<p>I got into both UPenn's SEAS and Carnegie Mellon's SCS and CIT and Cornell's Engineering but I'm having a hard time choosing between the three. Can somebody go over the pros and cons of each for me? I plan to do either Computer Science or Computer Engineering. I'm not very familiar with these three schools because I haven't gone visiting yet. Initially I just applied to them just for the heck of it.</p>
<p>lilchnsgrl:</p>
<p>I chose Penn SEAS over CMU SCS and Cornell and Berkeley EECS last year. </p>
<p>Penn has a top 5 BE program, top 10 ChemE program, but overall is not that impressive. However, I couldn't resist the opportunity to dual with Wharton and graduate with an undergrad degree in BOTH business & engineering.</p>
<p>If you are looking to become a professional engineer, then SCS and Cornell would be a better choice. However, if you just want the technical background to work for a high tech company or work for a VC that invests in tech, for example, then check out UPenn. It has nice BAS programs (as opposed to the more rigorous BSE programs) that you can easily link Wharton or the College up with.</p>
<p>If you want to do CS, for a living, then CMU is hard to beat. I think that was the toughest choice I had to give up last year. The faculty is awesome, though I didn't visit, my sister (who also got in, but chose Cornell) said it was amazing.</p>
<p>You should really visit each school and judge for yourself where you want to live for the next four years. They are all fine schools that will open up doors for you in the future. Congratulations and happy choosing!</p>
<p>Cornell Engineering, no doubt. Penn doesn't have good engineering</p>
<p>Penn15 I think I saw in one of your posts in another thread that it took a very high SEAS gpa to be able to double major with Wharton. How realistic is this as an option? How many students are able to pull it off? Any info is appreciated! Just trying to find out if having this (SEAS degree + Wharton business degree) as a goal is realistic.</p>
<p>It is realistic, if you are determined and don't get swept away by the chaos of your freshman year. Look at your high school study habitis - were you forced to study, or were you independent, and could manage your time wisely? I think the hardest thing for freshman is time management and squeezing in study time between breaks. Plus, are you good test taker? Most college classes are determined by 2 or 3 midterms and a final. Homework counts for little or no part of your grade. </p>
<p>Most freshmen start out with the goal of dualing with Wharton, but many change their minds after first semester (or even first round of midterms). Some decide that it is not for them, afterall. But many also stick with it til the end. You will see a surprising amount of dual-degrees at Penn as opposed to other schools (in its pre-professional nature). Once you get used to the system and the grading, then a 3.7 your freshman year is not all that difficult to attain.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that if you decide to do SEAS/WH, then be prepared to take 6-6.5 CU (compared to 5CU in WH or SEAS alone and 4CU in College) so you'll be working your butt off to finish in 4 years (including summer sessions, btw).</p>
<p>"Once you get used to the system and the grading, then a 3.7 your freshman year is not all that difficult to attain"
Wow, I found this hard to believe. I guess it's just harder to get a 3.7 at Cornell.
lilchnsgrl: If you want to do ECE or CS, CMU is the best place to go. I doubt you will consider BE or ChemE if you are an ECE or a CS major. Honestly, even if you want to go into business after graduation, you can do it with or without a Wharton degree. As long as, you have the personality to thrive in the business world, you don't really need an undergraduate degree in business. CMU has the best information technology program, so your CS degree from CMU won't hurt you at all in the business world. I would recommend you to go for the school with the best CS and technical background. It's much easier to get into a top business program once you start working than getting another shot at the top CS program in the world.</p>
<p>Cornell would only help you because of its Ivy status. It has a very good engineering school.</p>
<p>Personally, I'd have to recommend Carnegie Mellon. It's a smaller school and better for technology in my opinion. Their faculty is more accessible and the school is ranked higher for engineering. Their CS program rivals MIT. CMU isn't an Ivy, but I'd rather go there than to Cornell.</p>
<p>Yeah I'd agree that CMU > Cornell, especially for your interests. Obviously if you want to use ur engineering degree for an MBA or go into some other field with it, Penn is your best bet. And I think you can only dual with Wharton now in the Jerome Fisher Managment and Technology joint program? They only accept 40 incoming freshmen into the program (its to late to to join that frosh year), and I think only allow a handful of transfers each year. CMU is ranked by US News 8th overall for engineering and 6th overall for undergrad business, so it is not a bad choice at all. This is vs. Penn's 28th ranked engineering program and I think Cornell is something like 12th. Although my penn interviewer was a Penn Engineering grad, and got an MBA for Wharton, just to reinforce that if you want to do business, probably should go to Penn.</p>
<p>ecc: I know of people with over 4.0 in Cornell. It is very doable, at any school.</p>
<p>Nope. You can dual without being in M&T. If you want the engineer-> MBA track, go to CMU. If you want to start off in ibanking/consulting/investment fund etc., Penn/Wharton is your best bet.</p>
<p>Penn15: I know people with 4.0 at Cornell too. I know it's doable to have 3.7> at a given semester (I know it from personal experience). However, I disagree with a 3.7 in your freshman year is not "all that difficult" to attain. If the median grade for Cornell College of Engineering is between 2.7 and 2.8, I believe 3.7 is quite difficult to attain especially during freshman year.<br>
I do agree with you that if you want to go into iback, consulting...etc, Penn/Wharton is the way to go. However, most CS or ECE major enter business world via IT track, and CMU is simply the best at that.</p>