Hi! I’m interested in computer science and was wondering which out of these schools you would reccomend, and WHY. Looking for “off the beaten path” statistics and advice… AKA things you can’t read in a welcom to X University brochures. Thanks for your time!
Northeastern
WPI
University of Miami
Do you want your curriculum built around co-ops? The answer should tell you whether Northeastern becomes preferable or undesirable. (Note: many other schools offer optional formalized co-ops.)
If you are looking for a project approach to learning and or interdisciplinary teamwork at off campus locations around the Globe, WPI is worth consideration. I am always pushing it because:
I respect Northeastern because of their long established and respected coop program. I also knew a faculty member who was an outstanding Northeastern/MIT trained Chemical Engineering professor who went on to become an astronaut while teaching at WPI. He was a great teacher and contributed a lot to the WPI program while eating caviar and developing academic connections with visiting scientist from Russia and eastern Europe.
:bz
@ucbalumnus I really love the idea of co-ops/internships as I know that they are integral in the process of becoming a good candidate for any job. However, UM and WPI both have internship connections and programs too-- although I’m not sure how good they are (having a tough time researching the success of their programs).
@retiredfarmer wow-- your experience sounds incredible!! If you don’t mind me asking, around what year did you attend? I saw most of the information on the website presentation when I attended a campus tour a couple of years ago. The field education, non-competitiveness, and push for learning are all what made me love WPI in the first place :))
Hey! I’m a Northeastern CS school who looked at both of the other two. I ended up not applying to UMiami personally but it made the shortlist of 15. I applied to WPI and it was one of my top choices after Northeastern.
UMiami was your traditional program as far as I could tell. Nothing notable or special, and the classes and curriculum were pretty typical. This was in 2014, so double check.
Northeastern and WPI both offer something entirely different. This is an essay by the creator of the CS teaching program at Northeastern. The introductory approach has been adopted at WPI, as noted in the last section. Other notable schools using the approach include Waterloo and Brown, both known very well in CS nationally. I’ve worked at companies with students/grads from both of those schools on co-op, and everyone I meet is in consensus on how important and effective the approach is. I’ve worked with WPI students too but by chance did not get close personally to them to discuss this particular topic.
http://www.ccs.neu.edu/home/matthias/Thoughts/Developing_Developers.html
Both schools are bent practically, as mentioned. I think a student could do well at both, but different types of students will thrive at each.
I chose Northeastern because I wanted a more balanced school (tech vs general), I wanted to be in Boston, and the character of the school generally fit me more. I don’t think I would have been nearly as happy at WPI personally, but not because of anything academic.
WPI, as mentioned, is known for its collaboration. Northeastern is also pretty good in terms of competitiveness, but I think WPI, as a smaller school, has that community feel more. It’s obviously a bit nerdier (good for some, bad for others, no connotation meant 
) and a smaller community in general.
From my experience, Northeastern does tend to be more well known nationally than WPI for CS, whose reputation is a bit more regional. Size I’m sure is a factor there. When I worked with Waterloo / Brown students, it was on the west coast. I only saw WPI students when working in Boston. That’s just my personal experience though.
Looking back, Northeastern was 100% the right decision for me, but it was all about fit, not academics. Both schools are very solid CS options. I’d recommend focusing on fit and cost here primarily.
@human354
My working association with WPI went on for many years, ending in 1984. My interests did not stop at that time and continued with faculty and other alumni. Although I have not worked there for many years, WPI research and alumni publications and two history books have kept me in touch with the subject. If their project process has not grown and developed even further over these 40 years, there is a very highly developed and well financed conspiracy effort complete with fake data.
There is a great deal of information on the WPI website relating directly to this issue. Project education generates excitement and involvement. See some supporting data @http://wp.wpi.edu/projectbasedlearning/proven-pedagogy/lifelong-impact/. The National Academy of Engineering gave their highest award for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education in 2016 to four faculty members. These are but four of the many faculty who worked, and continue to work on innovation in higher education (see https://www.nae.edu/Activities/Projects/Awards/GordonPrize/GordonWinners.aspx#tabs).
For many years I worked for two different Fortune 500 companies. Marking efforts can often involve less than honest and open communication with the prospective buyer. Your skepticism is understandable. Your questions are appreciated.
No school is perfect for everyone. If projects, interdisciplinary thinking, and teamwork are not a good fit for you this could well be the wrong place.
If this is a conspiracy theory, a lot of people have been drawn into it as late as 2016.
They all have one thing in common. They’re expensive. CS is employable, and you can make a good living at it, but it’s not a lawyer’s salary. You want to avoid the “co-signed” student loan trap. Entry level jobs are not terribly lucrative at first and you want to not be trapped in a situation where you have high student loan payments sabotaging an early career. For computers, it really doesn’t matter where you graduate because it’s a high demand profession. If you could get a scholarship, in my opinion, you would be better off.
Good point! What about job placement and starting salaries?
Take a look at the actual WPI salary and placement record for CS at https://www.wpi.edu/student-experience/career-development/majors/career-outlook/computer-science. Find the full smorgasbord of majors @ https://www.wpi.edu/student-experience/career-development/majors/career-outlook
Look at this earlier discussion on engineering prospects at http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/21079475#Comment_21079475
View the Bureau of Labor Statistics data at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2016/employment-outlook-for-engineering-occupations-to-2024.htm discussion on engineering.
Always plan carefully for affordable programs you can grow with. With the average CS starting salaries at many of these competitive schools it really depends on the FA package you receive. Never bet on the FA package. It is very competitive for these awards.
In 2016, the average BS starting salary at WPI in CS was $85,456. For the same year the average starting salary for Biology was $46,884 and a BS in Chemistry is lower at a little over $40,000. These careers require graduate school.
My niece earned a degree in Biology at MIT, faced a grim job market OR years of low income as a graduate student in biology while she worked as a PhD student (low pay). She went to law school instead and entered patent law which does pay very well. She had to pay for law school after she had already completed four years of college. The average starting salary in CS for PhDs at WPI was $122,500 in 2016 and they did not have to pay for graduate school as these students are actually paid for the research they do while completing their degree.
What do you want to do? :bz
@coolguy40 ??? Lawyer median pay $115,000…Computer Science $109,075.
All I hear about is how law school grads can’t find jobs.
I think it may be a numbers trick: don’t include salaries of someone with no job. Median salaries would only thus reflect the quality of jobs available, not quantity of jobs available. Lawyers still get paid well, it’s just an oversaturated field.
@Luska19 You need to factor in the cost of living to that median salary. On the east and west coast, that salary would be paycheck-to-paycheck. I’m already a computer professional with 50k in student loans, and that’s with a master’s degree. I would be much worse off if that debt were just for a bachelors. Even that is no picnic when you have a family to take care of. In Texas a 109k salary is something I could expect with 10-15 years of experience.
@coolguy40 I’m a little confused as to what you are saying. The median salary for CS and Lawyer are very close. Both would have to factor in where they live. That said a CS typically goes 4 years or less for BS while a lawyer is looking at 7 years or more. The lawyer would incur the much higher student debt.
What I’m saying is, don’t be fooled by prestige, especially with a bachelor’s degree. When the co-signed loans start stacking up, sooner or later payments come due. A prestigious school can give an initial bump in salary, but computers is an industry that is driven by experience. In other words everyone from the “lesser” schools catch up, and often surpass you. The debt will put you at a very large disadvantage. To see a six figure income, often requires at least 10 years of experience with a bachelor’s degree. If you have 100k plus in loans, your life will be poverty stricken for a long time.
While I agree generally that degree doesn’t matter, many students from top CS schools will make a starting salary of 100K easily, even outside of SV. I know many people personally making the equivalent on internships for top companies. These are still high COA areas, but not ridiculously so as in the bay area.
There’s a very valid question if that’s reflective of school or student quality at each school, but I think my general point is that entry-level CS jobs at many of these schools do still pay very close too 100K right now. Most of these schools known for CS like Northeastern and WPI have starting salaries in the 90K range, and it doesn’t take much variance in that average to have say 1/3rd of those students making 100K.
All that said, you’re right that the loan calculus is important, and that 100K in loans would not be worth any school given that the stats needed to get into most of these can net full rides to many decent schools or in-state tuition to a solid flagship.