Good Computer Science Programs?

MisterK
Sat, 09 Jul 2011 03:38:27 +0000

vlines - I’ve got good news and bad news for you. First the good news (and it’s very good):

It’s hard to imagine finding a better deal than UMCP at in-state pricing. Their CS/Math programs are great. For a full-pay family, UMCP CS/Math is a bargain even at OOS rates vs. other schools with similar quality programs - and you’re in state!

The second piece of good news is that UMCP CS/Math is super-strong, and I mean on an absolute level - so strong that there actually aren’t many schools with better programs. Nearly all of those would be big reaches unless your son can greatly improve his SAT scores (hundreds of points) - but there would still be no merit. So being in Maryland, your son actually has a chance to get into a much stronger CS program than he could otherwise, and at a bargain rate.

The bad news is that your position is so fortunate, that it’s going to be really hard to find an attractive alternative.

For significant merit, you need to move down the tiers to the point where your son is one of the strongest students. It’s hard to imagine that it would be on the level of UMCP for anything close to in-state cost. Still, absolute strength of the particular program is only one consideration.

Let’s look at two very well-respected schools known for good merit possibilities: Case and RPI (and Case’s merit isn’t all score-based). Both are currently reaches for your son. Assuming he raises his scores significantly and earns solid merit money, UMCP in-state would almost certainly be much cheaper - and UMCP is superior to either. These two schools are stronger in Comp Eng/Arch than CS (a common occurrence), but both of these CS programs are very good. Assuming that all goes very well in the merit dept, these schools could be reasonable alternatives.

A level down: V Tech and RIT are matches, and very respectable schools. Merit would be easier to get. But look at the prices: V Tech $36k COA, RIT $43k - how much merit could you get vs. UMCP in-state? And how good are their CS programs? I’m not sure, but I do know they’re not in the same ballpark as Case and RPI. For schools at this level, you need to examine the CS programs carefully to be sure that they’re actually true CS - not CE, or even I/T. I believe RIT does have true CS, not sure about V Tech - but I wouldn’t even be asking this question if I had UMCP in my pocket!