The combination of CS & EE can often be found as Computer Engineering. My son finished his degree in this field in 2010, found a job immediately and has done well since. Lots of the schools others have listed have this degree. You probably can’t go wrong with any of them as long as they are financially affordable for the family and a good fit for the student’s temperament.
Thanks @xraymancs – Congrats to your son!! I have suggested mine son consider CE as I thought it combines the 2 (EE & CS) but my son is emphatic that he wants EE & CS – and at a GATech info session we recently attended he asked a presenter why she chose EE & CS over CE and they really wanted the strong, full programs in each, the depth etc. and explained why that mattered. I am no expert here but my son smiled and said - “See, that’s why!” There are not so many schools where this double major really works wells - we are trying to compile that list and think about our other important factors. Thanks again!
At schools where there is a major in EECS (e.g. Berkeley, MIT), the student can choose in-major electives to emphasize a particular subarea, or try to take course work for a generalized coverage of the subjects (though the broadness of the two subjects combined may make it hard to cover every subarea).
If you look through the forum, you will find that most of the experts here do not recommend a double degree, particularly if it takes an extra year. A BS/MS combination is generally a much better option. however, students need to make their own decisions and in my 30+ years as a faculty member and advisor at Illinois Tech, I have seen students choose many different combinations and do well.
You might take a look at Santa Clara University. Strong Engineering programs and a good reputation in the tech community in the Silicon Valley. Less intense than Cal or Stanford, but produces some great grads who also tend to be pretty well-rounded grads. Internship and employment opportunities are definitely very strong. If he wants to go into research, looking at the UCs might be better, but if his goal is to get BS/MS and work in industry, SCU’s a great option. (I work in tech in the Valley - definitely impressed with the interns & grads I see from SCU.)
@2manybooks – Thanks so much for your suggestion and perspective as someone in industry in Silicon Valley.
We had not heard much about Santa Clara - definitely will check into it!
@xraymancs – As of now he wants double major or at least a minor - of course it might change over time. But I am not concerned about whether it is 4 or 5 years to get a degree or as you suggest pursue a BS/MS. I don’t know whether he wants to do a co-op or study abroad program etc. that might take more time too but as long as he is learning and growing in the areas he is really passionate about, that’s all fine provided the college allows it. He will have many required courses in EE but this is also the optimal time to explore various areas and possibilities. So far he says CS - prefers the practical side, as in software engineering rather than theory (but he finds the Assembly language “interesting” too so who knows - I can’t really imagine how he thinks about things). High school has been pretty rigid in its requirements - not many electives really, so hopefully college will allow him to figure out what he really wants to learn & do, is good at (or not) and what fields he is interested in - he is a hardware & software guy so a number of pathways are possible but I sure hope he finds what he loves. His hobbies and some ECs have included hacking/reverse engineering, creating a “server farm” (that has been expensive but rather fascinating to witness), developing mobile apps and entering some contests, inventing various automated things, robotics, etc. and he likes some IT stuff too - not sure where it all leads! He enjoys interdisciplinary projects and seems to want to learn a bit more about (though likely will not be an expert in) design, communication/marketing, business matters and other related areas.
Thanks again to everyone for your suggestions - our research continues - can’t believe planning the remaining college visits is all but upon us!
Your son might like to read up on Auburn’s Wireless Engineering program - kind of Electrical Engineering and Comp Engineering and Comp Science, difficult but fascinating. You chose between hardware or software track as you get further in your studies. My son has a good grinds in this path and he loves it.
Not to mention Auburn has an AUsome campus and one of the nicest student bodies you’ll ever meet.
http://bulletin.auburn.edu/undergraduate/samuelginncollegeofengineering/
Grinds in his path = friend in this program
@threeofthree – Thanks for that recommendation - I will go explore it ASAP. Really thoughtful. And thanks for the translation - so glad to learn grinds=friends!!
my recommendations are, most of which you or others have mentioned, in this order:
Rice
Harvey Mudd
CMU (however, getting into CS at CMU is as difficult as Stanford; perhaps the most selective in the country; EE will be easier)
RPI
Olin
Lehigh
Rose Hulman (bear in mind it’s a tiny school, not be for everyone)
CWRU
Obviously Stanford, but you said “reasonable acceptance rates” 
@insanedreamer – Thanks so much for your list!! We have not really thought about Lehigh but someone else also suggested we look at it so I will add that to our list. Helpful to that you see Rice, CMU, RPI, Olin & CWRU as possibly good environments – he’d be happy majoring in EE and minoring in CS if can’t do both fully I think bc he is on the practical (not theory side) and has learned several languages and some about networks, machine learning etc. - happy to learn more but need for lots of classes likely less – the EE stuff is more what he truly wants to learn in a strong academic environment and with access to great facilities, labs, do some research etc. Thanks again!!
@CA1543 doing CS at CMU is quite intense from what I’ve heard–there would be a lot of pressure there, EE would be easier. My D almost went there last year (for ChemE) but choose RPI instead as they offered a large scholarship. She’s very happy with the environment at RPI - it’s very “geeky/neerdy” if that’s what your son likes. Good facilities, research, etc. CMU is more balanced in terms of boy/girl ratio as it’s not so entirely STEM focused due to its excellent theatre/arts departments and others. My D didn’t apply to Lehigh but in retrospect it looks like it would have been a good option. Rice has one of the best student environments in the country, and Harvey Mudd is probably the best academically from the list but more intense as others have mentioned.
Checking in again – any thoughts out there about Tufts, UMich, USC, RPI or Northeastern in terms of EE/CS programs, supportive cultures and happy students?
USC has all that you want.
They encourage double majoring , and have great EE/ CS programs[ all housed within the Vertibi School of Engineering]. USC encourages students to do research as much as possible or as they want. The U is spending billions on new housing for students and recruiting top profs from all over the country .
USC is on a roll, and you can feel the positive energy every where you go on campus. There are thousands of really smart students there, in part due to the generous merit scholarships they offer each year to hundreds of students.
Engineering is going to be a HARD major, regardless of the college you go to.That’s just a fact. But overall USC is a great place to go to college.
Northeastern is pretty strong in EE/CS, somewhat competitive for co-op but very collaborative and happy students in my experience. The workload is reasonable and there’s plenty of access to research/professors.
I’ve heard similar for RPI in terms of culture - The others I don’t know in terms of culture but would all be considered strong for the fields.
I was looking in CS and RPI/WPI/RIT all came on the radar - I applied to the latter two and Northeastern and currently attend NEU. Sounds like you have a very solid list and all of the schools listed in post #32 are great additions.
Really appreciate your advice @menloparkmom and @PengsPhils – USC & Northeastern sound like good possibilities. We toured USC & spent 5 hrs there - had in-depth visit and engineering dept session too - think it is very promising and so glad they encourage also trying other things.
Looking forward to visiting Northeastern next week - encouraged by the combo class & connected lab approach and hopefully dialed down competitiveness.
Anyone have thoughts about UMich, Tufts, GATech??
thanks!
The 3 you asked are really competitive to get in (Mich/Turfts/GATech).
Not sure you need to fly around the country to visit every school, but if in the area to visit Northeastern,
why not go to Tufts as well, not far. Boston U engineering is very good as well, and walking distance from NU.
You need to see which ones you get into IMO. Also urban vs suburban/rural ?
Boston U, NU, GA Tech are all in very urban areas, which you’ll love or hate.
Schools like RPI and WPI are in urban areas too, but smaller cities that are not so nice but
less overwhelming and less expensive. RIT is a nice compromise in this respect.
My S picked RPI over WPI, NU and Stevens, partly due to activities, and partly scholarships.
I liked all these schools as a parent, can’t go wrong with any of them.
Reporting back – my son really liked Case on his all day visit & it has his desired programs in EE / CS. He also just recently spent 2 days at Carnegie Mellon & really liked it. He knows though it is a huge amount of works & stress. He really liked GATech - just applied there. Will see WPI & RPI soon! Liked Tufts but CS & engineering are separated from main campus a bit. Likely will apply to RIT also.
@blevine – how is your son liking RPI if he is still there?
@CA1543 Yes he is a freshman. First semester but seems to like it alot. Very good teaching for undergrads.
Brother at an Ivy top 10 ENG program, and I think teaching is better at RPI.
@CA1543 My D is a sophomore at RPI, likes it there. The academics are tough, but the atmosphere is cooperative. Very nerdy student body.