[fintstone]

As an engineer that has hired a lot of engineers...IMHO, there does not seem to be a lot of difference between those that went to the top schools and very good ones. Any engineering degree from any state school will allow a hard-working young man or woman to have a great career and life.

I had a similar situation where my seeming perfect daughter (Presidential scholar, 4-year college varsity cheerleader, massive volunteer work) with great grades and an undergrad in Biology and Chemistry yet could not get into any of the med schools she applied to (even though she had a full ride scholarship to her choice of schools). She went back to grad school for a year and took a bunch more courses in biology and chemistry. She also spent her undergraduate college graduation money on a full-time, in-residence summer program to increase her MCAT scores (and they did go up quite a bit). She applied and once again, no luck. She was waitlisted at her last choice...one she only applied on a whim because I was away from home working near there on a military project. At the last moment, she got accepted to that one. When she graduated, they called her doctor just the same as ivy leaguers...and she has been at the top of her class/year group from day one and crushed her exams. A decade later, she is a fine doctor...well respected and doing incredibly well. We are so very proud of her.

I am glad she took her scholarships and had no debt after graduating (and didn't let the struggle discourage her). The school was just the beginning.