Is UC Davis the way to go for CS?

[ucbalumnus]

@merc81

@ucbalumnus

@merc81

My question was simply to understand why should you pay Private/OOS tuition for a “better” CS school over UC Davis.

A great reason to apply to private colleges in general for CS would be that you might find a few at which class sizes are limited to about two dozen students, which would create a dramatically different experience for you compared to what you might encounter at most public universities (as well as at many large private universities). From your listed group of private colleges, Princeton might offer you the greatest contrast in classroom experience to that of UCD, and could be worth its cost premium on this as well as other bases.

Princeton’s class schedule indicates that its intro level CS courses have about 200 students, while upper level ones can have up to 80 or so. I.e. many more than “two dozen”.

These were separate thoughts. Princeton may be the best on a relative class-size basis, or not, of the OP’s listed schools, which should represent a matter for further research. The point remains that some smaller colleges limit enrollment in most CS classes to about two dozen. If a student seeks value over or, at least, difference from, a public university option, it might be found in its most apparent form in these programs.

That is assuming that the student values smaller classes, and the college’s size limit does not require reducing offerings (because instructors are needed to teach more small sections rather than more different courses) or rationing space in the classes (as Swarthmore does).