I applied for Computer Science in these unis. VaTech gave me my second choice major (CMDA, which I do NOT want to study), and others have not made a decision yet. Let’s say that I get into Computer Science in the remaining three universities - which one should I attend? I will for sure take a transfer to a better university after my freshman year, but for now I have to decide between these four. I am having a tough time to decide because of the following reasons:
Virginia Tech is the best university in this list, but If I go there and do not get accepted for a transfer to another uni after freshman year, I will be screwed as I will have to study CMDA, which I do not want to study in any case. Also, Blacksburg is a small place and it looks like there is not much to do in the city.
Both U of Utah and U of Arizona are in very beautiful cities, but the unis are not as great as Virginia Tech (judging by rankings… I may be wrong).
SJSU: San Jose is no doubt the best city in the list., but as it is a state university and there is not much about it on the internet, I do not know whether it is a good university, and can even be compared to others on the list.
I would not care if there is a slight difference between the CS ranking of these universities as CS classes begin in the 2nd year in most unis. As I said, I will be attending either of these universities just for my freshman year, and then take a transfer to another uni.
What I want to know is which one is the best option for me, and why.
All the schools you’re considering are perfectly fine, and there would be no need to transfer.
I have a CS degree and live in the San Francisco/Silicon Valley area. Nobody here is going to be any more impressed with Virginia Tech than the other schools you mentioned.
The only reason Virginia Tech might be better is if you want to work on the east coast after school.
Taking the ranking goggles off for a second and look at the other things you want in a program. Dig deeper and you’ll find some interesting things. For instance, Apple has more SJSU grads than they have from any other university.
Lastly, planning on transferring before you’ve set foot on campus is silly. It’s far more about what you make of your time than the name of the school.
I am going to study in the US as it's education system is known to provide an incomparable experience. I want the experience to be as great as it can, and studying at a uni where undoubtedly better quality of education is provided would make my experience more worth it. This is why I plan to take a transfer after my freshman year.
My dad really wants me to attend SJSU because it's in the silicon valley, and the city is amazing. I am quite hesitant though because it, being a regional university, does not have much about it's reputation on the internet. I just want to make sure that the education provided over there is top notch.
Read this and absorb this…there is not a positive correlation between rank and the quality of your undergraduate education. You could potentially transfer to a higher ranked school and have a worse experience. It’s about what you do, not the name.
Do you know what the methodology is for USNWR ranking? If not look it up and then decide if it’s worth putting all your eggs in the ranking basket.
@dewanggoyal16, Sounds like you’re from India, where prestige of your school is all important. I don’t know what the reputation of the four schools is in India, but in the US, while the schools mentioned are all well-respected, none of them is especially prestigious. They’re all going to be ranked on the same tier for CS. The quality of education at Virginia Tech will not necessarily be better than at the other universities. And the reality of the situation is, if you can’t get into a school as a freshman, you shouldn’t count on being able to transfer in as a sophomore.
Personally, if I had the choice from these four schools, I’d go to Utah. It’s one of the best schools around for anything related to computer graphics, which is the field I’ve always been most interested in. And Salt Lake City is a nice town.