I understand that this forum is probably visited more by UIUC prospective/current students/parents so responses to my question might be a bit skewed.
Nevertheless, I want to get opinions of How U of I CS program (@College of Engineering) compares to other Premier Public Schools specifically UT Austin, UW (Seattle), UC Berkeley in terms of Internships/Research opportunities, Job Prospects, College Experience. There are rankings out there and sometimes rankings don’t tell a complete story.
Thanks in advance!
I don’t think theres anyone who really could answer that question. You’re asking to compare 4 schools to people who most likely can’t say much about 3 of them.
In terms of UIUC, there’s plenty of internship opportunities, since the college of engineering (CS kids in LAS are welcome too) hosts a career fair every semester, and the CS department does even more. As a freshman your best bet is in Champaign’s research park since a lot of outside companies don’t really hire freshmen. Job prospects are very good, people go all over the country/world. If you want to work in Chicago, this is probably the best place to go. Research opportunities are there if you talk to professors, but I personally wish that the university/college gave more resources to help find stuff. Just find a prof thats doing something you like and shoot them an email. College experience is great, the school is so huge you can find just about any social group or event you like: go party, just chill with a small group, bash some fash, there’s always stuff happening on campus and the experience is great imo.