UCLA vs USC vs CMU on Engineering

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Currently I have admissions to CMU(CIT ECE), UCLA(EE) and USC(EE). I am sure I will go for engineering but I am not 100% sure I will be work in Computer related field. Maybe I will do Mechanic Engineering. Besides, I am shooting for grad school and a master degree either in business or in engineering.</p>

<p>I was in the dilamma which creats an equilateral triangle as CMU fits me for its academic and reputation in tech world, UCLA atrracts me for its overall reputation and Location. USC is great for the strong alumni network, and school size.</p>

<p>Speaking of UCLA, I was intimidated by the size, which can very possibly make both social life and academics suffer. As I am an international student, I dont want to spend 50000 dollars on getting lost in the crowds or getting treated as a number on campus. Besides, people seem to be a little more laid-back than I expected, and the large population of Asains is one of the concerns. Yet with beautiful campus, the resources and the location, the school attracts me. USC has higher cost yet smaller size as a private school.
I have heard Engineering students at UCLA are filled with peer pressure and heavy workloads. I am eager to know how heavy the workload can be, substantially.</p>

<p>CMU is priority in terms of academics and reputation in tech world. I am serious about education and academics, and I could be a hard worker, yet social life counts a lot to me for undergrad experience. People told me academic at CMU makes students stress out. I am curious about the workload of engineering students substantially, like how much sleep can students get or how long they have to spend on academics everyday to get a decent GPA for a great grad school like MIT or Stanford.</p>

<p>I am so unsure of the three college as I havn't visited them, (though I visited LA and it was OK), I got no gut feeling and all the judgments or comparison was based on the indirect information and unsubstantial inference.</p>

<p>I'd really appreciate someone's advice.</p>

2

<p>IF – you are like most international students I’ve met, that is, that you have much stronger foundation in math, physics and chemistry than 99.5% of US students, CMU should not be too tough for you. It will be like shooting fish in a barrel.</p>

<p>If you are as strong as most internationals, I think CMU is a nice fit. However, you will not get lost at UCLA or USC (they’re more similar in student population than people realize… UCLA just has a campus 6x as big that include a very large medical center). And USC’s supposed network has weakened substantially in business, where it pumps out 600+ grads each year, a full third of whom cannot find employment prior to graduating. Res ipsa, baby! In engineering, the “network” such as still exists has very little import.</p>

3

<p>I would not pay the $50K for UCLA. For in state students it’s often a good choice, but no way it’s worth the $50K for huge classes and over taxed resources, especially in the middle of a budget crisis IMO. Unless you have hopes of living in California after graduation (slim chance as an international) I’d choose CMU.</p>

4

<p>“People told me academic at CMU makes students stress out.”</p>

<p>All engineering programs are stressful, but rewarding, don’t believe one is worse than another. I would go with the least costly option, you have great choices and can’t really make a bad decision.</p>

5

<p>Thank you for all your advice. I am currently considering about the research and internship opportunities in UCLA and CMU as for engineering students, professional experience is important. I guess such opportunites are closer to students in CMU concerning the size of UCLA. If anyone knows about that?</p>