UC Berkeley vs UIUC

Hello there!

So I was offered early admission (but not Regents) as an out-of-state student to Berkeley for its EECS program. Yet at the same time, UIUC had offered me admission to attend for CS in the College of Engineering.

Both programs are very highly ranked, though one thing I usually always find is that people seem to rank Berkeley higher than UIUC, at least for Computer Science. My questions:

  1. How much better is Berkeley’s EECS program that UIUC CS?

  2. Is it worth it to spend an extra 25-30k per year going to Berkeley instead of UIUC, even if they have a better program?

  3. Which school has the arguably better social.party scene? (would like a work hard, play hard experience from college)

So far, based off what I’ve heard from family and friends, I’m a little bit biased towards UIUC as I can’t imagine going to Berkeley over UIUC would be worth the almost 100k+ over the course of college - and that’s not even including potential graduate school costs (if I decide to go that route).

Side note: I’m not too worried about location. I’ve visited both campuses already (both were my top choices) so I have a very good idea about campus life and weather. I’m somewhat used to the crummy Illinois weather, so I can’t really say that Berkeley would be a better fit in that regard.

Forgot to mention that I am an Illinois resident, so I would pay in-state tuition for UIUC (but OOS for Berkeley).

Congrats! Berkeley has prestige and certainly is much more selective overall, even if not in CS that is also very selective at UIUC. I’d venture that top to bottom, you will see most students in other majors almost as qualified as those in the CS program. The same will not be true at UIUC. Even though a top rated state flagship, it simply isn’t nearly as selective for other programs. Berkeley is the premier public university in the country for good reason.

On the flip side, Cal also a public university and suffers from budgetary issues and other problems like a deteriorating campus and housing shortages. While it may be a tier above UIUC overall, it’s also not going to provide the same experience as a smaller private like MIT, Cal Tech, etc. For example, it will tend to also have higher student-to-faculty ratios and larger class sizes more like UIUC than a Stanford or CMU. On the plus side, if your goal is to get a job in silicon valley or California after your undergraduate degree, you’ll probably have better networking through Berkeley, though UIUC certainly has excellent placement for CS grads, too.

What I told my son was that if you excel with an engineering degree at UIUC, you’ll probably get grad school paid at Berkeley or similar school if you decide to go that route. If cost is not an issue, then choose which ever one gave you the best vibe. You really can’t go wrong with a CS degree from either school!

When you compare costs, make sure you do for all four years. UC system is having another big increase this year from what I’ve read, and will compound each year I’m sure. Plus, after your first year you may have additional housing expenses as housing isn’t guaranteed and off campus apartments can cost a small fortune. As you may know, Illinois froze its tuition for residents AND you are locked into the same rate for all four years for tuition and university housing. Even off campus housing is relatively inexpensive in CU.

Congrats for getting in. There are pros and cons to both.

UCB pluses: one of the most recognizable names, more companies recruiting, although that is only true about small startups and obviously better weather.

UIUC pluses: very well regarded program, all big names companies recruiting, likely $120k cheaper overall, you will have a much better chance to stand out in the crowd.

Now the nasty things:
UIUC not much besides weather.

UCB

Seems like Everyone is not answering everything you’re asking. So let me tell you some things from my bucket of knowledge

(1) The only reason Berkley’s Computer Science program is ranked higher than UIUC’s is simply due to the overall recognition and prestige of Berkley as a whole. Computer Science at UIUC is the single most selective major there and there is a HEAVY emphasis on it as they give CS the most attention. As far as a head to head comparison, the differences are negligible. Both are world-class CS programs and in terms of employment and recruitment, I would say both are relatively equal. Though Berkley is a more prestigious institution in the public eye, thankfully, employers recognize the quality of UIUC’s CS as well. It would just depend on which University is your cup of tea. I would say there would be more networking opportunities at Berkley, as UIUC’s networking go-to, Chicago, is roughly 3 hours away (Some say networking is relatively difficult due to UIUC’s Location).

(2) I would say it’s not worth it if you ONLY want to go simply due to the higher CS ranking at Berkley. Berkley’s EECS is without a doubt world class, but we are comparing TWO world class CS programs, and spending possibly 100k more over the course of 4 years would not be a very intelligent thing to do.

(3) UIUC’s party scene is insane.There’s parties throughout the week and many of them are open parties. Unofficial (UIUC’s celebration of Saint Paddy’s day) is probably the single biggest party day out of any college in the world. UIUC literally bribes Bars with money to close it’s services for that day. Im sure Berkley has a decent party scene, as most UC schools do. But naturally, most of the party orientated kids are weeded out of the admissions at Berkley since it is extremely selective. On the contrary, other than Buisness, Engineering, and certain LAS majors, it is not very hard for crazed party kids to get into UIUC. UIUC will definitely give you a more “traditional” college experience from a social stand-point since competition will be less severe and the academic atmosphere is not as strong as Berkley. This is not a dig at UIUC, just a nod to the academic excellence of Berkley.

In terms of the quality of education in your field, both are superb.

In terms of the ability to find a job afterward with a degree from either, you will do very well either way.

In terms of which is higher ranked, I don’t care. They are both great.

“we are comparing TWO world class CS programs”

Exactly right.

“Is it worth it to spend an extra 25-30k per year going to Berkeley”

If your parents have at least $1,000,000 in the bank and will have no trouble paying in full with no debt, maybe but probably not. If your parents have less than this in the bank or particularly if you need loans, then IMHO no it is not worth the difference in price.

By the way, Congratulations!