Hi guys,
I got into UT Dallas for Computer Science. My other choices I’ve applied to are UMass Amherst, NC State, Ohio State, UIUC, NYU Tandon and SJSU.
I initially applied to UT Dallas because I had stats that’d get me their AES scholarships. It was more of a back-up. I got into the CS program and will hear about scholarships next month.
After getting in, I kept looking at their website, courses, read about Dallas, their Student organizations,etc. I love how CS is the biggest major in the university and the whole university is known for their CS program. It’ll also be half the price compared to the others in my list. (Although I’ll be able to afford the others, UT Dallas would be less pressure financially on my family and I’ll be able to spend around a little more, instead of being financially tight)
Also, I’ll be directly enrolled in the major contrast to OSU or NC State where I’ll have to get high grades and get into CS later( Which is SCARY)
Now I feel like I really wanna go to UT Dallas.
So assuming I get into the others(ASSUMING), would it be wise to choose UT Dallas over the others? I know UT Dallas is not better than UIUC or OSU, but it wouldn’t be that worse comparatively, right?
The only things making me skeptical about UT Dallas are the rankings and brand recognition. It’s not even a flagship campus. Otherwise, I love it.
Any suggestions or advice are welcome. Thanks everybody.
NOTE: I"M AN INTERNATIONAL STUDENT, SO VISITING THE CAMPUS IS NOT AN OPTION
I think UT Dallas is a great choice but you really need to wait until you have all your decisions in hand including actual FA/scholarship awards and compare them at that point.
I agree with @3scoutsmom. You can’t assume UT Dallas will be cheaper. However, I would strike OSU and NC State off the list because they don’t admit directly to the major. OSU requires a 3.2 GPA for admission to computer science. Once you have your list of acceptances and costs in hand, the choice will become clearer.
UIUC and UMass Amherst are the two schools on your list that are considerably stronger than UT Dallas for CS. I’d suggest going into some debt for these schools if you and your parents are willing to take that sacrifice. I would say SJSU is considerably weaker, though the location is fantastic for finding jobs.
UT Dallas is excellent for CS though. When I did an internship at Amazon many years ago, there were as many kids from UT Dallas as from the top 15 CS schools excluding probably Michigan and Virginia Tech.
I second @frontpage’s recommendation, if cost is not a major criteria. My son got admitted to UT Dallas and waiting on other decisions including UIUC, before making a decision by next April.
@frontpage: how is SJSU weaker in CS? its program/curriculum? course offerings/specialties? learning comfort? student life? peer quality?
@wolfwing123: wait till you have all acceptances and costs in hand before you make a decision. UTD is a great school for CS, but you can’t compare off hand with schools you haven’t been admitted to yet.
And I really like UT Dallas from what I’ve seen on the internet so far. But it bugs me that it doesn’t show up high on the ranking. So just wanted to know everybody’s opinion.
UTD has a high percentage of international students. Most of the students there are serious students and the tend to be more mature than most college kids. UTD is not a big rah rah sports school nor are they big on frats. It’s a great school but a different from alot of universities.
@bouders “You can’t assume UT Dallas will be cheaper.” - This may be true for U.S. citizens and permanent residents (@wolfwing123 is an international student) . But for international students, I think UT Dallas turns out to be cheaper than OSU and UIUC. As stated in the univ websites of UIUC and OSU, financial aid is mostly not available for international students. On the other hand, even an AES Achievement scholarship from UT Dallas gives out of state tuition waiver and significantly brings down the cost of attendance.
I think what he meant was that I shouldn’t assume that I’ll get the AES and make plans. You know, it’s competitive. And without AES, UT Dallas would be the second most expensive school I applied to behind NYU.
That’s a good question. I’m not entirely sure. I think it’s just my perception, and also that SJSU is part of the second tier CA state system (Cal State) and not necessarily the best in that system either, as opposed to the others, which are flagships.
^ I asked because SJSU CS, due to being heavily recruited by Silicon Valley, is harder to get into than some UC’s and than most CSU’s impacted programs. So if the program 's formulas problems it’s worth it to know.
Many Texas universities give you instate tuition if you win a scholarship.
^ The dollar requirement for the TX OOS waiver has gone up at most of those schools. It used to be $1K for TAMU but it’s now $4K and most scholarships stop at the $3K level.
@“Erin’s Dad”
The requirement is still $1000 at UT Dallas. Also, the lowest AES scholarship is $3000 per semester. It’s $6000 and so would be above $4000 even if it changed.
Also, the tuition waiver is granted to AES recipients at UT Dallas. It’s one of the perks of AES. So wouldn’t matter how much the scholarship is.
@MYOS1634
I actually find the admission process at SJSU to be stupid. It’s too objective. They decide based on your EI(CSU GPA*800+SAT). And they provide extra one point to AP/Honors classes and so all american students easily get a weighted CSU GPA over 4.
Whereas international applicants like me face a huge disadvantage. Even though my math class is equilvalent to AP Calculus BC, my 11th Physics covered more than AP Physics: Mechanics, 12th Physics covered more than AP Physics: Electromagnetism, Chemistry far far more advanced than AP Chemistry,
we still get graded only out of 4. So the maximum GPA we can get is 4.
Right now, I’ll probably get rejected at SJSU for CS even though my GPA is around 3.82 and SAT 1470.
UTD has a nice modern campus. It is not located in the center of Dallas but rather the suburbs. I’m not sure the type of social scene you are looking for but know UTD is not a party school at all. You will not get the typical college experience from UTD. If your serious about your studies and enjoy being around international students you will love UTD. They have lots of indian and asian students. It’s not UT or A&M but it is certainly near the top of the second tier Texas public universities. There computer science program is better than UofH or Tech which along with UTD would be considered the top of the second tier Texas schools.