I’m an international student from Nepal who has applied and been admitted to both SUNY Oswego and SUNY Brockport with about equal Scholarship amounts. I’m majoring in Computer Science and would like to know suggestions on which of these colleges to go to. Ease of access to off-campus housing from second year is a priority to reduce costs for me. I’m looking forward to good research facilities and good job opportunities with satisfactory starting salary after graduating. A mild party scene with mild sports activities will do. It’s really urgent that I decide so I can sign the acceptance letters and enroll by tomorrow. Please help! Thanks in advance.
You may also want to post this in the “New York Colleges” forum, since a couple of your questions are pretty specific.
Are you looking for job opportunities in your home country or in the US? I’m not sure that international students can work in the US after graduation. @auntbea may know for sure. I think both are good schools but, as a NYS resident, I’m not really keen on international students coming here to take jobs from our children.
^ It’s not a zero-sum model. College graduates can become job creators as well.
@merc81 alright I’ll try that. Thanks 
@austinmshauri I’m not even into college and it already is a bother that I’ll take a job from the NYS children. We get to work for a year after completing our undergraduate studies and I just wanted to know which education would allow me to get a better salary to clear atleast a little of the education loan my parents will have to take to sponsor 4 years of education in one of these colleges
Both campuses are very similar. I do not know enough about the Comp Sci programs at either school to make a recommendation for career prospects, but to be honest I doubt there is much difference. Aside from academics, there is not a lot of differences between the two schools. Both are in smaller upstate NY towns, so cost of living will be quite reasonable. Both have pretty active party scenes if you are looking for that, with some sports, but not of the “big league” sort that you would find at a large American state flagship university.
Seems like a toss up, doesn’t it? The areas and colleges look very similar. You’d probably find cheap off-campus housing in both towns. The closest post-graduation jobs to both are liable to be Rochester, Buffalo or Syracuse – so at that point you’ll need a car and will probably have to relocate. So neither one has an edge that way.
I’ve checked into Brockport a bit because a recruiter came here (we’re in your general area) and made a good impression on my son, but I don’t know about Oswego. Brockport’s Delta College is interesting if you’ve looked at that, though maybe not so much for a science focus. Searching CC threads for Brockport, I find one that says that Brockport and Binghamton are the only SUNYs with accredited comp sci programs, which if it’s true, might give it an edge in your case over Oswego. I’m not sure if that’s old info or if it even matters in comp sci, but just FYI.
You might end up needing to go by “gut feeling.” Look up student reviews of both places, YouTube videos, etc to get a sense of what the campuses and student bodies are like and see if either one comes up with an edge.
Either way, congrats on the funding, and pack warm! Lots of snow up there!
^Actually, DO NOT “pack warm” since you’re only allowed one suitcase for the entire year and the clothes you pick for cold weather may not be appropriate for the type of cold found here (bringing hats, sarves, and mittens is okay, but a coat in a suitcase is probably not a good idea).
Academically, Brockport’s top 25% students scored 1150 and higher on CR+M SAT , or 25 and higher on the ACT. Oswego’s top 25% scored 1200 or 27. Their GPA range is the same (top 25% at 93%) and both have honors options.
You may want to look into the regular offerings in CS, what advantages the Honors College offers (ie., priority registration, honors housing, trips/cultural opportunities, how many honors classes are offered each semester, etc.)
It’s usually two suitcases internationally, at least on Qatar or Gulf, which I assume would be the route. But yeah, no sense stuffing a coat in if it’s from a shopping mall since they’re overpriced in comparison to what can be found in the US and not as good quality. And the upstate NY cold is very biting and harsh, so unless you’ve got a great deal at a trekking shop (on genuine cold-weather gear), it’s probably best to wait. Thermals pack well though. But maybe it’s best just to pack a hardy mentality and an appreciation for the chance to get to know snow really, really well
@Avrauniyar, I’m sorry to have been so harsh. You’re just a teen, so you have no way of knowing what the business atmosphere has been like here. I live in Downstate NY and one of the largest employers of CS people has been laying off thousands of people at a time for as long as I’ve lived in the area (over 20 years). Earlier this year, [another round of layoffs](Anatomy Of A Layoff: How IBM Is Likely To Spin This Week's Force Reduction) put thousands of my neighbors out of work.
I’ve known people who were forced to transfer cross country to keep their job (which meant selling their home, changing their kids’ schools, and leaving elderly parents) only to be let go from the new plant. Others were laid off and couldn’t find work (the area can’t absorb thousands of CS people at a time) and went through their savings and their kids’ college funds just trying to keep their homes in a market where nobody was buying. Many were unsuccessful.
It’s aggravating to watch a company lay off thousands of my neighbors while constantly posting ads for interns. However, none of that is your fault. NYS has some very good public schools and you’ll be able to get a good education at any of them. It is very (and I do mean VERY) cold here in the winter. I agree with the point upthread about waiting until you get here to shop for a winter coat. L.L. Bean has nice ones (you can order them online), Sears has decent ones (Land’s End 4-in-1 parkas), and (if you don’t mind used) some of our college towns have Salvation Army Stores and Goodwill Stores that sell good used items. They help provide services to people who are struggling, so I support them when I can.
Good luck to you.