Berkeley v Vanderbilt, Georgetown, Wash U for CS

carlsbaddad
Mon, 16 Apr 2018 02:44:53 +0000

Hi Ucbalumnus,

The money is the same between Berkeley and Vandy… Part of the difficult decision.

The good thing is my son was accepted direct into EECS at UCB. Most students end up admitted as undeclared at L&S versus engineering, then spend 2 yrs fighting it out on GPA before getting a 50/50 chance of being admitted to CS. I think he was was very fortunate, and have been trying to council him on that and the benefits UCB brings in terms of class offering, profs, and internship access in the Valley.

That said, this is our last child so we have learning under the belt. One went to GU and absolutely loved it. One went to Tufts and loved it. All went to a big public high school and no trust funds in our familiy ;-). In the end I’ve concluded it’s like shopping for shoes, highly personal in terms of fit and style. What works for one is terrible for another. Our son is attending Anchor Day at Vandy tomorrow, then Cal Day the 21st. Also bringing him to GU on a business trip to meet the CS dept in person. Something to be said for using actual on campus in person Interaction with students and profs to make an informed decision! We feel fortunate to have this tough decision to make.