CSE Direct Amission

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Washington
21

<p>@RypuAK: speedsolver had an excellent response, I’ll just add on a couple of things.</p>

<p>1) Research - Look at the research being done ([Research](<a href=“http://www.cs.washington.edu/research/]Research[/url]”>Research & Innovation | Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering)</a>), find a prof whose work you are interested in, and ask if you can do research under. This kind of approach actually works.</p>

<p>2) Why did I join CSE? I’ve always been interested in computers, programming fascinates me, and Bioe rejected me. I’m actually kind of glad I was rejected from Bioe; while I took a few of the intro Bioe classes and made some great friends there, I also ended up getting some much needed motivation to start owning at school.</p>

<p>And like speedsolver said, you can always explore bioe-related interests through CSE (looks like we have a common interest there), and more generally through any other engineering major.</p>

<p>Regarding Berkeley, obviously it’s a fantastic program, but I think that pretty much any top-10 program is equivalent when it comes to quality. If you’re in-state for UW, I’m having a hard time justifying the $55k sticker price of Berkeley.</p>

<p>Finally, I know that there were no Bioe direct admits last year, but I’m not sure what the situation is this year. Good luck to whoever’s trying to pursue that path.</p>

22

<p>Congrats to everyone who got direct admission!</p>

<p>When would we expect to hear from the CSE department if we were selected from the waitlist? Would it be roughly the same time when UW sends out its waitlist acceptances?</p>

23

<p>Those of you that got the direct admission to CSE, when you get your welcome packet, did your major change to CSE? or just Pre-engineering?</p>

<p>I just got my welcome packet today so those living in Washington should hear soon.</p>

24

<p>The advisors will send in ‘change of major’ requests to the registrar at some point when everyone has confirmed being CSE majors and going to UW. They do it all at one time because it’s just easier for them.</p>

<p>They’ll send an email once they sent in major request forms, and it usually takes a day or two after that for the system to update.</p>

<p>You should also be able to see your major as CS/CE in your myUW front page once you can see the ‘Class Schedule’ box. I don’t remember when that popped up, but I’m guessing around orientation, since that’s when you register for classes.</p>

<p>Also, if you want to switch from CS to CE or vice versa, just let the advisors know! I actually switched from CE to CS during fall quarter.</p>

25

<p>Will CSE be reviewing my senior performance or will it just be the UW admissions office? My senior year grades have been pretty lackluster and I don’t think the UW admissions office would mind but CSE probably has higher standards.</p>

<p>@ahmazinginc I think you’ll hear from the waitlist after May if you choose to attend UW since they will know whether the acceptees chose to attend UW by then.</p>

26

<p>uw admissions will look at your senior grades</p>

27

<p>Hello all. I applied to UW CS as well and was accepted. However, I have not received any notification of direct admission. Is it still worth it for me to anticipate an email, or should I just move on?</p>

<p>Also, if those who have received DA could please post their stats, I would greatly appreciate it.</p>

28

<p>For now, move on. At this point, the only way you can be admitted DA is if you jump off the wait list. :/</p>

29

<p>How many students has UW directly admitted into computer science?</p>

30

<p>It’s typically 30 per year</p>

31

<p>Would it be recommendable to take CS 142 again if I am currently taking AP Computer Science? I feel as though I haven’t put enough effort into it to really make the concepts stick.</p>

32

<p>Yes.

  1. You may have missed a topic in APCS that will be covered in CSE 142.
  2. Easy 4.0? Concentrate on your other classes as well.
  3. Solidify what you learned in APCS with the homework you’ll get in 142. I found that it was really different from the way my teacher presented APCS to my class.
  4. A more ‘social’ aspect - meet other freshmen who may end up in your CS graduating class.</p>
33

<p>Regarding the number accepted -
They accept around 70-75 students, with the expectation around 30 will commit to the department.</p>

<p>Regarding change of major -
I was DA this year, and my change of major didn’t go through until the beginning of Fall Quarter</p>

<p>Regarding job opportunities vs. at Berkley
The CSE affiliates network is amazing. Silicon Valley firms come up to recruit, and all they companies at the career fairs have PAID to have access to the CSE students. Something that sticks in my memory is last years DA visit day. When the advisers were asked what percentage of students got jobs after graduation, the were puzzled and immediately replied “they ALL get jobs.”</p>

34

<p>can one other person confirm that UW CSE won’t look at my senior grades? i really don’t want to get my DA rescinded. has that sort of thing even happened before?</p>

<p>nothing will happen to me if UW admissions looks at my senior grades though since they’re consistent with their standards.</p>

35

<p>Hi!! DA here too! :smiley: I was wondering, are there any opportunities for us to get to know each other before Fall quarter? Like, can we get to know each other online before? Or are there any events in late summer or orientation to meet each other? Since there are around 30 people admitted every year, it makes (some) sense for us to get to know each other and establish friendships right?</p>

36

<p><em>Points to jumpshooters post 34 in case someone has a second opinion</em></p>

<p>@ggggbabybabybaby - There are engineering advising/orientation options that you can meet other DAs at. Also, at one point, the advisors will put you guys all on a listserv, so you’ll be able to communicate (I’ll leave it up to the advisors to email to you about the actual address, the address is being used with this year’s DAs for another two months or so). Also, in the past, facebook groups have been made (search: “uw cse da students in the class of”). It’s a nice way to get to know each other online. Also, at the beginning of the school year, there will be an ACM orientation/welcome where you can get a tour of the CSE building, meet some current CSE majors, etc.</p>

<p>PS: Love your username =P</p>

37

<p>@speedsolver i’ll probably just post a thread on that later haha. I think I’m pretty much confirmed going to UW CSE now. It seems to be the most rational choice. I would like to ask how has your experience been overall at UW CSE been? Quality of classes/professors, job opportunities, how fun it is, how difficult it is, ability to do stuff outside of CSE, etc.?</p>

38

<p>Congrats on making a decision! I’ll see you around next year! </p>

<p>Overall Experience
Overall? I’m glad I went to UW. I honestly absolutely love this department! I’ve met students of very high caliber, professors who care about their students, and advisors who are happy to help! </p>

<p>Quality of Classes/Difficulty
So by the end of this quarter, I would have taken four 100 level courses, two 300 level courses, and one 500 level course, 3 of these classes being seminars. The course load is manageable as long as you manage your time. A lot of students say that the intro courses, CSE 142 and 143, are absolutely killer and it’s impossible to get a 4.0 in CSE 143. I went into UW totally scared about my grades in these classes! However, I found that it wasn’t the case. If you keep on top of your work, be very careful with homework, ask for help ASAP instead of waiting the day before the midterm, you’re pretty much good. With one of my 300 level courses right now, it’s not THAT much more work than CSE 143. </p>

<p>Quality of Professors/TAs
Amazing. What can I say? Both professors and TAs. Professors know how to present material so that we can understand it from square one. They do a good job with an appropriate amount of humor (when okay) and analogies to keep us awake, paying attention, and so we can remember concepts. They hold office hours when they can, but also are open to appointments if you can’t make it to their office hours. TAs are a combination of undergraduate and graduate students. I absolutely love my TAs – they’re responsible, they try their best to have us understand concepts, hold office hours in the IPL (Introductory Programming Labs), and know how to present review material during quiz sections to students who just can’t grasp concepts in lecture.</p>

<p>Also, one of our professors, Stuart Reges, is the winner of this year’s UW’s Distinguished Teaching Award.</p>

<p>Job Opportunities
I cannot stress how amazing UW CSE is at presenting full time, part time, co-op, internships, and research opportunities to its students. We have Autumn and Winter CSE Affiliates Fair, which is basically a career fair for those in the department only. Some people might sneak in and try to hand in a resume, but the recruiters can check up on our enrollment and major to make sure they give their full attention to CSE students! Students who proactively try to get internships generally do land internships. For freshmen, it’s harder because you haven’t taken courses like OS, data structures, etc. However, you can read up the basics on your own to impress recruiters. Every year, we have at least one DA student offered an internship. The general ‘internship hunt’ season has ended for this summer, so if you ask the advisors, they probably have an idea of how many people will be working (and where) this upcoming summer.</p>

<p>Also, you’ll find out how to do this once your CSE account has been set up (<username>@cs.washington which is a different username if you want, than your myUW net ID), the advisors will tell you how to subscribe to the CSE blog. You’ll get updates on new opportunities (I swear, I get at least 20 of these emails every week) that you can jump on. </username></p>

<p>“Fun-ness” + Type of people in the department
Fun? Fun… The department is as fun as you make it! There are student organizations (ie. ACM, ACM-W, IEEE), department socials (ie Winter Fest), tons of opportunities to meet other people. I love the people here! Like any major, you’ll get some close minded students, as well as those who like to walk around bragging about how they made an iPhone app 2 years ago and made $XX from there. However, I found that almost everyone is modest, honest, funny, and willing to help in any way. The students aren’t all people who hide in their dorms, drinking energy drinks and playing Starcraft II or trying to hack into their neighbor’s system (a stereotype I hear all the time…). We have students in frats, sororities, dorms, apartments, commuters…those who party hard Friday nights, those who never touch a drop of alcohol… it’s a very dynamic environment! </p>

<p>Ability to “do stuff” outside of CSE
Hmm, what do you mean by ‘do stuff’ outside of CSE? Kind of a broad question.</p>

39

<p>oh awesome! I’ll be on the look out for emails later, plus the facebook group! :3</p>

40

<p>@speedsolver thanks again for your informative answers! it’s great to know not all the CS kids play starcraft all day haha. I guess I meant are CSE kids generally involved in other activities outside of CS as well, but you seem to have answered that.</p>

<p>I’m deciding on whether I should dorm or commute atm (leaning towards commuting), do you think it matters a lot? And finally, I promise there won’t be many more questions after this haha, how do people generally perceive the 5-year BS/MS program? Would it be worth it the extra time spent?</p>