Son accepted into alternate major U Illinois

Parents Forum
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<p>Wow. This is CC at its best. I really appreciate the personal input from each of you.
Turbo, that is valuable information. As neither my husband nor I know about employment in this field, it helps to hear your perspective. While i think it might be an asset for my son to have some training in the more engineering oriented side, the course requirements are quite heavy. I don’t actually know if he is up to it. </p>

<p>ucb, I did look before at the course requirements for the CE major (I used to be a college counselor :slight_smile: ) Yes, there are technical electives he could take in CS. I just don’t know if it is worth suffering through the CE reqs to be able to take courses in his desired area. He did apply to Cal Poly SLO. The others on your list were considered, but rejected for various reasons. Money matters, but we are willing to pay for a good education if the alternatives don’t satisfy. (Up to a point, anyway.)</p>

<p>seattlemom, your point is what I worry about. My son has been involved in robotics a bit, but mostly on the programming side. He is taking AP Physics now, but no chemistry at all. </p>

<p>Bernese, sounds like your son is having an excellent experience all around. My son is not at all a partier (which was actually one of the things I was worried about with some of these big state schools he has applied to- would he fit in?). I am more concerned with incessant workload. Although he has done very well in classes and AP exams in hs, I know that the expectations are going to go way up in college, and I have my concerns. It is not like his courses are a complete breeze. </p>

<p>Treetop, your comment, “I think a kid should either wholeheartedly embrace the school/major they are accepted into, or go somewhere else.” pretty much gets to the core of what I am thinking. My husband has a colleague on the faculty at U of I who just told him that the main hurdle is getting into engineering, and that he does not think changing majors will be hard. Of course, we will look into this more directly. But your other comments are resonating with me. My son is bright, but not super quick. I don’t really have a feel for how difficult this program will be. My husband thinks I am underestimating my son. I just know that the jump from hs level to college classes will be a big one. Your final two sentences keep replaying in my mind.</p>

<p>Man, I will be glad when this whole process is done. There still are 11 more decisions to come, so I may be soliciting more advice in comparing programs down the line!
Thank you.</p>

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<p>I gotta tell you. I researched UW for my son and was turned off to it as a choice very fast as it seems students have to apply and be accepted to many of the majors after spending 2 years doing the prereqs and the competition seemed stiff. </p>

<p>I emailed with a student who had friends who did not get into their major so stayed at UW taking other classes hoping to get in the next round. </p>

<p>In big broad terms, computer science is software=programming. Computer engineering is hardware. They are miles apart. If your son really wants to do programming, perhaps even going to Washington State if cost is a big concern would be a better place to start and try to transfer to UW later. This way if he doesn’t get in, at least he is on the track he wants to be on.</p>

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<p>Yes, Lakemom, the situation at UW is really frustrating. Like you, I have read and heard about people being closed out of the major with stellar credentials. It makes me mad to know that my son might actually be a decent candidate for getting in later (as opposed to direct admit), but we probably are not going to have him risk that. I think having to transfer later would be very hard on him. My son has been accepted to several schools now- one with a decent merit award- and he will probably end up elsewhere rather than risk not being admitted to his major at UW. </p>

<p>I don’t think my son intends to pursue a computer engineering degree. We just have to ascertain the likelihood of a change in major if he were to attend U of I. The problem with this (and the UW situation) is that I really don’t know how hard it will be for him to achieve the necessary GPA in college coursework. We know many kids who seemed to be academic stars in hs, but who find themselves struggling in college.</p>

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<p>mommeleh,</p>

<p>you are smart to think about that.</p>

<p>a lot of students who are stellar students in high school have a bit of trouble transitioning to college…and you don’t want to have him feeling the additional stress of worrying about getting the classes he needs in order to transfer majors.</p>

<p>A lot of times there are certain prereqs required to transfer, and it is a catch-22 situation–if there aren’t a lot of slots, they are often restricted to students already in the major, much less the extra stress on achieving the superior grades he will need to change majors.</p>

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<p>OP, I can’t help you with your question about Univ. of Illinois, but I wanted to chime in that if he leans more toward Computer Science, he should not seriously consider computer engineering there, unless he loves the school so much that its the entire experience (not just the education) that he is going there for. I have 3 sons, my oldest and youngest are definitely engineers and have that mindset, and skills to match. (They are good at digital electronics, making robots, CAD etc.) My middle one is a freshman in Computer Science and definitely has that mindset, teaching himself to program in junior high, and creating computer games just for the fun of it. I can’t see S1 and S3 in computer science, and I can’t see S2 in engineering, although each knows a little about the other discipline. Your son might not be as clear cut, but it looks like his interest was more in programing the robot than building it in the competition you said he was part of. Since you are willing to pay Illinois’ expensive OOS tuition (which is comparable to other oos publics and alot of privates) make sure you look around for the best fit for him. Madison has a great program (although no guarantee again to get in it), Minnesota has a good reputation; there are so many other schools to consider. Because S2 wasn’t 100% sure of his major when applying, I just made sure that the schools he considered had CS in the College of Science/Engineering rather than liberal arts as I knew his interest lied more in the STEM classes so it would be easier for him to change his mind. (Also a school which we could afford, or which offered alot of merit aid.) S1 ended up at Univ. of Minnesota and is a junior in Mechanical Engineering (lots of hard work) and S2 ended up at University of Alabama for his CS degree. Because they are generous with APs, he has already been able to take some intro. engineering courses, and some 200 and 300 level Computer Science courses his 1st semester. Now he knows that a CS major with math are the right degrees for him.</p>

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<p>boysx3, that’s a good point about the potential difficulty getting classes. I hadn’t thought of that. </p>

<p>kjcphmom, thank you for insights from your personal experience. You are right: my son was most interested in programming the robot, although he has some interest in building electronics. I think it is the logic of programming that appeals the most. So, in spite of the CE program being so well-regarded, I don’t think U of I will be a go, unfortunately. My son did apply to Wisconsin. I think it would be an ideal place for him, but he has not yet heard back. Do you know how hard it is to get in to CS there? They don’t accept students into the major at the outset; they apply later. From the website, it didn’t seem like the GPA hurdle was that high, but, if he gets accepted, we will find out what the true situation is. </p>

<p>Your point about the advantages of CS being in the college of sci/eng was one I had not thought about. I am not used to thinking about difficulties of transferring between colleges within a university, so that is a good heads up. </p>

<p>Frankly, my attitude about cost was decidedly different at the outset. I was loathe to pay the exorbitant oos tuition at some of these public unis. But, my son has worked hard and done well. He shows both an aptitude and passion for programming, so we are willing to pay more than initially planned. That said, we definitely will not pay full freight at the privates to which he has applied.</p>

<p>How cold is minnesota, compared to wisc?</p>

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<p>I agree with Treetop. My DS goes to U of I and is in one of those majors that is hard to transfer into. Several of his friends is going through process of trying to transfer into majors now and it is stressful.</p>

<p>Key with U of I is GPA. If he decides to go to U of I, then carefully monitor the classes he takes to ensure he is not in any weedout classes like Chemistry his first semester.</p>

<p>The other key is getting to know the Deans that will nake decisions. </p>

<p>Good luck! U of I is a really great school and my DS absolutely loves it. It was his perfect fit.</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>Which schools are those? Have you looked closely at their financial aid statistics? See section H2 of theCommon Data Set , especially items “c”, “d”, “i”, and H2A.
Example: [Reed</a> College 2010-11 Common Data Set SecH](<a href=“http://www.reed.edu/ir/cds/cds1011/cdssech201011.html]Reed”>Reed College 2010-11 Common Data Set SecH - Institutional Research - Reed College).</p>

<p>Generally, financial aid at selective private schools will be more generous than at OOS public schools. So, your net cost may be much lower at the private schools (if you do qualify for aid). Exceptions would include the few public universities, like Alabama, that guarantee large merit scholarships for specific GPAs and scores. </p>

<p>Smaller, selective, private schools also will tend to have much smaller classes, more undergraduate focus, students from all over the country, less bureaucracy, and more freedom (probably complete freedom) to switch majors.</p>

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<p>^^^^^^^
Agree with tk above about the cost of private schools. For the ones my son applied to, with merit aid received made the the tuitions comparable or just slightly higher than the in-state tuition for our flagship school (Madison). Just make sure they are up-to-date in CS program if you go this route.</p>

<p>OP, in response to your question re weather, Minneapolis and Madison’s weather are pretty much the same, with Minneapolis maybe getting a little more snow. Even though use to our weather, S2 didn’t want the cold and headed south for school. Also there is a different feeling/culture between the 2 schools…UMN is more urban, Madison more of a college town feeling. Visiting schools is so important.</p>

<p>Finally, and this is my opinion only, except for those State schools that have extraordinary reputations for their field like Michigan for engineering (Illinois has a good rep. for this too) why would you spend more for an OOS state school or one that does not offer merit for their undergrad degree? Unless your son truly loves the campus and can’t see himself anywhere else, most state schools will give a good/solid education. (If he gets into MIT, Carnegie-Mellon or other well-known private CS schools, then maybe its worth spending the money just for the name and connections.) S1 and S2 both went to OOS State schools because for them the merit made it less than our flagship, and I believe they are both getting an excellent education. However, if Madison was less expensive, they would be Badgers today. Good luck and I am sure whatever decision you and your son makes will be the right one.</p>

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<p>

That’s one worry I don’t think you have to have. A big school will have a critical mass of people like him. He just needs to find out where they hang out. (Linux computer clusters, board game clubs, sci fi clubs etc.) </p>

<p>My older son the CS guy refused to hedge his bets by applying to alternate CE programs, but he was very very set on what he wanted to do. Only your son can figure out by doing all the side by side comparisons what the best choice for him is. Some privates might well be worth paying full freight for, others not so much, but starting salaries for students from top programs even for the bottom students are pretty good. One word of experience - make sure your son gets summer internships and that he starts early - some companies start recruiting in the fall. :eek:</p>

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<p>Friends’ son was shut-out of UIUC’s b-school accounting program twice, once as a college applicant, and then again as an internal UIUC-transfer for sophmore year. He reportedly had the freshman-year grades suitable for transfer, but major didn’t have a spot for him. He’s scrambling to fill accounting requirements by patching together an alternate major in a different UIUC school, and is already on the “5-year plan”. He’s often noted that he’d chose another university/college had he known this situation would persist.</p>

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<p>I dont have specific knowledge of U Illinois but I was CS at a school that emphasized the Science aspect and in retrospect I would have much rather had the Engineering focus. My friends and I still joke about being able to demonstrate NP Completeness and the Pumping Lemma and how that left us completely unprepared for the job market. </p>

<p>He might want to looking into what exactly the components of the CE program are. He might find it enough to his liking that he is willing at least to start at the University in it.</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>That is just one course (theory of computation, languages, and automata) which may be required or optional for CS majors, depending on the school. If you were completely unprepared for the job market, that likely means that your selection of other CS courses was not optimal for preparing for the job market, or you attended a school with a generally weak CS department.</p>

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<p>Lacrossemom, thanks for the advice re GPA.</p>

<p>tk21769, We are not eligible for financial aid. My son has applied to a few private schools and so far received acceptances and scholarships from two. One of the privates will be a very reasonable cost. Problem is we are not too sure about the quality of the CS program. </p>

<p>kjcphman, how does one discern whether a school is up to date with its CS program? Other than a list of basic classes and the ranking of the graduate programs, how do you judge a program if you don 't have a CS background? And how far down the ranking list would you go?
Thanks for the weather info. I’m afraid we are a bit wimpy coming from the Pacific NW. But DS is young and adaptable, i guess. Why would i want to spend more for an oos public? I don’t want to !!! When I found out that our flagship (which is within biking distance of home) was good in CS, I did a major dance of joy. Then I became aware of the many kids being rejected- despite having 3.9 or 4.0 in the intro CS classes. One bad grade (ie B) in a science course, and your chance of acceptance is slim. Rather than subject him to that extreme pressure and the hardship of having to adjust to a whole new school if he had to transfer, we started looking at privates and oos schools. (our other state school with a CS program would be a very poor fit). </p>

<p>Mathmom, your comments about the ability to find a niche at the big state schools is reassuring. I have been telling myself that, but it is nice to hear it from someone else. Yes, some privates are indeed worth the full price. My son is not competitive for admission to those schools. For those to which he has applied, we will not pay upwards of 60k/year. I do wish my son had not listed CE as an alternate major on some of these applications. At our flagship the majors are very similar. Not so elsewhere, unfortunately.</p>

<p>higgins, that is what we are afraid of. If my son has to roll the dice on admission to his major, we would much prefer he do so at the flagship for 1/3 the tuition.</p>

<p>argybargy, I am intrigued. I feel I have missed out on something because I know nothing about pumping lemma. But it sounds like fun…</p>

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<p>If you aren’t eligible for FA, have you considered schools that are good with merit aid? If he is an above average applicant at one of those, you can reduce the cost by 10 or 20K.
Check out the schools in these tables: (universities and LACs are separate tables selectable on the left), you can sort by columns such as % of students receiving merit aid or average amount of merit aid. Then you have to figure based on stats whether heis in the running for merit aid at each school of interest.
[Best</a> Values in Private Colleges, 2012-13](<a href=“http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/privatecolleges/]Best”>Kiplinger | Personal Finance News, Investing Advice, Business Forecasts)</p>

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<p>I have seen that chart and have also gleaned info from cc over the years regarding schools that are generous with merit. The private colleges my son applied to were chosen with an eye toward likelihood of merit awards. He has received one very nice offer so far. We will just need to look at all the pros and cons of each school once all the offers are in hand.<br>
But thank you for your suggestion :)</p>

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<p>If he gets direct admitted to the CS major at Washington, then he should be good to go there, right? Of course, that is much harder that just getting in as an undeclared freshman, in which case the extreme competition to enter the CS major becomes a problem.</p>

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<p>You are correct, ucbalumnus. We would be over the moon if he got a direct admit, and he would absolutely go to UW. But direct admit is uber competitive. It was reported once that roughly 1400 applicants indicated they wanted CSE and only around 30 got DA, I think. My son’s SAT scores are probably not good enough.</p>

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<p>My son got rejected from CS engineering from UIUC.
He was transferring in Jr year from UIUC The University is not letting him continue CS as a Major .
What should he do now can someone please answer .
Thank you</p>

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<p>Apply somewhere else or one of the CS majors in LAS?</p>