Hi! I’m looking for LAC recommendations for my junior, who may be interested in CS. He does better in math/science in general and is not 100 percent on any major, but does particularly like his CS class. Stats: 4.6W/3.85UW, 36 ACT.
I’ve explored big flagships and more techy schools and am hoping to hone in on a few LACs that have strong CS depts.
My son is on the introverted/anxious side and we’re trying to help him figure out which kind of program will feel most comfortable and allow him to succeed.
For a group of LACs representing geographical and social range, look into the excellent CS programs at Carleton, Grinnell, Pomona, Williams, Amherst and Hamilton.
Carleton, in particular, might represent a good match for you your son’s personality, while Grinnell, Amherst and Hamilton offer notably flexible curricula especially suitable for academic exploration.
@merc81 Thanks for these suggestions! I don’t have the first clue about evaluating CS depts. What criteria should I use? Are there certain courses or number of faculty?
Hamilton seems to have a small CS dept… small but mighty? Relative to size of school? Or just too small?
Do CS kids at LACs find jobs as easily as those kids who go to large universities? Do companies recruit from LACs?
Are there any advantages/disadvantages of going the LAC route?
For LACs and comp sci, you’re going to have to make a couple of concessions. The main one is that not all the most advanced courses are taught every single year and when they are offered, non-majors may have to take a backseat to majors and graduating seniors. Also, keep in mind that comp sci faculty are in extremely high demand everywhere and represent something of an exception to the current perception that undergraduate teaching is at the mercy of a buyer’s market. Your best bet is to go to the individual websites of a sampling of highly endowed LACs and take a close look at what is regularly offered:
Will do! Thanks for the direct links… really appreciate those and the advice.
When looking at course offerings, is there a gold standard of upper level classes? Are there specific upper level classes to look for or am I mainly looking to see if classes are offered every semester? Are there specific classes to look for, ie AI?
Hamilton describes its program as lab based. Reputationally, it’s sometimes seen as the most challenging department in the school. For perspective on its resources, this article should offer you insight:
This article, though not specifically related to overall strength in CS, discusses employment outcomes from several LAC CS programs (in the superb company of schools such as CMU, Geogia Tech and a tech oriented LAC, Harvey Mudd):
@merc81 Thank you for these resources! I realize they are over 5 years old, but do reflect positively onn Hamilton. I think I also heard that head of the dept came from Amherst and has a background in AI?
It’s interesting the Unigo uses number of computers on campus as a criteria. I don’t know if this is still a factor today!
The college’s CS curriculum (the type of CS and math courses that are required).
The breadth and depth of course offerings. The breadth gives an indication of what subfields of CS the college has faculty for and the depth gives an indication of the college’s strength in any particular subfield.
The prerequisites/corequisites of the CS courses for the sophistication of these courses. If prior-year course syllabus is available, it’d be even better.
@1NJParent Thank you! I would like to create a little rubric for evaluating programs, but even reading the course catalog is like reading a foreign language! A few questions:
More CS offerings/higher math content = better?
Greater breadth/depth= better? Do LACs even have breadth/depth? Will look into it…
Are more pre-reqs a good thing? Do they serve as a barrier for non-CS majors?
One other question… in some LACs (who do not have open curriculum) there are meaty general Ed reqs… up to 2/3 of total classes taken. Would this be a big issue for a CS major who is trying to gain depth in the field?
As @circuitrider has alluded to, CS faculty is in high demand. Consequently, LACs (and others) can’t find enough qualified faculty for all the specialties. They can only offer courses, especially courses with some depth, in a subfield if they have qualified faculty in that area. More intro courses aren’t necessarily better. I’d focus on areas where the college can offer some depth. Having prerequisites in other CS (and math) courses is an indication of some depth.
I don’t think general education requirements of an LAC should be a factor. A CS student would have to take other non-CS courses anyway because no LAC offers enough CS courses to fulfill its degree requirement.
Most of the colleges mentioned above are incredibly hard to get in …
Especially with lesser focus on test scores these days … is “introverted/anxious” equivalent to “limited ECs and lack of demonstrated leadership qualities” which is what they all seem to be looking for … “holistic admission” ya know …
I think formulating a list with enough matches and safeties is key …
We are doing the same …
Rose Hulman comes to mind - awesome small tech school, high acceptance rate (they seem to specialize in “introverted/anxious” types)
Ah, ok, I thought the overcrowding of CS classes was more of an issue for large universities, but sounds like going LAC isn’t an escape.
Good tip about the pre-reqs… I will use this as an indicator of depth.
Is number of faculty important?
General Ed reqs are on our radar, mainly because my son is skewed toward math and science. He also likes history and music, but he’s not your typical LAC kid who loves to explore everything under the sun. Writing is a relative weakness, but something that can be an area of growth, especially in a liberal arts setting where there is a well-staffed writing center.
@dimkin
Yes I hear your thoughts on “holistic” admissions. (The long lists of ECs here on CC are mind blowing, but taken with a grain of salt, given the community.) My son does not have a wildly impressive list of ECs, but does have depth in a few of them (music, scouts). He has not started a nonprofit, has not done research, has not won awards for ability, and is not the captain of anything. However, he will be able to fill the 10 ECs.
Agree the colleges listed above are reaches and more matches would be helpful. There are a couple schools that have higher admission rates ED, so this is why I’m trying to really figure out if he should go LAC, tech (like WPI or Rose), or large university (like Purdue).
We are in the same boat, our S while not introverted, is more of a typical adhd boy with interests around computer games, anime, youtube, basketball … so similarly won’t be
the CC “EC Star” … we shall see how it all works out …
Trick with Flagships is to know OOS acceptance rates (much lower for UT, GT, UNC et al) as wellas acceptance rates into CS (WAY lower than the headline numbers).
@dimkin Well, if our kids end up at Rose or WPI together, they might be friends. Lots of gaming and YouTube watching in our house!
Yes the large flagship CS numbers are troublesome! Our state school is UIUC… CS program acceptance rate is super low. Pretty sure that he would apply for engineering if going large flagship. Rose, WPI, Case offer the beauty of single door entry.
Algorithms and complexity
Theory of computation, languages, automata
Operating systems
Compilers
Databases
Networking
Software engineering
Security and cryptography
Artificial intelligence and machine learning
Graphics
Computer architecture and hardware design
Thank you.