Does anyone have information on just how many Yale graduates last year, and last couple of years, went to PhD studies in CS at Stanford (or MIT or CMU)? I know Harvard sent some to Stanford, and I assume Princeton and Cornell send a stead stream.
His decision may be a slam dunk moreso than you think after he visits admitted student days.
Our DS had similar choice as well. For one of the visits, we received a picture of one school, for the other we didn't. We only got feedback upon picking him up at the airport.
Guess where he is at?
You are doing a great thing of getting the perspective from others who have chosen and are choosing between both schools. You however have to be cognizant, that what you deem a pro may not be for your son. Don't sweat it, it will work out PERFECT in the end.
AFAIK the only way to figure out how many of each university's undergrads end up at another university is by looking at their homepages in grad school (most have one) and finding their alma mater, if they mention it. (Most first-year grad students do - that whole ego thing. )
robotmom, it's odd that an admissions officer at MIT would say that the institute doesn't go for its own undergrads. For the most part at MIT (where I currently am) nobody would contest that MIT has a preference for its undergrads - they're everywhere - especially since MIT, Harvard, etc. are known for "academic inbreeding." Some departments probably do have a preference for non-MIT undergrads, though I don't think most actively discriminate against MIT undergrads (as is the case at Stanford). Main point: your son should keep an open mind with MIT in relation to Stanford/Yale - it's very unique, and could offer him a lot (perhaps the culture) that he wouldn't be able to find elsewhere.
I get what you mean about the more balanced undergrad experience. For me MIT was a bit too techy, Yale was a bit too artsy/fuzzy, and Stanford was just right.
4thfloor, when I was a PhD student at Berkeley, I came across quite a few other Yale grads ... same for after I left and was interviewing graduating PhDs. The graduating CS class at Yale is so small, though, that it's not even clear statistics would be too meaningful. If you really care, I recommend that you look up the chair of the department and ask privately for information... maybe someone there can help you out.
^^ Yes, but CS at Yale has changed a lot, as phanta described in an earlier post.
Certainly up to the mid 70's (not to imply anything about later), Yale was a great place for CS, and even though it was little, its undergrads included people like Leiserson and Immerman.
If someone is really interested in grad school prospects, it seems like a good idea to check out where the undergrads ended up! (I am curious, but not THAT curious, to do the hard work that phanta suggested in post #34.)
Thanks for this thread. My daughter also attended the YES weekend at Yale (received the LL) and just found out she's on the wait list for MIT. She's been accepted by U of Michigan and MSU with the former giving very little financial aid and the latter offering full tuition. Yale's cost is actually close to MSU's. Her interest is computer science/math, with some serious flute/music interest thrown in for good measure. She is still undecided which direction to go, and other than reading this thread, I'm not sure what to give her to help her decide. Any thoughts?
Last edited by MImom2012; 03-15-2012 at 12:19 PM.
Reason: clarifying
@MImom2012 - Well, my son just got accepted to MIT yesterday. But it turns out the cost will be double that of attending Yale. We had some reservations about MIT as noted above, and the fin aid doesn't help. But there's still a tug on his heartstrings for MIT. These decisions are incredibly difficult. Congratulations to your daughter! If you would like to send me a PM, I'd be happy to communicate with you more in-depth re:the factors we have been weighing as we think (and perhaps over-think!) this decision.
She's been accepted by U of Michigan and MSU with the former giving very little financial aid and the latter offering full tuition. Yale's cost is actually close to MSU's.
I could have told you that about U-M's financial aid. Sure, they meet need but consider loans as a BIG part of meeting that need. I will say that a $2K lower EFC made a huge impact on the grants they offered for my daughter but it was cheaper for my son to attend Yale than U-M, not that he needed any reason to attend Yale.
Well, my son just got accepted to MIT yesterday. But it turns out the cost will be double that of attending Yale.
You could request a FA review at MIT and mention that your S has a more generous package from Y. I am not familiar with MITs FA policies on reassessing FA based on offers from peer colleges, but it is an option.
^Yeah, I wondered about that. I know Cornell, for instance, states flat-out that it will match the aid award of any Ivy. Not sure about MIT. I always read about how "negotiating" is discouraged. But I suppose it couldn't hurt to ask politely.
MImom2012: Yes I got your PM, did you receive my response? Once I hit send I don't see a copy of it. I wonder if there is some way to see our sent notes?
^There is indeed.
After going to your private messages inbox, there should be a "Jump to Folder" line followed by a dropdown menu. On this menu, click "Sent Items" and everything you have sent should appear.
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