I was accepted into CMU for Statistics and Machine Learning and UCSD for Computer Science. I know that intern/job prospects for CS majors are pretty good. But, what is the case for Statistics and Machine Learning majors at CMU? What are the pros and cons for these colleges? I’m really conflicted and I don’t know where to submit my SIR. Thanks.
Statistics and ML are hot right now and growing rapidly. Think “big data” and “artificial intelligence”…that major is right in the heart of those. You’ll have great intern/job prospects at either school, so the bigger question is probably more about what do you want to study and where do you feel the best fit?
Considerations:
- cost…is there a significant cost difference between the two?
- size…UCSD is nearly 3x the size of CMU. Does that matter to you?
- weather…umm, San Diego vs. Pittsburgh…do you want four seasons or beach?
- vibe…have you visited both? Where do you feel a better fit?
You have two great options. Think about the questions above and trust your intuition. Good luck!
Statistics and Machine learning are a bit too focused. If you know for sure that you’re into that, I would recommend going to CMU. Computer Science is more broad, so you can have your pick between things like AI, predictive analytics, etc for graduate school.
In my opinion, the graduate prospects are about the same from both schools. CMU is notoriously hard. UCSD is probably a little less hard to graduate. The difference comes down to environment. I would honestly love to be in San Diego… There’s chipotle, Phils bbq, Souplantation, and all these other amazing restaurants. If you picked the right dorm, you even get an ocean view too! Meanwhile in Pittsburgh, you’ll have the experience of being in… well Pittsburgh.
As for the students, UCSD students are very laid back and mostly Asian. CMU students are probably a little more competitive and more diverse, judging from my own experiences.
I would honestly pick UCSD for the college experience, but if you’re into prestige and ML, go to CMU.