<p>Hello everyone I just received my offer from BC. I feel very delighted for the admission yet a little disappointed because of the costs. I’m an international so they don’t provide any kind of financial aid. They list on the admission brochure a total cost of about 65000.
So for 4 years the cost in total would be about 260000. My budget is only about 200000 or a little bit more.
And here are my questions, wish someone could answer them for me. Thanks…</p>
<ol>
<li>How much do you really spend in BC for one year? I don’t know if the money needed is higher than their estimate.</li>
<li>Can students find outside campus housing(to save money)? On my brochure it says 4 years campus housing is assigned. And how much outside campus housing would cost?</li>
<li>Is part time job allowed? How much can I earn by having part time jobs? Is there any other way to fund my education?</li>
</ol>
<p>And here are some other questions…I don’t know if I am asking too much but I really want to hear answers to my questions from students rather than their officers.</p>
<ol>
<li>How is the CS program in BC? </li>
<li>Is it easy for a BC CS student to find a good job? (at least for now CS students)</li>
</ol>
<p>Another offer is from UIUC. The cost is reasonably lower but I really want to go to BC.</p>
<p>I was admitted to UI-UC (CS) and waitlisted at BC (CS at CSOM). </p>
<p>BC is not too well known for its CS program, while UI-UC is known for its engineering programs and is up there with MIT/Stanford in terms of CS. It has produced many famous CS-grad alums. As for finding a job, I don’t think it’s very hard in general since currently (correct me if I’m wrong) there’s more demand for CS jobs than there are CS students, unlike many other majors. Ultimately, despite a weaker CS program, BC remains my top choice for a variety of other reasons.</p>
<p>Thanks for your reply. Although I know the CS program in UIUC is better than that of BC, I don’t really like the too crowded atmosphere in UIUC… However, one thing I learned is although BC is not too well know for its CS, the CS program there is also solid.
Could you be more specific on your other reasons why BC is your best choice? I may learn something from you…
And wish you good luck to be admitted at last.</p>
<p>I live a 2 minute drive away from BC. I’ve visited the campus many times and have many friends who attend BC. I’ve also visited UIUC and did not fall in love with the campus like I did with BC. The access to Boston is amazing, and I’m used to living in a place connected to a big city, unlike what’s offered at UIUC. The communities at both are different – UIUC has 30,000 undergraduates while BC has less than a third of that. Personally, I like that BC provides you with a smaller and quieter learning environment (less people, suburb) compared to a large state school but at the same time offers you opportunities in a large city – it’s the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>But don’t go to BC so I have more chance of getting of the waitlist!</p>
<p>But all jokes aside, it really comes down to your personal preferences (you should definitely visit both).</p>
<p>I’m a CS (and french) major and so I can provide some input… the CS program is pretty good, although I can’t compare it to other schools since I don’t know about them. I took AP CS A and CS AB in HS and I got 4’s on both, so I came in with a pretty good background… CS101 was simple but CS102 is pretty rough. I’m also in randomness & computation which is pretty much like probability and i’m in web application development… I’ve been making websites since I was like 10 yrs old but I only stuck to html and php, so it’s nice learning about xml and mysql and javascript. </p>
<p>for A&S here’s the major descriptions: [Undergraduate</a> Program - Boston College - Student Services - Boston College<a href=“i’m%20currently%20doing%20the%20BA”>/url</a></p>
<p>@elc1994
Yes, the reason I chose BC is for its environment/atmosphere too.
I also prefer BC to UIUC. but now I’m not sure whether I could cover the fees…
Since you are now far from BC, how much money would you prepare for 1 year in BC? I hear price in Boston is pretty high… @bcgirl2
Thank you for the information! It makes me want to go to BC more! @fraire
I get 3 years C++ programming experience, but just OOP for robot.
Thank you for your input… Now I feel everything except the cost is perfect for me.</p>
<p>Pinewu, it really depends what you want to do in Boston. You can really spend as much or as little as you want. There’s expensive stuff to eat/buy/do and cheap stuff as well. And, at BC, from my friends’ experiences at least they don’t go into the city nearly as much as some other schools that are closer to downtown Boston.</p>