dragoon998

I got accepted by University of Toronto, Waterloo, UC Berkeley, and UIUC (university of Illinois urbana) for computer science.


Which computer science program is the best? Please Rate them 1-4.

Do not consider weather, money, tuition, anything else other than computer science.


For American Students: do you know what U of T / waterloo is? I'm afraid that if I go to school in Canada and then get a job in the US, the employer would not know what U of T / waterloo is.

Ajaxma

UCB>>UCIU>>UT>>UW
I think your fear is unfounded both Canadian schools are well known in the US.

aregularguy

UW has the best undergrad comp science program in canada regardless of rankings. UW is known for coop however this is especially true of there comp sci program. Every year a number students land jobs at google, facebook, and elsewhere in the states.

The program at uoft is good but uoft has a 16 month internship and it just doesnt match up for undergrad computer science.

Cant comment on american schools.

caliskimmer

UWaterloo is known very well among employers and U of T is pretty well known to people in the US. Waterloo is also known for the largest coop program in the world, so they definitely have connections.

noimagination

There is no wrong answer here. I would generally say UCB>UofT>UIUC>UW in terms of faculty reputation...coop makes Waterloo more appealing if you are interested in employment over grad school. In terms of academics, I seriously doubt you'll notice that much of a difference at the undergrad level.

The atmospheres and locations, however, are very different. Why not take a look at that?

dragoon998

lol this is a hard choice indeel.

All four schools are in the top for undergraduate computer science...

right now i'm thinking I should go to UC Berkeley, since I do want to say in the US.

btw tuition rates are:
UCB- $35,000
UIUC-$25,000
UW- ~$8,000
U of T ~$8,000

Lol giant different in tuition..

905416

UCB would probably get you the best job placements

fall2016parent

Most work places don't really care about your undergrad college name really.
As long as you can write about your projects, internships, that is all there is to it.
Where the big names matter sometimes is the amount of opportunities it provides WHILE at college. Honestly, if I lived in Canada, I would finish my undergrad in Canada.

That being said, there are probably more CS opportunities in CA than Ontario. But what is the guarantee..as you would be competing with top students in Berkeley to get those internships.

dragoon998

is there anyone else who can give me a opinion?

caliskimmer

Dragoon, are you going to pursue grad school or a job after you graduate?

As for job placements, I know a guy from Berkeley who didn't get a job right after he graduated from computer science and is doing an internship overseas before working for E-Trade, while I've seen a few people from UW get jobs in Silicon Valley, Amazon, or Microsoft before they even graduate. Other people see different views or a Berkeley grad getting a job before graduating and a UW grad not finding a job until a bit later.

Personally, I think it's what you can make out of your education. If you're pursuing grad school, that's a whole different story, and unfortunately, since I'm not planning on pursuing grad school after college (maybe I'll change my mind, who knows...), I can't help you out there, but I can definitely say that UT, Berkeley, and UIUC are more than likely better choices if you're going the grad school route.

dragoon998

@cali

so you mean that if one goes to waterloo he won't be perusing a masters degree/ grad school?
why is that

please explain,

thanks

caliskimmer

Not necessarily; however, the school is very career-oriented. You can still go to grad school, but the majority of the class will most likely be taking jobs right after they graduate.

arghwhy

^it's also because Waterloo has a very co-op program and job placement.

okey1120

Wow I'm in the same situation as you
Tuition is a factor for me so I'm planning to go to Waterloo
However, I am applying to UT, Carnegie Mellon, UIUC UCLA and UCB
and if I do get into Carnegie Mellon, I might go there although
tuition is like 5x that of waterloo's because CMU is ranked #1 for
computer science

Can you give me on update on where you went and your thoughts on the decision?

PerpetualStudent

@okey1120:

If money is at all a concern, go to Waterloo. *Tons* of people from Waterloo undergrad go directly into top US PhD programs, especially at CMU.

@caliskimmer:

What you said about jobs is true of every school. The majority of people will pretty much always stop after ugrad. I think you're doing Waterloo a disservice by painting it as "career oriented", since that can be misinterpreted as not academically/theoretically rigorous, which could not be further from the truth. They have a very strong co-op program, but they also have very strong academics. And by the way, even if grad school / academia is your target, some work experience is very valuable.

@dragon998: All of these schools are excellent. UC Berkeley is famous for CS, and UIUC is a top ranked program as well. UofT and Waterloo are probably the best CS departments in Canada. Your opportunities coming out of any of these schools will be equal, provided you get great grades.