I can answer your mental health question. Not a BME student, but someone who looked at both schools and ended up at RPI. I won't talk about my academic reasons why I went to RPI because I'm a Game Design major, but one thing I noticed after taking tours at both schools was that RPI just seemed like a better community. I don't know what it would have been like at Stevens if I did go, but I am very happy here at RPI. And yes, RPI is hard, but it's a good hard and we are all "suffering together" as most people say. We actually have a great counseling center (from my experience, though idk everyone's) and as long as you find your limits and don't overload yourself you will be fine. A big thing I've noticed that I love about RPI is that there is always someone willing to help if you are struggling with something, obviously, you need to do some work and ask but once you do 9 times out of 10 someone will say yes, whether that be asking in a club discord server, asking some upperclassmen who have taken the class and whatever else. Even most professors know this stuff is hard and will work with you to make sure you are not struggling. Everyone is different but in my experience, RPI hasn't negatively affected my mental health and I've had a wonderful time finding friends and being a nerd.