University of Utah or Duke?

This is more for journaling purposes, but you're welcome to peer into and respond to my musings:

So we were going off of incomplete info earlier, if you saw the FB/G+ posts.  It turns out that the U of U is also 2 years, not 3, so it doesn't make a big difference with finishing time to go to the U of U or Duke.  That cuts out one of the largest advantages Duke had over the U. 

The quick back story:  I'm applying for a Nursing Informatics Master's program.  So far, I've applied for the U of U and Duke, just because their deadlines came first.  Duke accepted me this week.  They also had 2 scholarships for full-tuition + stipend, which I applied for, and was one person away from getting.  If one of the other two drop out, I get it -- but honestly -- why would they do that?  I wouldn't.  As for the U of U, their applications aren't even due until January 15th, so I need to respond to Duke long before the U even looks at my application.  The U of U is $20K.  Duke is $50K, minus a $10K scholarship they're offering = $40K.

Duke Pros

U of U Pros

[A big pro for Duke] Duke is guaranteed acceptance -- I already know I'm in, whereas I don't have any guarantee from the U about that yet (although we think we have a decent shot at it).  If I say 'No' to Duke, and the U says 'No' to me, then I'm paying lots of money and wasting lots of time for a not-as-notable-as-it-could-have-been-for-the-buck school. Duke is apparently a whole lot more "prestigious" than I was aware of when I applied, which may have some benefit in getting a job?  Maybe?  Although I'm not sure it's $20,000 worth of benefit...  Then again, I'm the one who had to look up Duke when I applied to see if it was a respectable, well-known, established school.  That shows you what I know about it.  Will I be able to get a job with the U of U?  Oh yeah.  Will there be any reasonable advantage Duke has over the U there?  I doubt it. Duke starts in January (done a little sooner)

[A big pro for U of U] $20,000 less than Duke.  Duke is $40K.  The U of U is half the price.  I could buy 2 good cars with that money.  Or lots of skittles. I imagine that the U already has connections with local companies/sites and might be able to better organize and place "internship" type opportunities, although I doubt Duke would have much problem with getting placements in places. If I plan on the U, and one of the 2 people that got the Duke scholarships drops out (which won't happen), then I get the scholarship and can go back to Duke and not pay for it!. I already know that I like the U of U.

Katie and I have been trying to weigh the pros and cons of each.  It boils down to this:  It definitely makes the most logical sense to hold out for the U of U.  My biggest fear, of course, is that if they say 'no,' we get to delay school for that much more and probably pay lots of cash for school that I could have been putting toward Duke. 

And we've got a few days left to decide. 

Someone tell me what to do.  Thanks.

HAPPY HOLEYDAYS!!!

On Thanksgiving Day at Aunt Annie's

We've all been wearing holes in a some items lately:

Lindy - holes in her gums... 2 new teeth!

They're more pronounced now... you can just barely see them in the picture.

...and holes in the carpet.

Brett - holes in socks... Brett has a sock philosophy which I like. "Buy all the same socks, don't worry about matching them after they're washed... just grab 2 in the morning, and you're good to go." This has worked well, but all the socks that he bought at the beginning of this regime several years ago, have finally decided to disintegrate. At approximately the same time, all of Brett's socks started getting holes in them, one after another. Time for new socks.

[There may or may not have been
some hole exaggeration in this picture]

Katie - holes in hair elastics, I've broken a handful of these in the last month... obese hair strikes again! Time for severe punishment on the offending hairs.

Add to this a major hole in our savings account as we prep to buy a home and for Brett to start grad school and I'd say we're pretty holey people saying "Happy Holeydays!"