Best university to study for one semester

College Search & Selection
1

Hi all!

I am a Computer Science student in Europe and I am planning to go on exchange to the US next study year.
There are some universities that are partner universities of my university and I was wondering what you think would be the best choice(s) academically and to get a great exchange experience.

My choices are:

  • Northeastern University
  • University of Georgia
  • University of Utah
  • University at Buffalo
  • Bowling Green State University
  • University of New Mexico

It looks like Northeastern University is ranked highest of these universities. However, I am not sure how much the co-op program influences the rank. I cannot do a co-op of course.

Thanks!

2

For CS class quality, Northeastern is def the best here, followed by Utah. But for a semester abroad, that’s really only one factor here.

UGA vs Northeastern for example are two entirely different experiences. One is a city school with social life very much focusing on that. The other is very much the classic American college experience with a social life revolving around campus and with large parts being sports and greek life, though of course there is plenty of variety due to the size of the school. Neither is inherently better, it just depends on the experience you want.

Beyond CS, what else do you value our of your exchange experience?

I think that narrowing to the 3 I mentioned (Northeastern, UGA, Utah) is probably a good starting place, but after that they are 3 very different choices.

3

Yes, for one semester you can take somewhat similar classes. I’d go more by place.

Northeastern is in Boston a major city with lots to do and really the king of US college cities. So if you want that type of urban experience, then that’s a great choice. In terms of academics, it has a more hands-on approach with students doing more internships, etc. during their college experience than at a typical US university.

Georgia (UGA) would offer a very typical big state university experience. If you were there in the fall semester, home football games would be a huge part of the social experience–parties, tailgating, with tens of thousands of people in town for every game. Weather there is dramatically warmer than Boston, especially for the spring semester when Boston is very cold and often snowy January-March and cold and maybe snowy after that.

Utah and UNM are also large state flagships (primary public university within a state). You’d have more access to mountains and skiing at Utah, if that appeals. UNM is in ABQ, personally not my favorite city, but a fair amount to do in the area (American Southwest), including skiing at Ski Santa Fe (if weather cooperates). School would offer a pretty diverse student body.

Buffalo is a top school in the NY state university system, so essentially another excellent large public research university (like UGA, Utah, and UNM). I’d think most students would prefer Boston to Buffalo. Like Boston, Buffalo is very cold and also gets a lot of snow, especially the end of the fall semester (potentially) and most of the spring semester.

Bowling Green is a very good school. If it looks good to you, then that’s great. I’d think, though, that it would have a very high % of students from KY, which is a big part of its mission. Nothing wrong with that–but you would meet students from more places at a Northeastern, which draws students from all over the US, and, I’d strongly suspect, though you should check me, that it NE would also have lots more international students, and certainly Boston as a whole would. The state flagships and Buffalo tend to draw more OOS students than other public universities within a state. Again check me, I"m not expert on BGSU’s profile, or for Utah and UNM, and am really talking about tendencies, not specifics. BGSU is in a nice area and weather would be better than Buffalo and Boston.

You’ll find great students at all these schools and similar classes. Which sounds like the best fit for you?

Good luck!

4

Northeastern University is in Boston which is a great city with a lot of university students.

5

Edit

6

These are regional schools in the sense that any impact with respect to job interviews would be limited geographically. Also, one semester–even if at a very prestigious university–is unlikely to impress employers.

7

I would choose based on location for a single semester. If you like cities then I’d agree Boston is the best choice. If you prefer the outdoors then you can’t beat Utah, there are plenty of organized activities to participate in (camping, hiking, climbing, skiing, etc.) and the national parks (Arches, Zion, Grand Canyon, etc) are doable as a weekend (or fall/spring break) trip with friends. Salt Lake City and Boston are also decent sized cities that are pleasant to spend time in and convenient to fly into. Athens (UGA) not so much.

8

Thank you all very much for your reply!

@Publisher, I edited my previous post because I had not refreshed the page and there were more responses than I thought. You already responded, sorry! For others: I asked whether Northeastern was better on my resume than either of the other universities.

How do you think the experience at the University of Utah is? Is that comparable to the experience at UGA? I read on the Internet that the Salt Lake City region is a bit conservative. Here at my university I am not really involved in Greek life.

You’re all saying I should primarily choose based on location and type of experience, and I agree that these are the most important criteria for an exchange, but I would also take into consideration which universities are most recognized throughout the US, since I might want to work in the US in the future. Or do you all think it wouldn’t matter?

Thank you all for taking time to respond! I am leaning towards Northeastern and the University of Utah now.

9

Before you lock in, SUNY-Buffalo could be an excellent choice for CS (though I’m not disagreeing that others, particularly Northeastern, could be great as well).

10

My daughter is a student at the University of Utah. Salt Lake City itself is not as conservative as the more rural parts of Utah and she has not had any concerns despite coming from a very liberal part of California. It is very different from UGA since The U is in a major city whereas UGA is in a small college town well outside Atlanta. UGA is more Greek too.

In terms of reputation, Northeastern is best known on a national basis, UGA is better known than Utah in the east, in the west Utah is known but a bit overshadowed by the Californian schools.

11

Depends on what you want out of it. I agree one semester is unlikely to sway a future employer in the states.IMHO If you want the university experience I would go U of Georgia. If you want city life Northeastern. U of Utah if you love snow, skiing and a more religious atmosphere. UNM is having money struggles and have begun cutting sports etc so I would rule them out with all your choices. Buffalo and Bowling Green less well known if that is what you want. You will have fun and experiences no matter which you choose

12

“U of Utah if you love…a more religious atmosphere”.

That’s really not true at all. BYU is the religious school in Utah. A liberal atheist (like my daughter) can have a great time at the U.

UGA is a classic American (small) college town experience. Utah has a lot of school spirit but doesn’t dominate the town in the same way. In European terms, UGA is like say St Andrews, whereas Utah is like Edinburgh. Or perhaps Cambridge vs London or Heidelberg vs Berlin (not quality wise but in terms of how much of a university town it is).

13

Agree with others on choosing among UGA, Utah and Northeastern. Northeastern would prolly get my first vote if you’re looking for reputation and fun city life – lots of students from the whole country and Boston is a ‘young’ city with a lot of students from many colleges. But it’s more like going to university in Berlin or Madrid – very urban.

UGA and Utah would be more of an American college experience of the kind you see in movies with focus on sports and leafy quads. Choose Utah if you love the outdoors if you are attracted to the American West – you’d have access to gorgeous places to visit. UGA if you like the East coast and have easier access to Florida, beaches and even not so far from DC. UGA is going to have a little better prestige than Utah.

Good luck and let us know what you decide!!

14

Buffalo is an economically depressed rust belt city. Cold, snowy & damp. Niagara Falls & easy access to Canada.

University of New Mexico is located in Albuquerque–a city that leads the nation in burglaries & has above average level of violent crime. Boring campus currently experiencing declining enrollment & budget cutting. Arid climate. The most high-schoolish & provincial among all of your listed schools. The state of New Mexico public high school system ranks last or next to last in the nation among the 50 US states.

Bowling Green is an Ohio public school with very easy admission standards and little to no national notoriety. Ohio is not a particularly interesting state.

The University of Georgia is located about 90 minutes drive outside of Atlanta. A vibrant campus with lots of drinking & attractive students. Admissions standards are high due in large part to the popularity of the Hope Scholarship and the sophisticated population of the Atlanta area. American Football is like a religion at UGA. Lots of job opportunities with major national & international corporations in the Atlanta area. Florida & South Carolina beaches are about 6 hours drive.

University of Utah offers spectacular mountain scenery & outdoor recreation. Not as wild as Georgia, but not religious like BYU. Very clean, prosperous location. If you enjoy winter sports, then Utah should be your choice. Low to moderate admission standards.

Northeastern University is in Boston = a major American city known for its large college & university student population. Northeastern has the highest admission standards among your listed universities.
Northeastern has the most diverse student population. If attending during the Fall semester (Autumn), then Northeastern’s New England location is attractive.

In my opinion, no employer will care about your attending any of these schools for just one semester.

15

Just to note on the winter sports aspect at Utah. In the fall semester, skiing doesn’t start until after Thanksgiving. You might get 3-4 days skiing in before the winter break. Whereas spring semester you could ski every weekend until the end of term (late April).

Many people go camping/backpacking/climbing at weekends up until fall break (second week of October). The Colorado plateau (where the national parks are located, about 4 hours south) is good at fall break but most parts are a bit cold for camping at spring break (mid March). You can go in April or once school gets out in May.

16

It won’t matter. Most employers understand that doing an exchange for a semester is more dependent upon the relationship that your university has with other schools and less dependent on your personal performance. There’s nowhere they’d necessarily even really see it, unless you slap it on your resume, and even in that case noting that you have one semester at Northeastern is likely to just be a blip. I’ve seen it on resumes that we get submitted and I always gloss over it. (A summer or semester program that you had to apply to and that was in a specialized area is kind of different, but a simple semester exchange? Eh.)

17

Where are you from? If you were my kid coming say, from UK, it would be Boston. SLC is like a country town with lot of suburban sprawl. It is a fun town and not conservative in SLC proper. It is very white though, and safe.
If you are not 21 remember that the US drinking age is 21. That is going to be much more obvious in Utah than more sophisticated populous cities.
You probably won’t be able to drive anywhere , so even if you are an outdoor enthusiast and picked Utah becuase of that, without a car you are SOL.

18

Thank you all for your response and I hope you had a great Christmas.

My first choice will be Northeastern University. My second choice will be the University of Utah.

@Sybylla, I am from the Netherlands. I will be 20 during most of the exchange. Not being able to drink is not a big deal for me. However, if I would be in Utah, it would be great to drive. I have driven before in the US. I could rent a car, albeit very expensive. Do you mean I would not be able to drive because I would become a resident and this would require me to get a local driving license?

19

Utah doesn’t have services like Zipcar that some students elsewhere use for short term rentals. And many of the larger rental car companies won’t rent to people under 21. So that would limit your options to get a car to drive yourself (not having a local driving license isn’t really the issue). Buying and insuring a car is possible but very expensive for just one semester.

On the other hand, many students at the U do have a car and it will be easy to find friends to take a weekend trip with (and they may let you share the driving because US car insurance policies allow anyone to drive with the owner’s permission). In addition there are many organized outings as well as buses to the ski resorts in winter.

20

I like UNM and Albuquerque a lot more than other posters. New Mexico is a hiker’s paradise year-round. The city is culturally interesting and has a cool restaurant and gallery scene. The university is also very affordable and diverse. It has a pretty campus in a convenient location and is not dominated by sports and drinking. The down side, for me, is that it’d be nice to have a car to take advantage of all the natural beauty.