Hello @Addme66
- It is hard to offer an objective "ranking" of specific undergraduate programs. There are lots of metrics and most of them are flawed one way or another. My impression is that the undergraduate curriculum in computer science is solid. You can take all the courses that you need to get a good background. Of course you can choose to take a harder or easier curriculum with your elective courses, that would be up to you. Probably a better measure of the quality of an undergraduate program is the opportunities it offers for internships and so on (if your goal is to get a job right after your B.S.). In that respect, Chicago is a pretty good place as there are a lot of financial institutions who like to hire our students for internships and after graduation. My son got his Computer Engineering degree from IIT in 2010 and found an excellent job in the financial sector within a month despite the recession. He is not a programmer but he was offered a programming job at the same firm. He chose the operations engineering job instead. In order to maximize your opportunities for internships and jobs after graduation, it is wise to get heavily involved in co-curricular activities to develop what you learn in class in a practical sense. The required IPRO courses help with that if you take them seriously.
- For undergraduate studies, there is no real reason to do so. If you wish to get involved in research, which is the primary reason for contacting faculty, then you have plenty of opportunities after your first year or so of studies.
- You can always ask. Contact the Admissions Office and see what they can do to help you afford coming to IIT. There is no guarantee as we already give a substantial discount as merit aid but I believe that they try to help applicants who really want to come to IIT to find a way.
- Our Environmental Engineering program is graduate only but there is a minor. However it is possible that this minor is only available to certain majors, such as Chemical Engineering. The IIT Bulletin does not specify and you would have to ask someone in that department directly. You can certainly take courses in the business program (as well as a minor) and other science departments or mathematics. A full list of minors is in the [IIT Bulletin](http://www.iit.edu/ugaa/pdfs/undergraduate_bulletin_2012_2014-v2.pdf). Personally, I think that a computer science major is more versatile with a strong background in mathematics or physics instead of being solely a programmer.
- Well, it is a big city and we are located in an urban area so you need to be aware and alert. Nevertheless, the campus is as safe as many other universities even those in more college-town environments. The main Chicago police HQ is just off campus and there are Campus Security officers who will escort students if they ask. I have been at IIT for 32 years and have had no incidents. My son spent 5 years without any problems and my daughter is currently a student at IIT and lives in and lives in an apartment just off campus. She regularly takes the public transportation all over the city without problems.
Hope these answers help!