I am wondering which college would be a better choice for computer science. I am currently slightly leaning towards JHU because I could easily double major with electrical engineering although UCLA is more “prestigious” for computer science. I love Rice’s student life but am not sure if that is worth sacrificing JHU’s higher recognition in my field. Also, if I am accepted to Duke in the future, would you consider that over the school you chose? Thoughts?
Does cost differ or matter?
I would choose the school that is right for you - end of story.
All are great names.
And you’re going to get a great outcome from all four.
UCLA is bigger - so if bureaucracy, etc. is a bother, that might be one to go. But if you’re in state and it’s cheap, that matters too.
Good luck.
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All the same except UCLA is 10k more a year. So, cost isn’t much of a factor
UCLA students recruit well to big tech in SF and Seattle for internships, with many getting them as early as freshman year. We don’t do as well on the East Coast, but me and a few friends are heading up to NYC for internships and I know a couple others breaking into banking + hedge funds up there. Obviously can’t speak to the other two, but I would assume they recruit well east of the Rockies given their locations. Research opps are great for being a public school (my friend just had a prof reach out to him to get him into his lab). Grad school placement seems fine hearing back from graduating seniors. We also have a guaranteed masters admission pathway for students maintaining a 3.5+ GPA.
About the bureaucracy comment – engineering students are given lots of preferential treatment when it comes to advisors. All engineers get a faculty advisor who’s a prof in their department for career advice, and access to academic advising is good (can schedule a meeting 2 days in advance). Petitions for course credit are generally approved unless you throw them a real curveball – if you have any dual enrollment credits or AP credits, UCLA tends to eat them up, putting you ahead of your peers.
UCLA is truly unique in some aspects with social life, the “hill” (dorm setup), food, and location with free transportation passes for all students. It can be a bit overwhelming for introverts. For CS, our class sizes range from 40 to 320, with the intro series being at the high end and most upper division courses around 160. One potential negative for you is that you CANNOT double major in two engineering disciplines. If you want to do CS + EE, you would have to pursue the combined CE (computer engineering) major.
Probably should see what the vibe is at all these places – can’t imagine you can go wrong here. Did hear a few negative things about Rice from a friend who transferred out after one year, but everyone is different and you said you loved the vibe.
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All three (or four) of these schools have excellent reputations in both industry and academia for graduating well-trained and capable computer science students. All four have both national reach and regional strength. Any prestige rankings are honestly meaningless at this level - I would find the best fit for you on other metrics (cost, social fit, location, school size, etc.) so that you can do your best work, because at least the three where you’ve been admitted are very different places.
Good luck!
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“easily” is not the adverb I would use if the two majors you’re referring to are CS and EE.
It’s doable but not easy, given that both are demanding majors. Just keep that in mind.
JHU and UCLA are both better known for CS than Rice. Choose based on what fits you best.
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