k less than MGH. and the overall expense of living in AZ is cheaper..

 

 

ahhh decisions are not my friend! especially between two great options.

 

Id love any input! thanks guys

[Fall15Applicant]

I feel your pain! Decisions are also not my friend. I am familiar with MGH IHP but not the ASU program, so take that into account when reading these. Here are some questions I had to ask myself in order to decide. Hope it helps! 

 

- Where do you want to live after school? For example, if you want to live & work in Boston after school (especially in a highly coveted hospital job), you will make more connections by going to school in Boston. But if you don't care and/or don't have a special preference, maybe the location doesn't matter as much. 

 

- Based on where you want to live and in what setting (hospital, school, etc), what salary would you be making? Looking up salary data (with cost of living taken into account) will help you decide how many loans you'd be comfortable with. 

 

- If you are interested in medical SLP, does ASU guarantee a medical placement? (I believe MGH does.) If not, try to find out how likely you are to get one if you want one.

 

- Did you visit both programs? Talk to current students or alumni? Talk with faculty? I definitely felt more attracted to certain programs based on my interactions with students & faculty. Many schools I visited were basically tied in the rankings, but I got completely different vibes and could picture myself at one over the other. 

 

- Are you interested in research? If so, does either school have better research opportunities? 

 

- Is there a faculty member at either school who specializes in your area of interest? 

 

If I was having a super hard time deciding between two programs and they both checked the boxes for what I wanted in a grad program (good variety of placements, approachable faculty doing interesting things in my area of interest, good reputation with students, alums, and the community, research opps, etc).. finances would be the tipping factor. But if you truly believe MGH IHP checks more boxes than ASU, only you can decide if those extra checkmarks are worth the extra money. 

[ldharts]

I am Canadian and have been thinking about decisions based on finances as well- it would be SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper to go to school at home than in the states- with the exchange rate there's probably a difference of at least 50,000$, if not more... I have pretty much come to the conclusion that it is worth paying the extra money if it is a school I really want- I do however have support that will make that possible for me, which I think is a factor to consider- if you don't have the funds to do it, I would choose the less expensive school. In the end it is at least two years of your life, and I think you should go where you think you will be happier and have the best experience- it sounds to me like if the two were the same price you would be choosing MGH. You will be able to make back the money and if you're good with your money pay back that extra 30,000$  without too much trouble. I would say follow your gut!

 

In saying that, I went to ASU for a semester a few years ago and did some of the speech classes there- they have an excellent program with a clinic in the same building as the classes, and the profs all seem great!....plus the sun is nice To my knowledge, you can probably request a hospital placement, but I don't think it is guaranteed- I know you do placements with each age group, but I'm not completely sure how locations are chosen.

[speech19]

I appreciate both of your responses!

I thinn you each raised some really great points. I spent the weekend really scoping my options and speaking to students. I'm happy to say I've chosen ASU. MGH is no doubt wonderful program, but with each of these schools being rated right around the 20th place marker in the US I don't think either is a bad call! I'm from Portland Maine so obviously boston is close and something I'm familiar with,AZ will be a huge change but one I'm excited for! Ive heard the facilities are awesome and the students seem incredibly positive. thanks again guys!