How should I compare the affordability of Carnegie Mellon and Drexel?

The biggest practical tradeoff is that Carnegie Mellon may have a higher annual net price but is typically a four-year path, while Drexel’s co-op can produce paid work experience and earnings but may extend the calendar time needed to finish, depending on your program and co-op plan. Compare each school using the actual financial-aid offer, not tuition or an online sticker-price estimate. At Drexel, ask specifically how tuition, fees, housing, and health insurance are billed during each co-op period, since arrangements can differ by academic plan.

Start with each school’s one-year net cost: billed charges minus grants and scholarships that do not need to be repaid. Separate those grants from federal loans, parent loans, work-study, and private scholarships, since these are not equivalent forms of aid. Check whether every institutional grant is renewable, what GPA or enrollment conditions apply, and whether the amount is likely to remain stable as tuition and housing costs rise.

Then build a degree-level estimate. For Carnegie Mellon, project four years of net cost, including Pittsburgh housing, books, travel, personal expenses, and any expected annual increases. For Drexel, map every academic and co-op term through graduation. Count all school charges, expected living costs during co-op, and realistic after-tax co-op earnings. Treat projected co-op income as a range rather than a guarantee, because pay, location, and the number of paid placements vary.

Also compare the debt required at graduation, not just the first-year bill. A lower Drexel bill can be especially meaningful if co-op earnings reduce borrowing, but a larger Carnegie Mellon grant can outweigh that advantage across four years. The sounder choice is the one with the lower realistic total cost after renewable aid and conservative co-op-income assumptions, provided it also supports the academic path you want.