Georgia Tech vs. Purdue - MS CS

Graduate School
1

Purdue

  • Very selective intake
  • High chances of assistantships
  • Low cost of living in West Lafayette
  • Less reputed than GaTech
  • Extremely affordable compared to GaTech given the prospect of assistantships

Georgia Tech

  • High intake
  • Pretty low chances of funding
  • Medium-high cost of living in Atlanta
  • More reputed than Purdue
  • Pretty expensive compared to Purdue given negligible chances of funding, but can afford without loans

Currently have no interest in a PhD. I’m not entirely sure how much more employers will fancy a degree from GaTech over Purdue. Thoughts?

2

@ExtremistEnigma - FWIW, my two-cents worth. US News has Georgia Tech at 9 in CS and Purdue at 20. In computer engineering, Georgia Tech is 6th and Purdue is at 9. In engineering, both schools have phenomenal reputations. I am not in the field, but I don’t think you would have to worry much about the value of your degree from Purdue.

Coincidentally, my son is going to be applying to both Purdue and Georgia Tech for a PhD in Aerospace Engineering. He already visited both schools as part of his high school college visits (he selected Texas A&M). Now he is looking at the next level. He visited Purdue (and Michigan) in January and is visiting Georgia Tech next week. He really likes the Purdue campus, but it is a more traditional college campus attached to a mid-sized town, like East Lansing and MSU where I went undergraduate. Georgia Tech is of course much more urban, but still a nice campus. (BTW, my son will likely also apply to TAMU, Michigan for sure, Colorado, and Princeton.)

I don’t think you can go wrong with either school, but you need to get opinions from employers.