Does anyone have insight on online homework and grading? My son had a tough time last semester, and he is doing various graded work, but none of his professors this semester use the online grading system at all. Where I work, we would be in big trouble if we didn’t have online grades accessible to students.
Is that the norm at RPI? Has anyone else had issues with online learning management systems (LMS) not being used?
Another thing that has bothered us is that half his professors either read their slides with no writing on the board, or have a TA show a Youtube video instead of the professor teaching. Again, where I work, we’d be in big trouble if we did either of those things. He has had two good professors, but five others were terrible and two he was neutral on. I’ve read the professors reviews and they backed up what he said.
I just received acceptances from UIUC, Case, and RPI for Computer Science. Although, I was leaning towards UIUC, I’m pretty confused. Any insights on which school is better, besides rankings - atmosphere, student life, professors, flexibility, internship opportunities etc? (And yes, I’m a girl, if that is relevant)
Geography is likely to be a differentiator, that and size (RPI is relatively small). Visit all three and see which you like best.
Even things like FA and grading method will matter, and just walking around campus will give you some good info.
As for professors, my son is not impressed with RPI professors by any means. He does like the campus and ability to go into Troy to eat or go to the Farmers’ Market which is weekly on season.
I’m from near NYC, and the area directly by a CMU campus seemed to almost be in a slum to me, and traffic in Pittsburgh as a “large city” was abysmal. The outskirts were way more depressed, and depressing, than those near Troy. YMMV of course.
Replying to this as an incoming freshman! Thanks for all the comprehensive posts; they are very reassuring considering some other things I’ve heard. Thinks are looking good
Just want to jump this post to the page as this is the time of year a lot of kids (and parents) are looking at making college decisions. As a senior at RPI now, I still feel this thread is extremely relevant and rings true with everything I have seen the past 3.5 years.
Thanks- very helpful info on RPI. Very interested in RPI, but what do you know or what have you heard about Olin, Rochester Institute Technology and Northeastern for computer electronic engineering?
@ThirdPoint Olin is a great school for undergraduates but is relatively small (this is good and bad), extremely competitive to get into, and does a lot less research than RPI or any of the other schools you mentioned. RIT is solid and probably better for electrical than computer engineering, but still doesn’t do as much research and has larger classes/a lot of foreign professors that don’t speak English well. RPI and Northeastern, I’d say are equals in many ways. They both have very similar metrics in terms of the grades accepted students have and have very similar programs. However, Northeastern is a bit less focused on research than RPI but they still do a lot. They also offer a guaranteed co-op program which is nice. RPI offers a similar program but you must be accepted to it, but if you have the GPA (a 3.0 I believe or 2.5) then you’re basically in.
@ThirdPoint@joedoe Olin is small and undergraduate only. That’s a key point to consider when comparing the amount of research done there in comparison to someplace like RPI. There may be less research in total – but relative to the size of the school there is plenty of research. And it is important to consider how much research is actually open to undergraduates. IMHO, opportunities for undergraduates to participate in research are tops at Olin. My freshman son is already involved in research (and has been since pretty early in his first semester). You may also want to check out the statistics of where Olin students interested in graduate school end up.
To piggy back on @HeloDada’s post, one must understand Olin’s mission. It is a teaching college, not a research university. The sole mission is to educate its students and to be innovative in delivering that education. Olin students have an active role in working with the faculty and administration in reviewing and changing its curriculum to constantly seek improvements in its outcomes. The professors there don’t have to do research or publish. They only need to teach and be mentors to their students. Given that, some professors do conduct research. My son at Olin had a research internship with a professor after his first year. This is not uncommon for Olin students, and most have no trouble at all finding good engineering internships during their summers. Olin isn’t for everyone, but for those that are a fit, it is a wonderful place.
@randomdude532 I really appreciate your candid feedback. One question, if you had the opportunity to choose your school over again, would you pick RPI?
I’ve seen such mixed reviews of RPI on College Confidential and other sites and it is hard to get a good read. We visited the school with my daughter this summer and it looks like a good fit - she is a little nerdy like her dad, but is also social. She is interested in the PDI program (design studio + mech engineering) as she likes project-based learning and PDI offers that.
@fatherofsam if your D like a nerdy student body then she’ll likely fit in well at RPI. My D is a engineering sophomore there and the student body (nerdy but also friendly, helpful, collaborative) is what she likes the most about the school. Most complaints tend to center around the school administration and the fact that the President makes a lot of money, but my D has only had good interactions with the admin. Some of the professors sound really good and others sound pretty lame (probably they’re better researchers than teachers), but that’s like most colleges.
@fatherofsam I’m not sure what would be of particular interest to you, but if you have any specific questions I’d be happy to to try to answer them (you can also PM me if you prefer).
Is it bad to go to RPI if you’re undecided. I’ve been accepted and will most likely be going there next fall (all the way from MN). I’m leaning towards Cognitive Science. Is it unlikely to find students who are undecided/change their majors?
@thebluntoptimist Many people come in undecided in general and around 40% switch their majors after the first year if they were decided. I’d say between 10%-20% of kids come in undecided and many are unsure. Just be sure to consider all your options when choosing classes so you don’t fall behind.
