Next stop is Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York! RPI is two and a half hours north of New York City and 15 minutes from an Amtrak station with a campus shuttle to bring you there! RPI is known as a very strong STEM school, but here are some things I'll bet you didn't know about RPI: the inventor of the ferris wheel, sunscreen, the digital camera and the @ symbol as we use it today were all RPI graduates. The person who designed Fenway Park and many other ballfields - you guessed it - RPI grads. RPI offers 11 different engineering degrees and several different majors, minors and advanced degrees in architecture. However, here's what I love: RPI require students to take 12 credits in the social sciences and 12 credits in the humanities in order to graduate. This makes them more well rounded and better able to head into the world! It's important to know that performing arts are very big here, with multiple music ensembles for students to get involved in. The concert hall is gorgeous! There are some wonderful opportunities at RPI. With a $100 million in funding annually for research, students have ample opportunity to dig in! RPI offers a 5th year masters degree or an MBA in an additional year and a half, and any financial aid or scholarship awarded at matriculation extends to cover the master's degree. One thing they do differently is that all students spend the summer between sophomore and junior year on campus taking classes because they then spend one semester junior year doing an internship off campus, when opportunities abound because most other college students are taking classes. Last year, 85% of students were subsequently offered a full-time job. Over 500 companies come to campus to recruit each year, including Deloitte, Google, IBM and Raytheon. With an average starting salary for RPI grads at $81,000, and generous merit scholarships of up to $40K, ROI at RPI is excellent!