I’m interested in studying computer science abroad.
If I’m admitted, my choices will be between Imperial College London, University of Toronto and NUS (Singapore).
Which one would be the better school for computer science, you think?
What would give me more job offers later?
Later in life, I might want to start my own business, and I’m not sure where in the world I want to live.
Do you know any other universities I should consider (even if it’s really hard to get in)?
U. Waterloo
I don’t think it’s possible to know which of your 3 choices will give you more job offers as it depends very much on where you decide to live.
Other great CS universities, besides Oxford & Cambridge of course:
ETH-Zurich
EFPL
Edinburgh
UBC
University of Toronto and Imperial are excellent for CS. Close to the best in the world. I’d say they are stronger than NUS. University of Toronto appears to be a particularly theoretical program.
@insanedreamer @frontpage The only thing that leaves me in favor of Imperial is that University of Toronto seems to have an acceptance rate of about 50%? Does this apply to CS also, you think?
In that case, wouldn’t it be a lot more “prestigious” to go to Imperial?
University of Toronto (and other Canadian schools) has more relaxed admissions and it’s harder to stay in the program. While Imperial likely has higher admissions requirements (I’m not entirely sure as I’m not familiar with the UK system).
@oskar0 future employers are not going to judge whether a school is “prestigious” by its acceptance rate, which they won’t even know anyway
University of Toronto does not admit directly to the major. They admit to the program, but then there is a first year GPA hurdle to overcome in order to admit to the computer science specialist or major. The GPA hurdle is set that only about 50% will pass it. For students who are admitted outside the program, but try to get into the computer science specialist or major, the GPA hurdle is higher such that only the top 10% of the class will get in.
U of T’s computer science does not have holistic admissions. It’s purely on grades. Canadian high school students and guidance counsellors know what the cutoff is and students with lower grades simply don’t apply to programs where they know they won’t get in. Programs with holistic admissions can have acceptance rates lower than Stanford. Last year, too many students were hitting above the U of T computer science cutoff so they stopped admitting students to the program. U of T’s comp sci is plenty selective.
@bouders So that means I can’t apply directly to CS? I’ll have to go there one year and hope I’ll do well enough?
Thank you!
@oskar0 You’re welcome!
For Canadian CS, I would apply to U Waterloo as @insanedreamer suggested. Their computer science program is arguably better than U of T’s, especially when it comes to getting jobs. They are a SV feeder. http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-silicon-valley-recruiters-are-flocking-to-ontario-1462385408 Admissions to Waterloo CS is highly selective though and has holistic admissions. Taking their Euclid exam (held in March/April) would give you a leg up. Your current school would have to sign up for the Euclid. One disadvantage to Waterloo is that they announce the majority of their admissions in May, after schools in the US require decisions.
@bouders @insanedreamer I know you’re not supposed to base your decision on rankings only, but why do so many people say UWaterloo is better than UofT when CS at UofT ranks better?
http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2016/computer-science-information-systems
Also, do you know anything about CS at NUS? It seems to have a really good employer reputation!
Thank you so much 
“better” is relative. But Waterloo does have a good reputation among IT employers. But going to one over the other isn’t necessarily going to increase your chances of landing a job - what you do in uni will matter and especially your provable skills – which in IT are much more important than the degree. (I have friends who are lead programmers at Google and Red Hat who never even finished high school much less went to college.) In other words, whether you choose UCL, UoT, Waterloo or NUS doesn’t matter that much since they’re all good.
@insanedreamer That’s great advice, thank you!
If I got into UCB though, should I choose it although I’ll end up with huge debts after my bachelor degree?
The “better” part of Waterloo is its co-op program. Students graduate with 2 years experience after 6 co-op terms. They can prove to employers that they have skills.
U of T is higher in the rankings because it is more research-based which is a strength across the university. Waterloo’s strength lies in its engineering and math (including computer science) programs. The rest of the university is relatively weak.
U of T has a PEY program which can connect students with a one year internship after their second or third year. PEY is not as developed as Waterloo’s co-op program. PEY was first established for engineering students and still has most of its jobs for them. Waterloo’s co-op is more of an integral part of the university’s mission and serves a much larger proportion of its students.
If you want theory and grad school, I’d recommend U of T over Waterloo. If you want a job, I’d recommend Waterloo over U of T.
No, not over any of the other options listed here unless working in SV is your absolute “must do” dream in which case being in the Bay for college could be worth it depending on how much that debt is. SV companies hire plenty of people from other universities.
@bouders Thank you! I will look into this, and apply to UWaterloo also! 
@insanedreamer SV is not a “must do” thing for me. I might want to start my own business, and then I guess I’ll have a better advantage if I don’t have huge debts anyway. Thank you!