<p>Hey guys,
Thanks in advance for your help. Having recently decided against going to UIUC DGS, I was left with the options of UC San Diego, Penn State & UC Davis for computer engineering. Which university according to you would be better in terms of campus, rankings for the program (I understand Penn is 17th in Engineering USNEWS but am unable to get engineering rankings for UCSD) & research opportunities.</p>
<p>What are the relative costs?</p>
<p>Last time I heard, UCSD was better for engineering than UC Davis. Penn is most likely better than both, but it is also much more expensive. Consider what you can afford and what’s worth it to you; it is in that way you can make your decision easier.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies. For future reference, I have compile the following statistics:</p>
<p>1.) UCSD</p>
<p>Costs: Approx $ 50,000
[Budgets</a> for Undergraduates 2010-2011](<a href=“http://www.ucsd.edu/current-students/finances/financial-aid/budgeting/undergrad-20102011.html]Budgets”>http://www.ucsd.edu/current-students/finances/financial-aid/budgeting/undergrad-20102011.html)
Rankings Engineering: 13th Nationally
Others:[UC</a> SAN DIEGO NEWS CENTER : ABOUT UC San Diego](<a href=“http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/about/index.html]UC”>http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/about/index.html)</p>
<p>2.) UCD</p>
<p>Costs: On campus & off campus = $ 25,000 - $ 30,000
Check:[UC</a> Davis : What Does UC Davis Cost?](<a href=“http://admissions.ucdavis.edu/finances/cost.cfm]UC”>Undergraduate Admissions)
Rankings Engineering: 33rd Nationally
Other Rankings:
[UC</a> Davis News & Information :: UC Davis Facts: Rankings and other general statistics](<a href=“http://facts.ucdavis.edu/numbers.lasso]UC”>http://facts.ucdavis.edu/numbers.lasso)</p>
<p>3.) Pennstate (University Park)</p>
<p>Costs: Use the college calculator @ <a href=“http://collegecostestimate.ais.psu.edu/cgi-bin/CollegeCostEstimate.exe/launch/CollegeCC/fullcalc[/url]”>http://collegecostestimate.ais.psu.edu/cgi-bin/CollegeCostEstimate.exe/launch/CollegeCC/fullcalc</a>
Aprrox. cost without aid = $ 30,000 - $ 40,000 for International Students.
Ranking Engineering - 17th Nationally
Other Rankings:
[Pennsylvania</a> State University - Rankings](<a href=“http://www.psu.edu/ur/rankings/]Pennsylvania”>The Pennsylvania State University | Penn State)</p>
<p>Conclusion: Hey guys, personally I have learnt that rankings should not be considered the sole criteria for decision. If you read about how usnews ranks university, you will see how subjective it really is.
[Best</a> Colleges 2011: About the Rankings/Methodology - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2010/08/17/best-colleges-2011-about-the-rankings-methodology?s_cid=related-links:TOP]Best”>http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2010/08/17/best-colleges-2011-about-the-rankings-methodology?s_cid=related-links:TOP)</p>
<p>Rankings CANNOT tell you which university you should attend. That being said, I was leaning towards UCSD over PSU & UCD because of my strong love for California and also because of UCSD’s strong roots in research in the field of computer engineering (as compared to UCD). However, I was later admitted to my top preference UIUC for computer engineering which is where I am likely to go. Also, please do check out the links as I may have made a mistake in the costs.</p>
<p>Are you in or out of state for UCSD and UCD? Looks like you listed the out of state cost for UCSD and the in state cost for UCD.</p>
<p>Yeah you are right about that. I got confused between On campus and On campus non resident.The costs of UC Davis is approximately 53,013 for out of state students and not what I stated above. Thanks for correcting me.</p>