I want to major in Computer Science, however, I’m still not sure of what I want to do with my life, just that Computer Science is something that I really want to do, not Engineering but actual code and more programming than anything else. I got accepted to both UCLA and RPI and I know that both schools are really good and I will end up paying around 8K after grants and scholarships in both schools. So, now I’m not focusing on the money but Academics and the Environment of the school. I’ve heard some pretty bad things about RPI that have made me hesitate but I don’t know if it is true. I really want to go to a school that cares about their students and their future, that if I ask for help I will most likely get it, a school that gives me opportunities and opens doors for me if I know how to take advantage of their resources. Now, I’ve heard that it is not the case with RPI but I’m not sure if that is completely true. Besides UCLA has a great reputation and it is a great school but I also feel like RPI is more concentrated on Science and Tech. Help, any info is really appreciated.
It’s just a personal opinion, but we visited both schools and I’d strongly prefer UCLA. The campus and town is so much nicer, and I think academics is better too. Also more opportunities if you decide to branch out from tech. Not even mentioning the weather.
This (1) captures Rensselaer’s academic experience, (2) probably represents why you applied in the first place and, if this emphasis aligns with your interests and personality, (3) remains a good reason to consider it further.
RPI takes care of students a bit better, being a private school. RPI has tight connections to Lawrence Livermore Labs in CA, and IBM supercomputing resources and has a supercomputer on the campus-
http://cci.rpi.edu
RPI offers a program where stay on campus the summer after sophomore year, getting lots of attention for junior year classes, taken that summer, and then go on a co op assignment in
junior year, for a semester, as part of the degree program. Its called ARCH.
Some students find this tiring, but others love ARCH.
https://science.rpi.edu/computer-science/programs/undergrad/bs-computerscience
This explains more about RPI ARCH, for computer science, students are supported in finding this work experience.
https://rpi.app.box.com/s/u4cxiexi06d57gu9zgm7cqt1l898xvf3
and more general information about ARCH
https://info.rpi.edu/arch/semester-away
UCLA students are more on their own to find summer internships in CS. There are a lot of those available in CA of course.