I’m a transfer student looking to matriculate into either UC Santa Cruz or UC Davis as a computer science major. I’m thinking of getting a job at a game design company like Blizzard after graduating, which would indicate UCSC for the game design degree, but I’ve heard that getting a straight CS degree is actually better in the long run anyway. That said, UCSC would provide me with the opportunity of taking Game Design classes on the side while still going CS, though I’m not sure how vital that would actually be. UCSC is also closer to Silicon Valley, but Davis isn’t terribly far either and I wonder how large a difference that actually makes.
UC Davis is also more prestigious than UCSC is, but I haven’t heard much about its CS department. Is there a difference? Do employers hire more from Davis than UCSC? Is Davis “better” than UCSC? These are the sorts of things I’m wondering.
On another note, I’m planning on eventually getting a Masters degree in Creative Writing (big jump, I know) preferably from an Ivy League. Would they smile more upon Davis than UCSC? Just because of the prestige, I assume they would. I would also likely need to at least minor in creative writing, which I believe they both offer.
My number 1 pick is actually UC San Diego, but given that they don’t have a TAG (or creative writing minor) and I’ve heard of them rejecting 4.0s, I’d like to be safe and prepare for UCD or UCSC.
Both schools will land you excellent jobs. Employers in the area are happy with graduates and interns from either. Building a portfolio of your work, taking the right courses, and maybe getting in some research work is what will distinguish you.
I absolutely believe you should get a CS degree rather than game design. Game design might be appealing to you at 17 or 18 but in future years your interests will likely move into other areas (medical or astronomical imaging, finances, communication etc). Your idea to take a general CS degree while picking up some game design classes at Santa Cruz sounds like a good one. Try to visit both schools and research the CS programs a bit more to see if one feels better to you than another.
My D’s has the same goal and when doing research was given the same advice. She was originally shooting for UCSC but is now aiming for UCI as it has one of the best CS programs, and the game development industry is centered in LA more than the Bay or SD. So you might want to consider UCI over UCD.
UCSC is still a great choice though and you could take Game Design classes on the side like you said.
If you really want to do games, my advice is get the Game Design degree. There’s enough CS in the program to allow you to get a job doing non-games programming, but with the Game Design degree you’d have a portfolio that would get you a leg up on a CS grad without a portfolio. (The caveat is that it’s not easy to make a living writing computer games.)
I’ve worked with several people with CS/Games-type degrees that moved very easily into non-games software jobs. Most people who write software for a living don’t have a CS degree in the first place, so not having a straight CS degree isn’t a big deal.
Both UCSC and UC Davis are well respected in the CS world. I’d go with whichever school or program you like best and not worry about rankings or prestige.