Hey guys, I’ve been looking online for a while now, but there seems to be few people who are in a situation like mine right now. After applying to many colleges, I’ve narrowed my decision down to my top two choices: UVa at GT. As someone going for CS, I understand that GT’s program is undoubtedly better than UVa’s. I know students are given so many opportunities at GT for internships, co-ops, and job opportunities. However, after visiting both schools, I really like UVa, and could definitely see myself coming here for the next four or more years. What would you do in my situation? Do any of you know how the post-college job search for CS is at UVa? And most importantly, do you think I would seriously regret passing up GT for UVa if I ended doing that? Any advice is much appreciated!
No. UVa actually makes a ranking for top CS schools (by where CS majors end up) while GTech does not:
https://m.slashdot.org/story/208691
Assuming the $$ difference is not an issue (if there is a difference) I would choose the one that you would be happiest being at (read: “most likely to finish in 4 years”). If there is no difference in that regard, then consider the programs. Both schools are excellent and you should have no problem finding a job or graduate opportunities when you finish. I know UVa has a strong alumni network - GT may as well
This data says otherwise:
https://www.scribd.com/document/346963694/Hiringsolved-Ideal-Hire-Report-in-Tech
For new grad hiring in Silicon Valley by the big companies, GT is #6 and UVA does not show up in the top 25. The data source you link to is also a dead link.
Regardless, the question here is one of fit value vs individual academic program advantage. @azeusi1113 do you see your self at GT as well or do you think you would really hate it? If you went to UVA you can still obviously do well so no, I don’t think you’d regret it, but exactly how much of a fit difference there is here is important to gauge.
@PengsPhils, note that that is only Silicon Valley, so on the West Coast. The data probably is different on the East Coast.
Given that both are east coast schools at an equal standing on the west coast, I don’t think that’s a fair assumption. The SV reputation tends to extend generally when comparing schools in the same region in my experience (example: WPI and RPI). While all schools have a regional strength (UVA stronger in DC/VA, GT in ATL/South), I think you’d find GT’s reputation stronger in just about every other major tech hub (NYC/Boston/Chicago/SF/LA/Seattle). That does bring up an important point if the OP knows where they want to go after graduation.
Even on your link, UVA does not show up for top 25 in software development, only for software development startups. I think that’s more a product of entrepreneurship differences at the schools, not CS strength. Again, it depends on what the OP wants, but it’s not a general case.
While limited data (about 400 entries between the two schools for software engineers), Payscale puts them both at similar salaries for mid-career, GT being slightly higher by about 5K on average. I think the takeaway there is that CS reputation, while advantaging GT, is not that big of a deal.
@PengsPhils, regardless, the choice should come down to fit. UVa also has a strong reputation overall.
@PurpleTitan Agreed there.
If it’s a matter of ‘fit’ I think UVA would be fine.
If there is a serious cost difference, and it’s a factor for you, then I’d consider that closely too (i.e., total cost over 4-5 years).
Good luck with your decision! Congratulations on two wonderful options!
OP, my D2 is a senior at GTech studying Mech Eng. There is an over abundance of real life research and work available in the campus and in Atlanta. My D2 has always had a part-time(<15 hrs/wk) from her 3rd semester onwards. Quite a few startups seek out GTech students for this work as well. In fact, she has had per pick of work and firm and have refused additional work/research hours quite often to facilitate a balance of social/academic/work life.
Don’t know where @PurpleTitan comes up these lists (as in #1), but I work for a VC firm in Palo Alto and it is no competition which is the preferred institution for CS in this case!
I think that both GT and UVA are very good, and that there are an abundance of jobs in CS and you will find a good job with a CS degree from either of these very good universities. There is no bad choice here. Once you have your first job, employers are mostly going to care about your work experience.
If I were in this situation, I would pick based on cost of attendance and fit.
I will admit that I live in the Northeast, and have seen relatively few coworkers from schools as far south even as UVA, and none from as far south as GT (not counting schools in California, which I suppose goes pretty far south also).
@i012575, I included the link.
If you like UVA then go there.
@PurpleTitan, here is a link to a more recent article regarding university hiring…
Obviously, proximity (SJSU, etc) and size does play a role.
@i012575, right, that’s a Silicon Valley list.
Anyway, I don’t have a dog in the fight. I think the OP has enough data.
While GT has a higher reputation for engineering/CS, there are also benefits of attending a school that is broader. Software engineers often need to branch out to management and work with non-technical people later in career. GT’s 75% of student population is in engineering or computing. Even the remaining 25% are more in quantitative or tech oriented fields – e.g. MIS is the strongest part of their business schools.
The data you have cited needs to be interpreted very carefully – in general, any ranking of colleges where MIT are University of Phoenix are 2 places apart (20th and 22nd) is something to be careful about.
The data shows the volume of hiring, and thus is very dependent upon the number of applicants from each school available. Stanford, CMU, and state schools with large CS output are not surprisingly high in this list. No Ivy is in the list, with exception of Cornell. You bet hiring managers want a Princeton graduate over one from San Jose State. But there is a small number of them, and probably a rather small fraction is even seeking jobs in bay area.
I am not saying that a GaTech graduate won’t be more desireable than a UVa graduate. But if there is a large difference in number of students graduating and seeking jobs in bay area, the ranking reflects that over how they are perceived.