I am currently a sophomore in high school and I’m a little overwhelmed by the vast amount of colleges and universities out there. I’d appreciate some help from anyone that’s willing to help me focus on where I want to go to school! (& yes, I’ve used college filters and whatnot. they never seem to help.)
One of the biggest factors for me is class size. I feel like I won’t be able to learn being lectured to in an auditorium. I understand many entry-level classes are like this, but I don’t want that situation all four years of college.
That being said, I don’t want to go to a LAC with small class sizes where a degree in computer science (something I’m very interested in, but that’s not set in stone) would be next to worthless. Lots of “good” computer science schools have enormous class size. I also have some interest in history/religion so I can then head to law school.
I like the idea of College of William & Mary, Wake Forest, etc., that combine both my want of small class sizes with good programs in computer science. These schools aren’t weak in the liberal arts, either.
I also really want to participate in ROTC. I think it would provide me with a great career in computer science, plus ROTC scholarships are awesome.
To sort of qualify me for any colleges you suggest, here are my stats:
ACT composite 31 (hope to improve as I’m only a sophomore)
PSAT 180 (haven’t taken SAT)
EC’s aren’t great but I have a few and a plan to expand that part of my resume.
… I don’t suppose you have ever heard of Harvey Mudd. Although some liberal arts colleges don’t offer computer science as a major, it is a misconception to conclude that they cannot have a strong computer science department. You may also want to consider the University of Rochester.
If you are that serious about computer science, then you should reconsider ROTC. The military is probably not going to have you working as a computer scientist or programmer. Then your degree is not very valuable (not “worthless” however). Nothing wrong with doing ROTC and majoring in computer science. Just don’t plan on using your degree in the military.
As far as choosing a college. With a 31 on the ACT, you would eligible for an Honors program at most colleges, and often honors classes are small. So, look for that at state schools in particular. In fact, I can highly recommend the Honors Tutorial College at Ohio University (not Ohio State). Amazing! Take a look. http://www.ohio.edu/honors/future-students/
Wake Forest, William and Mary, etc… are good choices for what you seem to want. So, you are thinking in the right direction (although I disagree that a computer science degree from an LAC is worthless). Take a look at Rice University, Tulane, and U.Rochester (as mentioned above).
@NROTCgrad obviously you know much more about this than I do, but don’t all branches of the military, save for perhaps the Coast Guard, make heavy use of computer scientists when modeling possible strategies, logistics, and in cyber security operations?
To the OP, I’ve found that sitting in the front and center of a class does wonders to mitigate the feeling of being just a number in an enormous class. For instance, I’m in a programming class of 150 and by the third day the professor knew my name, major, and hometown because after class I ask questions regarding the day’s lecture material. That being said it’s perfectly understandable why you’d be hesitant regarding large classes.
Take a look at some of the masters degrees universities. These schools lack doctoral students meaning they limit the professor to teaching relatively small classes. For instance in the Bay Area of San Francisco, San Jose State and Santa Clara University have comprehensive CS programs. They also have smaller classes because they lack phD students who would normally be tasked with leading lab sections.
It’s good that you’re considering places like Wake and College of William and Mary. Case Western is another possibility which also has strong arts programs thanks to a number of university partnerships. Brandeis too is fundamentally a liberal arts school with a strong CS program. There are plenty of others, many of which can provide a superb education in both the humanities and computer science.
True, however those computer scientists are often, perhaps mainly, civilians working at the Pentagon. Plus, the purpose of ROTC is to produce more broadly trained officers, not technical specialists (see final paragraph below).
If a person really wants to be involved with computers in the military, then I recommend bypassing ROTC and the academies. Simply get your computer degree, then approach the military and negotiate your job assignment. If they do not guarantee you a computer job, then you can turn them down. Entering the military through ROTC reduces this leverage dramatically. They already have you, and can afford to ignore your preferences.
By way of example, I majored in Civil Engineering and was commissioned through NROTC. Naturally, I applied for the Navy’s Civil Engineering Corps… but was turned down. If I had not done NROTC, I could have told the Navy “it’s the Civil Engineering Corps or nothing.”
NROTCgrad and whenhen: I really appreciate all of the info. But NROTCgrad, I’m going to have to disagree with you about a computer science degree not being put to work through ROTC. A major in computer science is one of the best ways to enter in the fast-growing field of Information Warfare. My dad is currently in the USAF serving with a cyber division (although he’s definitely not a cyber officer). He knows I’m interested in cyber warfare, and tries to get as much info as he can out of his co-workers. All of that information has led me to computer science.
Again, thanks so much for the info. It will be very helpful in my decision making!
^what NROTC grad is saying is that you’ll get a commission where you’re needed and that may not be in CS, especially if they have civilian CS/CSE workers (and no civilian workers for the job they can assign their ROTC recruits, because civilians have a choice and recruits don’t). You’ll be assigned somewhere and won’t have a say, to a certain extent, even if it’s not a CS job. So, it might be a CS position, but probably not for the few years after college.
In addition, I hear ROTC scholarships have been greatly reduced. They’re not as “easy” to get as 10 years ago (well, not that they were “easy to get” but in comparison!!!)
Investigate colleges with cybersecurity certificates for the CS degree.
@mauisim sorry for my short answer, maybe you meant “worthless” as hyperbole but it is just a ridiculous thing to say. Most LACs may not have as wide or deep CS depts as universities but that doesn’t mean you aren’t still going to have the basic components of a CS degree done very well. They also have smaller classes that you wanted and it doesn’t mean you won’t have good outcomes. I plugged Grinnell into Linked in and quite a number of employees came up working at Epic a healthcare technology/software company in Madison as software devs etc. They are there along with CS grads of tech colleges like RIT (my daughter had a friend from there working there) and UW Madison. My daughter remarked that she was glad to have gone to a college with smaller CS classes than the large department she TA’d for in grad school at Madison. You certainly can look at LAC and find ones where you will get enough of a CS education that you need.
Yes, you might be able to enter the computer field through ROTC. I am only saying that you cannot count on it, and that it is more likely that you would not get assigned to a computer science position. Anything can happen. The Air Force might make you a logistics officer, or a missle officer, or something else besides computers. No guarantee that you will get what you want. Bypassing ROTC increases your chances of getting what you want.