UC Berkeley EECS vs CS?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
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<p>I was fortunate enough to be admitted to Berkeley EECS, but I’m wondering whether it would make sense to transfer into L&S CS. I was hoping for some advice concerning the long term differences between a B.A. degree in CS versus a B.S. degree in EECS. </p>

<p>Since I’m probably going to take option IV in EECS (mostly CS classes with the two required EE ones), and I know the CS classes I’d take would be exactly the same, would transferring to L&S make my 4 years at Berkeley easier?</p>

<p>Specifically, I’m looking for any input concerning jobs / internships and how companies view the CS and EECS degrees differently if I'm taking the CS route anyway. Just based on everything I’ve heard I believe the EECS degree has a little more prestige, but I could be completely wrong when it comes to jobs. I know that EECS will be incredibly competitive (not that UCB CS will be easy by any means..), but I’m not sure I want to spend a lot of time on the two required EE classes if I’m not particularly interested in hardware. </p>

<p>However, any information at all I can get on the differences between the two degrees (core requirements, etc) would be greatly appreciated. </p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

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<p>You are right, a BS does sound a bit better than a BA but it won’t make much of a difference. Both give you equal employment opportunities.</p>

<p>In terms of requirements, I think L&S doesn’t require all the Math and Physics that EECS does. Also, EE20N isn’t really an EE class, it covers very general concepts applicable to lots of fields. EE40 is the only real EE class you will have to take as an EECS major. They are both introductory classes and not “incredibly competitive” either.</p>

<p>I think the biggest difference between those two may be the perks you get by being an EECS student in the CoE. I think there are services/events/organizations/career fairs, etc that are only available to EECS majors. Though I don’t have any concrete examples.</p>

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<p>From what I’ve read so far (I was choosing between the L&S major and the CoE major as well), the only difference is that the EECS major puts more emphasis on the EE classes than the L&S CS major does. The EE classes are pretty hard, but not unmanageable, according to my friend in the major right now (He’s a straight 4.0 student with minimal effort on his part, so I think the classes might be a bit harder than he makes them out to be). Also, the Berkeley CoE as a whole is harder to get into (statistically lower admit rate), which could mean that it’s a bit more competitive.</p>

<p>If you’re not too interested in hardware (which is what more EE classes would promote, or at least that’s what I think), the L&S major might be better for you. The EECS major would provide you more opportunities in a wider variety of fields.</p>

<p>To chime in about the B.S. vs B.A. argument, I really don’t think it should make that much of a difference in terms of employment opportunities. Having a CS degree from Berkeley is already a great asset for finding a job in the Silicon Valley. :)</p>

<p>Also, in my opinion, the EECS degree would definitely carry more prestige.</p>

<p>With all that said, I chose the L&S CS major. :D</p>

<p>disclaimer: I’m not sure if this post is very factual</p>

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<p>Since you already got into EECS and it’s really hard to get into EECS, you might as well just stick with it instead of switching into CS. But that means you’ll have to take Physics 7A/7B, Math 53, and EE 20, whereas a CS major won’t have to take any of those. EE 20 may be a good general interest class though.</p>

<p>From my view, the prestige in EECS makes it so that it’s not worth switching out of or into.</p>

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<p>Job wise, both are well recruited at Berkeley:
<a href=“https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Major.stm[/url]”>https://career.berkeley.edu/Major/Major.stm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>For upper division major courses, EECS give you the option to take all EE, all CS, or any mix that you want. L&S CS requires at least 6 upper division CS courses plus one upper division technical elective (which may be CS, EE, or from several other departments). EECS is more flexible in this respect if you have interest in taking EE courses.</p>

<p>EECS requires Physics 7A-7B, Math 53, and EE 20N. It also requires EE 40 instead of EE 42.</p>

<p>Breadth requirements differ in that CoE does not let you AP out of R&C B, and requires at least two upper division humanities and social studies courses, but does not specify subcategories that L&S 7-course breadth does (e.g. art/literature, history, international, philosophy/values, social science, biology, physical science). CoE breadth requires at least two courses in the same department (including at least one upper division), while L&S 7-course breadth allows at most two courses in the same department.</p>

<p>L&S CS is not ABET accredited, although ABET accreditation is not much of an issue in CS hiring. EECS (CSE option) is ABET accredited for computer science and engineering.</p>

<p>L&S CS may be easier to schedule if you want to do a second major in another L&S department.</p>

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</p>

<p><a href=“https://hkn.eecs.berkeley.edu/[/url]”>https://hkn.eecs.berkeley.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>(However, all students are welcome to look at the old exams and course/instructor surveys.)</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the replies!</p>

<p>My biggest worry about sticking with EECS is that although I would like the opportunity to take some EE classes to see if I could potentially like hardware, I don’t want to risk the blow to my GPA (since I kind of suck at physics :)). On the same note, I wouldn’t want whatever added prestige I receive from the EECS degree (if any, of course) to be negated by the drop in GPA, which I know is pretty important to get initial interviews for jobs / internships / research positions even. </p>

<p>Does anybody have any personal experience with employers valuing an EECS degree over the L&S CS degree?</p>