throwaway7819

As you haven't listed an email address in your profile, would you mind sending an email to mit-dilemma@pm.me? I'd love to get in touch, thank you for your thoughtful response.

> I would love to read your take after few years. Maybe you can do a Tell HN after 10 years.

That's a great idea. I'll reveal the contents of this hash to prove that the person who posts in 10 years is indeed who I am:

    af6fd692d9f831fe08801a24db27137edf2fd12ce9a6cbe62a23b0696b077dcb

> But, all I can say is, if you choose to go to MIT, just make sure that it is not the only worthy accomplishment in your whole life.

Even if I decided to go to MIT today, I'd still probably say that some of the OSS work I've done is something I'm more proud of than having gotten into MIT. That said, I hope that in 10 years neither of those things is what I'm most proud of.

I've visited Z a lot growing up, but I've never been to MIT. I am certain that I want to go into computer science, though, and it's been my passion since before I was fully aware of what MIT even was.

Thank you for taking the time to write a thoughtful reply. I've made a fairly large and comprehensive spreadsheet that takes a lot of factors into account. The TLDR is that if I went to MIT, I'd see a massive initial dip in NPV, but then out of MIT I'd be making more that I would out of Z. So over 20 years, MIT would definitely have a higher NPV (by about a factor of 1.3x) but 15 years out it's about the same. Going to MIT has larger up-front commitment and more initial risk for the reward of more earnings later on. But of course, there's always more to consider than money, and who knows what things will look like 20 years from now?

Thanks for recommending this path. Would the second 'ivy' refer to returning for a graduate degree? As in 'undergrad > big tech > grad > lab > startup'? What would recommend the timeframes be at each stage?

Transferring out is a good point; it'd be much harder to transfer in. People talk about people coming out of MIT having 'inflated salaries', but are there any sites that quantify the value of a MIT degree for the path I hope to pursue (CS)?

I've talked to people at Z, and it seems like the CS program is fairly standard and on the whole pretty good.

I think that, given that I have a lot of family and friends in the area, I might have an easier time getting started socially at Z. But at the same time, I grew up out of state and have never lived there so I can't be sure for sure.

Thanks for taking the time to write a thoughtful reply!

Some postscripts:

P.S. — I started programming when I was fairly young (about 10 years ago), and I've spent hours each day since then programming, reading blogs, and poring over books (SICP, Let Over Lambda, etc.). I'm especially passionate about OSS, and I've contributed to a number of projects of varying ilk over the years. Academically, I've worked really hard in school (while maintaining a balanced social life, of course). I particularly enjoy mathematics (I’ve taken up through Linear Algebra) and the sciences (I'm taking AP Physics II, AP Bio, and AP Chem this year). I understand that I’ve been very lucky, and want to make the most of my situation so that I may one day make the opportunities I’ve had access to more readily accessible

P.P.S. — I’m using a throwaway because, aside from this being a fairly personal matter, I've been active on HN for quite a while. A couple years ago, an open source project I started got a lot of traction on HN. Through HN, I have learned a lot from the blogs, books, and projects that have surfaced over the years. Needless to say, I wouldn't be in the position that I am today without your support, so thank you!

P.P.P.S — If you’d like to reach out privately, feel free to email

    mit-dilemma@pm.me

as I realize your replies may be, well, a bit personal.