I plan to major in computer science, and I’m having a tough time picking between the schools. Interested in RPI because of it’s reputation, but put off by the city of Troy and how there doesn’t seem to be much to do off campus. (And also the fact I don’t have a car)
Interested in NYU because it’s the city, and I’ve lived in the city all my life. Put off because I don’t know about the reputation of NYU Poly itself, and if it’ll be more difficult getting a good job afterwards. Help me out 
You’ll get a good job with either. There is huge demand for CS grads, even from mediocre schools. In that field, it’s all about what you can do, not where you went.
I hope you’re aware that Poly is separate from NYU, and not even in Manhattan.
NYU poly is now actually called Tandon school. It’s in a crap location of Brooklyn. The school is in the same location it was when it was brooklyn polytechnic institute and much of the equipment and logistics are the same. The rating on it has gone down over the years since the change. You will get a good education from there if you go but just two things I’ll mention on it.
1- it’s very expensive. Both are expensive but RPI gives more merit and gift aid than Tandon does.
2- it has no reputation so when you get a job you will have to say you went to NYU as it will have a better chance to land a job, but truthfully your degree will say Tandon which no one has ever heard of.
Therefore, if those are the ONLY two choices you have, I’d choose RPI without blinking.
Poly, now called Tandon (I graduated from there long ago) is no longer a ‘crap’ neighborhood. It is in one of the most sought after areas, close to both DUMBO and Brooklyn Heights. The MetroTech area of campus is now quite safe and provides good access to the rest of Brooklyn and lower Manhattan.
That said, Tandon is not the equal of RPI in terms of academic reputation. If that’s more important to you, I’d say go to RPI. You will get a decent job in either place (Payscale placed Poly within the top 10 for return on investment for schools a few years ago).
NYU Tandon is a re-branded Polytechnic University. NYU bought out the school only a few years ago.
I got pretty much the same amount of aid from both, so that isn’t really a factor for me. And where did you get your ratings from?
DO NOT make your decision based on rankings. According to US News, NYU Tandon is ranked 45th for engineering (29nd for CS), whereas RPI is ranked 39th (52nd for CS). They’re both clearly similar in rankings, and both are reputed.
If it was me deciding, I would choose NYU. RPI is notorious for having very little social life, and students tend to be more cutthroat. Not to mention, RPI is in the middle of nowhere, whereas Tandon is literally a 5 minute subway ride from Wall Street or a 10 minute subway ride from Times Square.
I’d also consider how far away from home you’d be at each school, and how easily you could get home from each school if you wanted to.
The exact same question was asked on another thread, so I’ll just repost what I wrote there:
If you want everything that NYC has to offer, then choose NYU. I wouldn’t worry too much about rankings - it’s not like employers care as much as what you can actually do in CS. Having said that, RPI is a strong choice. It has a highly reputed CS program among employers, with very high placement rate for CS and engineering. My D is at RPI and she says it’s not cutthroat at all - she has found the student body to be very collaborative. Troy is not the Big Apple for sure, but it’s improved considerably in the past decade. Plus, you’re a lot closer to nature if you need a breath of fresh air from the city. Two different experiences.
If job placement is your primary concern, I’d probably pick RPI over Tandon, but you can get a decent job either way. It’s more about what you do than where you go.
Someone hasn’t been to the neighborhood in a LONG time…