Choosing a school

[PAgirl091]

Hello everyone.

I applied to about 17 programs late in the game  and have been accepted into 2 programs, didn't attend the interview for one and still waiting responses for 5 programs in my home state. 

One of the programs I applied to is what I consider a prestigious school but its very expensive. The other school I've been accepted to is okay but not my dream school. I applied to many programs to increase my odds because I really didnt think I would get in anywhere.

Now I'm very confused. I want to attend the expensive school but it is in fact pretty pricey and out of state (adding to my cost) so I am unsure if its worth it. Also, the program begins in 3 months which is very soon. 

Thus far I have been going along with the process and have started looking for housing. Essentially my questions are how far along can I get into the process of going to the school without penalty ? Also, is worth going to a program because the school has a great reputation ? Does that truly help on the job market? Please help

Thank you

[MT2PA]

Do you mean actually starting classes without penalty?  Because that seems like a bad idea.  You could be on the hook for rent.  And often there is a drop period for classes where you can get a refund and the longer time passes, the less of a refund you get until there is a time where you just simply lose out on tuition (think tens of thousands of dollars).  As soon as you start signing leases and checks that money could be gone.  Anything before that is likely reversible.

You probably need to make a decision.  Those 5 programs in your state....have you interviewed?  If not, I could count them out at this point.  If you have interviewed there could be a chance you get accepted but your window is small.

I've found that reputation can be marginally helpful.  Frankly it is more impressive to patients than it is to employers and that's not a good reason to spend the dough but it's a nice perk.