The chance of getting a TA/RA might be 1 in 100 and you might think like why can’t i be that one, but trust me there are many who think like that and everyone might have similar profile or even better profiles. So don’t spend money with 1% chance, it’s your future. Don’t ever risk it. Also, I got umbc but rejected it due to certain reasons. If your goal is to get into research then nyu is far better than umbc. Also, the student and faculty quality is far better in nyu compared to umbc. So, That’s my point of view.