<p>Computer Science/Computer Engineering major. International.
Prestige, tuition & fees, jobs upon graduation very important.</p>
<p>Georgia Tech - 35k p.a
McGill - 30k p.a.
U Virginia - 36k p.a.
UC Berkeley - 42-43k p.a.
VT - 26k p.a.</p>
<p>Well for prestige and jobs upon graduation, Berkeley wins hands down. I don't think it's even close, frankly, for computer science or computer engineering. Whether the cost is worth it to you depends on your family's finances.</p>
<p>Finances not really an issue, so long as the school is worth the money ...</p>
<p>i recommend berkeley. berkeley is easily the most prestigious school on your list (since that matters to you), and its cost isn't significantly higher than other schools. berkeley's engineering is also top notch. but, i would consult with your parents about this decision, if they are able/willing to pay more cash for berkeley. Congrats.</p>
<p>Berkeley or UVA; are you more of a Southern gent/Jeffersonian Or a surfer dude/political action guy?</p>
<p>^I really can't answer that ... International student ... Into Computing, Sports etc. Pretty "non-nerdy" ...</p>
<p>Bumpity bump bump.</p>
<p>Just to clarify, "surfer dude" as mentioned above is about as far from a description of a Berkeley student as you can get.</p>
<p>I would pick UVA. 7K cheaper, and the education and prestige are just as great.</p>
<p>^Even for Computer Science ?</p>
<p>Go with Berkeley. Hands down better than the others.</p>
<p>Bumpity bump.</p>
<p>berk. 10</p>
<p>Berkeley is the #1 state school in the USA, and can rival almsot any private school in prestige. Besides a top notch engineering school, it provides an excellent humanities and liberal arts education leading to a well-rounded experience should you want it. It has super-star faculty in most fields whose lectures rival those of Harvard. You can find any discipline under the sun in the curriculum, it has a super bright student body, and is an iconic school with a history of intellectual rigor, out of the box thinking and social conscience. The campus is scenic and vibrant, with some of the best book stores (not your run of the mill Barnes and Noble types). </p>
<p>Having said that, the drawbacks are that you will have to compete for resources and attention from faculty, there are strong ethnic cliques on campus and you have to be vigilant as in any urban setting.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I happen to prefer U Virginia as a college as I think it offers a superior UNDERGRAD experience vis-a-vis UCB, but I also think that UCB's campus environment (and the surrounding Bay Area) is much more appealing to most international students. </p>
<p>I also think that your field of study is UCB's greatest strength (if you'd said something like history, then U Virginia would almost certainly be better). For an international student, and particularly if you are planning to return to your country of origin, then a UC Berkeley CS degree will likely carry more weight. </p>
<p>The one fear I'd have about UC Berkeley is that it is a less undergraduate-friendly college. "Sink or swim" is the commonly heard phrase and I think that this attitude, coupled with the larger undergraduate population (24k vs 14k at U Virginia) and the difficulty of sometimes getting the courses you need, are partly to blame for the school's disappointing 4-year graduation rate of 61%. By contrast, U Virginia students graduate in 4 years at a rate of 83%.</p>
<p>Everything hawkette says is true. UCB is "sink or swim" for undergrads. UCB has the reputation in CA, though. UVa's reputation is excellent anywhere east of the Rockies whereas UCB trumps it in CA. GT has the reputation for aerospace engineering, but for an international I think one of the other two schools would be better socially.</p>
<p>I obviously can't say for sure, but I think I'll be able to adapt to Cal/GT fairly easily. UVa, on the other hand might not be the best place for me socially.</p>
<p>Basically, I'm trying to figure out whether Cal's worth the extra 8-10k p.a. over Georgia Tech.. Bear in mind that I'm not a hundred percent sure about doing Computer Science, and outside of engineering, Tech has very few top notch alternatives.</p>
<p>I think your read on GT is accurate and UCB will undoubtedly provide greater alternatives should your studies take you in a different direction than CS/engineering. </p>
<p>If non-academic factors are part of your decision, I should also say that GT's social life lags that of both UCB and U Virginia. Students can have a great time at each, but it really goes to what you are looking for. Can you expand on your comments about what's important to you out of the classroom? Also, if you are willing, would you mind disclosing where you are coming from and if you plan to return there post-graduation?</p>
<p>Outside of the classroom, well, I'm not exactly a party animal, but far from a nerd. For eg., In high school I did have a huge group of friends and we all had a "work hard, party hard" attitude. A typical college week, as I picture it right now would be - work fairly hard all week, play some soccer in the evening a couple of times, game(PC) a fair bit etc; party a bit on Saturday, and spend Sunday with friends ... Hope you get my drift ...</p>
<p>I'm from India mate. :)</p>
<p>And there's one more factor I forgot to mention. I'm definitely going to Grad School, so would Cal's grade deflation mess up my chances for that?</p>