Colorado Mesa University

Date: Nov 20 2014
Major: Physics (This Major's Salary over time)
I love this school. I think many people misunderstand the value of an undergraduate degree. While prestige may make you feel better about your school, the quality of education boils down to how much the teachers care. At first I was hesitant about going here. Being my hometown school, a lot of my high school peers had negative attitudes towards it. I applied to various schools across Colorado and basically had a free ride here. Incredible scholarships. I visited some of the other schools and they were either too big or too isolated (CU Boulder versus Western State). Mesa seemed perfect in size, and I actually love Grand Junction.

But everyone kept telling me I'd be better off going to CU or CSU—more notable schools. Indeed, gaining contacts is really important if you're going to be competing for a job right after graduation, especially in engineering. But my goal is graduate school and a career in research.

The education quality is exceptional, especially when you consider the price. I have friends at various prestigious universities throughout the country—MIT, School of Mines, Duke—and I think I've learned more than them. Mesa's size allows a more one-on-one setting with the professors, which comes in handy with complex ideas. Its the difference between truly understanding concepts versus understanding test questions.

If you're wanting to live in an awesome town in America's best state and are aiming for professional or graduate school, Colorado Mesa is an awesome school. Its definitely the best value as far as I've seen in Colorado.