S22 is a sophomore at UMass and has a couple of friends who are majoring in CS. They seem to like it - although it is quite a bit of work. The Isenberg school at UMass is well regarded for business - I think it is pretty straightforward to get a minor there although you’d have to look into it. S22 also has several friends at Wisconsin doing CS (didn’t get into UMass in-state) and they seem to like the program as well. I think a CS grad from either school will do well. I don’t know as much about NEU - S22 has some friends there as well , but not in CS. I don’t think the program is any better but the co-op may be of interest. In my view, NEU is a less traditional college experience with people coming and going with co-ops but it is in Boston and I know the kids who like it really like it. To me it is more of a fit school.
FWIW, you may want to ask about placement rates of internships at these schools. I’m seeing a number of posts on the class of '22 thread that students are struggling to find summer internships, including in CS.
I’ve heard recently of three companies that are changing their recruiting model to focus on co-op students. (Strictly anecdotally from a very very small sample size.) But, that would give Northeastern a leg up in this mix of schools.
I don’t know about other majors, but on the parent FB group for my son’s school (WPI) lots of parents are complaining that their CS child can’t find an internship or post-graduation job. It seems to be a shift in the past 2 years.
So my point is, do ask about internship placement, but if at all possible try to get recent information (last summer and this upcoming summer) because it seems the market is shifting.
I’ve heard the same. At this moment in time, a CS degree (even from highly regarded programs) doesn’t insure quick job placement. A few of my friends in the industry seem to think that is because AI is taking over more of the work that recent grads used to do. Since it isn’t my area of expertise, I don’t know how true that is. I also have a friend (double Ivy grad) who is struggling to find a new job despite outstanding experience (unfortunately, I think it might be age related).
That might be region/industry specific. Many companies (mine included) have considered the co-op model and decided not to adopt it. It requires a longer and deeper commitment from senior staff to oversee students, and it’s not something we can take on during these lean times.
That sounds like a plus for coop students compared to internships.
It does, for students. I was explaining why companies like mine chose not to participate at this time given the higher work load for staff (all teams are pretty lean, if not under-staffed after all the cuts).
Really…rankings 22 or 40…not really a big deal.
And 22 vs 23 in AI? That could change next year with the growth in this field.
IMHO, both UMass and Wisconsin are about the same ranking wise. I hope your son gets a sense of what he likes best about one of these colleges.
More update from young students I talked with. This year the new graduates faced a lot of challenges to find jobs. The teams at big tech which hired them before now have been laid off.
Big companies hired too much, too easily in post Covid and now had to cut aggressively. If hiring, they need only experienced engineers. So the kids have to find to work at smaller companies serving other industries, where they hardly can learn as they want.
I used to work at a place that for YEARS had a bunch of NE coops at all time (6-10). The org had systems set up such that they were basically staff members and had full orientations, training etc. We even had internal programming for them (talk to various leaders, etc). It was a great experience for all involved and definitely not really like an internship (which really is a pain for employer as you get little real value out the students - we had some of them too). Partners/clients didn’t even realize they were not real staff, I don’t believe. Many stayed on and took jobs. Some did multiple coops. We basically treated them as entry level staff members.
Not sure status of program now, I left 3-4 years ago.
Congrats to your S. Our youngest S was accepted to UW-Madision and U Mass-Amherst for CS a few years ago. We visited both; each had its pros and cons. Both are OOS and S decided on UIUC, our flagship. He didn’t apply to NEU.
UW-Madison is our alma mater, for H and me, and we loved our college experience, love the town, really just everything about it. Its CS program has a good reputation, but given the growth in the major, we heard a lot about the challenges of getting into CS classes at times.
We were nicely surprised about U Mass-Amherst. It is a much smaller campus than UW and more remote feeling to us coming from the Midwest. We were impressed with the friendliness of the students and campus dining! We were fortunate to sit near a group of upperclassmen of CS majors during lunch and they welcomed our questions. We visited in March and they all had internships and jobs in CS lined up for that summer.
I don’t think you can’t go wrong with either. When you and your S visit campus, you’ll get a good feel if it’s a good fit or not. Attending UIUC was my S’s choice at the end, after visiting other schools for CS after acceptances including Northwestern, Purdue, and UM-College Park. Each had it’s pros and cons, but he felt he could see himself succeed at UIUC academically and socially. He wanted a big school, a good CS program, and opportunities to participate in CS clubs. He’s active in a software engineering club and a quant club; both are a bit competitive to join. When you visit schools, ask about activities outside of classes like clubs in his major and other social clubs. Opportunities to participate in activities will enhance your S’s experience.
Hi guys,
Thank you all for the latest advice.
My son has been accepted to RPI for CS too. We attended their welcome event yesterday. It is a nice school with nice staff. Smaller student count (7k) vs UW (51k) and UMass (33k), also a private college. They awarded my son $40 k in FA too, which is very kind. They said their school has good ROI, like average starting salary is $85 k (CS is $128K in 2023).
Other colleges do not offer FA, NE definitely no. Univ of Rochester a few K. The public state university still wait to be clear on new FAFSA.
So it’s more for us to learn and think. I appreciate any new insight about RPI and U Rochester.
Hi guys,
A last minute surprise: my son today for regular decision has been accepted to Purdue CS too. So, more selection for him to decide. We don’t know much about Purdue other than the USNews ranking and less expensive tuition for OOS.He applied to Purdue based on school counselor advise.
Do you know Purdue? How is it compared with Umass, UW Madison, Northeastern and RPI?
I would say UMass and UWi are better for CS specifically (and I personally like Madison or Amherst better than West Lafayette but some may like IN weather better than WI weather, etc., ymmv). However, if Purdue is cheaper than either one, it’s a solid choice and there wouldn’t be any problem with the education or the degree. Great alumni network 
Tagging @momofboiler1.
Purdue is strong in CS, has an amazing career center, strongly promotes internships and coops, and has many industry partnerships. I’m happy to answer any Purdue questions you may have. My D graduated last year from Purdue engineering.
Thank you a lot. Purdue does not have any day for admitted student visit in April anymore. So we do not know how to come and talk with the CS department to learn more.
Could you tell about the stress and drop rate at Purdue?
Keep watching the Purdue website as in years past, they’ve opened up more accepted student visit dates.
I believe the College of Science also does Virtual Visits and Virtual one on ones: College of Science Virtual Experiences - Undergraduate Admissions - Purdue University
The retention rate at Purdue is over 91%. My D’s experience is that it was academically rigorous but that there were tons of supports for students - help rooms, office hours, tutoring, etc… It also is a very collaborative environment between students.
Thank you. UIUC is definitely in the upper class. It’s a feeder school for Silicon Valley.
This link was posted in another thread.
Top Feeders to Tech (■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■)
Northeastern rank 14th in total employment in tech and Silicon Valley, 13th when adjusted for enrolment. Way ahead of Wisconsin. UMass Amherst is unranked.