UIUC is about 38k/year while UT Dallas is near a full ride and comes with honors college + housing (National Merit Scholars Program). Is the gap between UIUC math&cs and UT Dallas cs worth the cost? Would your opinion change if I had pure cs at uiuc? Please state your reasoning. Thanks
I would take the full ride +honors college (easy decision). I don’t see how the gap would be worth the cost. Even for pure CS at UIUC. We’re still talking about 2 STEM-oriented publics with big CS cohorts, after all. UTD is getting better represented in Silicon Valley (in the top 25 now among recent CS grads). And I’d expect the honors college kids at UTD to be the same caliber as UIUC engineering kids. I see UTD as the UCSD of TX.
BTW, I would not major in Math+CS unless you actually love math and doing proofs.
Did you get in to UTD CS2?
I think UIUC Math+CS is BSLAS, which isn’t as good as Engineering. In addition, you should REALLY like math because you’re doing a math major (with a CS minor).
Finally, no, it’s NOT worth 38K when UTD is terrific for CS and you have a near full ride+ honors college there.
Congratulations!
Math+CS isn’t a CS minor. A minor wouldn’t cover UIUC CS’s entire (extensive) CS core and add on a few more CS courses.
It’s more like a math and CS double major.
And in the real world, pretty much no one would care if you were Math+CS or engineering CS.
But yes, you’d definitely should like math or it will be hell.
Anyway, as I said, there is no way I can see how you can justify paying that much more for UIUC CS over UTD CS (not exactly Podunk U in CS considering that it has good representation in Silicon Valley these days).
I never got an invitation or anything about CS^2. Is it possible to try for it once on campus?
I didn’t think people would care either, but some “tech bros” have gotten snippy about Liberal Arts CS majors :(. There’s such a dearth of good CS majors that it’s beyond me, truly, and on the contrary quite a few companies are eschewing this type of prejudice.
I find that snotty but it exists out there, just like in some circles a business major unless it’s from a couple specific schools isn’t appreciated (understatement) whereas in other circles it’s seen as one of the few “valuable” degrees. 
Yes, Math+CS is more than a minor, my bad [in my memory, it was 30 credits CS with 48 credits for math, but I was confusing it with another "CS+"program ].
But it’s still… a lot of math if the person wanted straight CS (as you said). 
In the end, I really don’t see how someone with such an incredible offer from such a strong CS school as UTD would go anywhere else.
I never got an invitation or anything about CS^2. Is it possible to try for it once on campus?
http://catalog.illinois.edu/undergraduate/eng_las/mathematics-computer-science-bslas/#degreerequirementstext
If I took the least math possible it would be 27 math credits and 47 cs credits. I think I’d also get credit for Calc BC which would free up Calc I & II. I’m not sure if I could replace GenEd classes that I clear with AP credit with any cs electives that I want but that might also be a possibility.
But yeah I think the main issue here is the stark difference in cost. I just don’t want to be missing out on anything because of the prestige and opportunity gap between the schools but the way you put it makes it seem like Dallas is not too far behind - especially to warrant spending 140-150k on uiuc. (Dallas weather is also much better so that’s another perk)
There’s also the possibility of completing the math&cs degree in 3 or 3.5 years but I haven’t actually talked to an academic advisor about it, just a former student who did math&cs. If I went that route I would most probably have to overload courses which would leave little time for ECs and personal projects that seem to be very important for cs students. In the end, the final price tag would still be in six figures though.
I have currently deposited to UIUC but I have until May 15 to accept the National Merit Scholarship. So, you think I should go for it?
Yes, please do “go for it”.
I like UIUC, it’s an impressive university (have friends on faculty there), but it’s not worth the price differential.
You’ll be so glad you did.
(Also, Honors housing is guaranteed and is among the best freshman housing on any campus - 3-bedroom suites.)
You should choose UTD. It is likely that UIUC graduates will get higher salaries on graduation, but we’re talking $10,000 more a year. It would take a long time to catch up to the extra $152,000 you will pay for attending UIUC. In that time, your experience would matter more, and you will be making as much as UIUC grads with the same experience.
We’re also talking about the average. The average UTD CS major will come in with lower measurables than the average UIUC CS major. The same person (who has a high PSAT) likely will do about as well, IMO.
I don’t know if you can still get in to CS^2, but the UTD honors college programs also offer a lot of perks and benefits.
A full-ride to UTD is a no-brainer.
If you still want a better brand name for whatever reason, you could always use the money you saved to pay for an elite master’s degree, and you’d still come out ahead financially.
BTW, with their Fast Track program, you could potentially pick up a master’s as well as bachelor’s at UTD in 4 years for free.
UTD no question. Save the money!
UTD is definitely on an upward trajectory. I believe in the next 10 years or so UTD has the possibility of being what UCLA is to UC Berkely ( a destination school in its own right and not just a regional school within the UC system).
UTD is an excellent school already (especially for STEM), but your degree may be worth even more in the coming years if UTD continues to steadily rise up in the national rankings.
hey, what were ur high school stats for the cs+x at uiuc? thanks!!