What are the pros and cons of attending a large vs. small Computer Science program?
In particular, are the course options and resources limited in smaller programs such as University of Chicago / Washington University vs. a leading Big 10 program (UIUC, Wisconsin, Purdue)? Any difference in job prospects?
An advantage of big schools comes in with recruiting since it makes more sense for companies to go to the big campuses and recruit there, as they get more applications with a high level of quality.
Not all small CS schools are created equal. While small class sizes can be helpful, if the department doesn’t have a good faculty for teaching, a bigger university could even be a better classroom experience. For example, Harvey Mudd or WPI would be a great choice for small and undergraduate-focused CS faculty while WashU (we should clarify which Washington U this is to be safe) CS classes actually have no in-person lectures for the intro courses, which I would not recommend for someone in CS.
I think that size is only important if you feel that you wouldn’t learn well in a particular environment. If you feel like you would do well in both, ignore size and focus on the specific CS programs and fit of the schools.
You’ll find a higher percentage of people in top companies at a UIUC vs a UChicago, but neither will hold you back from getting a job anywhere by any means. A school with “less” of a big name in CS may require more initiative to land the same job though.
Was with DD when we bumped into her freshman calc professor, who promptly recognized her and addressed her by name. This happens when your class size isn’t 300-600.
In general, the law of supply and demand holds for recruiting as well. Plus, many companies have a careers. xyz. com website, which can act as an equalizer.
You might find more numbers from larger universities at famous companies … but maybe not on a percentage basis. Lake Superior State sent a grad to Apple, Hanover (with 4 CS grads) sent one to either Google or Amazon the year we visited.
I’m thinking school prestige ranks somewhere around the shirt color when you interview as far as importance. A sweat stained Aerosmith T isn’t a good idea, but nobody worth impressing cares if you shop men’s warehouse or some other off the rack place vs having a personal tailor.
Thanks, PengsPhils. This is helpful. I was referring to Wash U in St. Louis.
What do you mean by “no in person lectures for the intro classes”?
Sometimes hard to get a seat in CS classes because they are so popular. I don’t think you can generalize by school size per se. I think you have to ask about each program at each school. UT is a big school with a big program, but not big enough that every one who wants to study CS can do so, for example.
Another poster recently pointed out after doing specific research into the program that for the first two courses, WashU records all their lectures online and students only go in person to labs, where you practice the work and can get help. I don’t think thats a good learning environment for CS, particularly the intro courses where students often find out if they like CS or are good at it. If you’re looking for more personalized attention and access to professors, I don’t think WashU is the place despite its smaller size. Point being, as @Lizardly pointed out, every program is different and you can’t generalize by size.
You can specifically see the setup for CS I and II at hte link below: everyone enrolled in one lecture with no weekdays/times listed, and then labs with days/times that go with the course. Nore, this is Fall 2016, so it’s not being announced later.
https://courses.wustl.edu/CourseInfo.aspx?sem=FL2016&sch=E&dept=E81
Very true, but can also be in the reverse - sometimes courses are not offered every semester if the department is small, or even at all for particular electives. Again, all specific to program, not size.