Cal Poly Pomona or UCI (Computer Science)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cal Poly Pomona
1

<p>I want to major in Computer Science. Which school would you choose?</p>

<p>I’m looking for a school that is the best for Computer Science.</p>

<p>Priorities

  1. Job Prospect (How both schools are viewed by employers in Computer Science)</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Academics</p></li>
<li><p>Social Life and Location (I know hands down that Irvine is a clear winner in location. Campus is beautiful and located very close to the beach. I visited CPP and was disappointed by the location)</p></li>
<li><p>Graduate School (I haven’t decided yet.)</p></li>
</ol>

2

<p>I’d say academics are good at either school. Although I haven’t actually heard of Irvine being too great of a social environment but Cal Poly Pomona isn’t a buzzing social scene either.</p>

<p>Job prospects are probably good at both. Irvine simply because it’s a UC and Pomona because it’s a Cal Poly. </p>

<p>UC Irvine is probably better for you if you want to go to graduate school. I don’t know if computer science majors do research as undergraduates but if that’s what you want to do, go to Irvine. I’m not a computer science major, but everything I’ve experienced comes from a practical, real-world type deal in my courses. Much better for preparing you to work after graduation. Just depends on you. There’s a good balance of theory and application I feel at Cal Poly. Not sure what EXACTLY you’d be in for at UC Irvine.</p>

<p>There are things to do in Pomona if you ask around. I’m going to a concert tomorrow for one of my favorite bands surprisingly in Pomona of all places.</p>

3

<p>@CalDud I’m leaning toward UC Irvine just because it has a school dedicated just to Computer Science which I see as a +. Cal Poly Pomona is known for its engineering/architecture/environmental design program. Is Computer Science part of engineering? (Also, I believe Computer Science is part of the College of Science. IDK if that makes an impact, but I’m just going to state it)</p>

<p>Most importantly, my ultimate deciding factor is employer’s point of view of each school. Does theoretical approach vs. a practical approach make a difference to employers?</p>

4

<p>Bump!!!</p>

5

<p>The real question you are facing is: “Does the UC Irvine diploma vs Cal Poly Pomona diploma worth the extra money I’ll be paying?”. My answer (now biased because I’m a CPP student) is:</p>

<p>NO, and this because UCI (or any other mid-tier UC) is certainly not worth twice as much as Cal Poly Pomona in computer science.</p>

<p>I was facing a similar dilemma with UC Davis vs UC Irvine vs Cal Poly Pomona for civil engineering. Since I qualified for the UC application fee waiver, I applied to four UC campuses: Berkeley (rejected), UCLA (rejected), UC Irvine (accepted), and UC Davis (accepted). UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara do not offer civil engineering, so I didn’t apply there. First, we have to recognize that the UC system is pretty much three-tiered. We have:</p>

<p>*Berkeley and UCLA as two undisputed world-class universities. (a.k.a. the “god-tier” of the UC system)</p>

<p>*UCSD, UCD, UCSB, and UCI as four extremely good universities in the Top 50 of U.S. News–some people think UCSD is in its own tier behind Berkeley and UCLA. (I call this the “mid tier”)</p>

<p>*UCSC, UCR, and UCM as three very good universities that are the “Rodney Dangerfield of the UC” because “they get no respect”… make no mistake, they would still beat the living crap out of some flagship state universities, and that tells you the absolute FANTASTIC offering the state of California has to its populance in higher ed. (a.k.a. “the lower-tier”)</p>

<p>Having established the “rules of engagement” in the UC, we now have to look at the other “Rodney Dangerfield” of higher ed in California: the CSU system. This too is a multi-tiered system. My opinion is that the two Cal Poly Universities are the best alongside CSU Long Beach and San Diego State. </p>

<p>*Cal Poly San Luis Obispo is clearly at the top and, in general, it’s considered and unofficial “mid-tier” UC. Furthermore, for fields like engineering or architecture, some consider it to be as good as “god-tier” UCs.</p>

<p>*Cal Poly Pomona, in general, is often considered an unofficial “lower-tier” UC. Furthermore, for fields like engineering it’s considered to be as good as a “mid-tier” UC. Its architecture program could still be considered “god-tier” UC because it’s ridiculously hard to get in, and literally only one of four public architecture programs in the state along with Berkeley, UCLA, and Cal Poly SLO. Hospitality management is also very reputable, but an outlier since not many California public colleges have that major.</p>

<p>My claim that Cal Poly Pomona engineering is as good as a mid-tier UC is backed-up by admissions data:</p>

<p>[Cal</a> Poly Pomona College of Engineering - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“Cal Poly Pomona College of Engineering - Wikipedia”>Cal Poly Pomona College of Engineering - Wikipedia)</p>

<p>SAT scores at the Cal Poly Pomona engineering program (reading and math only) have gone up 133 points since 2006 and they are now 1,168. (Fall 2012)</p>

<p>[University</a> of California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“University of California - Wikipedia”>University of California - Wikipedia)
[University</a> of California, Irvine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“University of California, Irvine - Wikipedia”>University of California, Irvine - Wikipedia)</p>

<p>For UC Irvine SAT scores (reading and math only) have largely become stagnated (in 2006 they were 1,240) an are now 1,233. (Fall 2012)</p>

<p>GPA cannot be compared one-to-one because Cal Poly Pomona publishes unweighted GPA (less than 4.0) whereas UC GPA calculation is weighted (GPA can be higher than 4.0). However the GPA at CPP has also increased faster that at UC Irvine (I do realize they start at very different values but statistically the trends are self-evident).</p>

<p>I think it’s important to evaluate the trends in the time-frame after the economy imploded (Dec. 2007) because people started to become a lot more price-conscious and more selective on the fields of studies to choose from. Both these factors disproportionately benefited Cal Poly Pomona because it’s a lot cheaper than a UC ($6,624 vs $14,046)</p>

<p>[Cost</a> and Resources | Future Students | Cal Poly Pomona](<a href=“http://cpp4me.csupomona.edu/cost-resources/]Cost”>http://cpp4me.csupomona.edu/cost-resources/)</p>

<p>and because Cal Poly Pomona is such as STEM-oriented university.</p>

<p>Now, I have been mostly talking about engineering, but we have to realize that computer science at both CPP and UCI are ABET-accredited:</p>

<p>[Accredited</a> Programs details](<a href=“http://main.abet.org/aps/AccreditedProgramsDetails.aspx?OrganizationID=5756]Accredited”>http://main.abet.org/aps/AccreditedProgramsDetails.aspx?OrganizationID=5756)
[Accredited</a> Programs details](<a href=“http://main.abet.org/aps/AccreditedProgramsDetails.aspx?OrganizationID=5764]Accredited”>http://main.abet.org/aps/AccreditedProgramsDetails.aspx?OrganizationID=5764)</p>

<p>As far as employers go, my understanding is that the “learn by doing” philosophy that we share with CPSLO makes CPP graduates extremely coveted because it prepares them well for work. UCs are far more theoretical, so if your goal is research or grad school, UCI has an advantage.</p>

<p>In conclusion, I restate my claim: UCI is not worth twice as much as Cal Poly Pomona in either computer science or engineering. I’m sure you are student who works hard and mere fact that you are asking this question is a testimony that CPP is attracting more qualified students and increasing it “academic pedigree”. Even my professors at CPP have told me so and have noticed that the academic quality of newer students has increased tremendously in the last years. My advice to you is one and one only: approach this conundrum as a business decision. Good luck.</p>

<p>TL;DR If I were you I’d go to Cal Poly Pomona over UC Irvine</p>

6

<p>well this guy wins, well done…</p>

7

<p>UCI’s computer science degrees are not abet accredited. UCI has its own dedicated school of computer science that is separate from the school of engineering. Observe in the provided link to the abet website, all of UCI’s ENGINEERING degrees are accredited. The exception is the computer science and engineering major, which is jointly managed by both schools. So if accreditation is important to you, cpp might be a good choice. Keep in mind however (at least in my experience) employers don’t even know what abet is. </p>

<p>UCI’s school of computer science is ranked very well and provides a good number of diverse courses (a dedicated school has its perks). You can look over uci’s websoc if you are curious. And as CEinCali mentioned, the research opportunities for students are great at UCI- especially in computer science (undergrad and grad). If you choose UCI, be prepared to take courses that are heavy in theory.</p>

8

<p>In the US, ABET might not be “that” important, but thanks to the Washington Accord if your degree is ABET-accredited you can be a practicing overseas thanks to the </p>

<p>[International</a> Engineering Agreements](<a href=“Settle4Cash - Your Guide to Structured Settlements and Annuities”>Settle4Cash - Your Guide to Structured Settlements and Annuities)</p>

<p>or the </p>

<p>[Seoul</a> Accord](<a href=“http://www.abeek.or.kr/accord/contents.jsp?menu_l=150]Seoul”>http://www.abeek.or.kr/accord/contents.jsp?menu_l=150)</p>

9

<p>UCI (and all the other UC’s) is a research orientated school–so unless you want to pursue in the career of research, studies, and findings; or prepare for a Ph.D; then Cal Poly is your best bet. </p>

<p>And UC’s are less affected by the budget cuts than CSU’s, so keep that in mind especially in this economy and if you plan on graduating on time (due to cut classes, over-filled classes, and etc).</p>