<p>I really cannot decide between the two. UIUC has a much better known CS program, but I've heard great things about USC's as well!</p>
<p>Ugh...can anyone weigh in?</p>
<p>I have a ton of friends who went to UIUC for computer science. It’s a much better program than USC, IMHO. Supposedly Microsoft hires more CS grads from UIUC than from any other school.</p>
<p>This assumes that you’re in-state, of course. If you’re out of state then the cost differential isn’t that much and unfortunately U of I is as broke as every other state school these days. Still, CS is one of UIUC’s core strengths.</p>
<p>In addition, I’m not really the party type of guy. I’d much rather chill with friends(go out to eat, have fun in the city) than get wasted at a party.</p>
<p>I think I may have posted this somewhere else verbatim, but:</p>
<p>What do you want to do with your CS degree/while getting your CS degree? If it’s making games, USC no question.</p>
<p>I’m from Chicago and the MAJORITY of my friends go to UIUC, most for computer/engineering stuff because it really is one of the best places for that. With that said:</p>
<ol>
<li>USC is in a far, far better location than UIUC. I have friends who are MISERABLE living in Urbana/Champaign because there is nothing to look at but cornfields for miles and miles. I have never not lived in a city, and if I all of a sudden have to live in the middle of cornfields for four years I would be miserable.</li>
<li>UIUC has more of a party scene than USC, in my opinion, and they have a huge Greek system just like ours. As you said, you’re not a party guy - you just want to go out and “have fun in the city”… well, there isn’t really a city in UIUC. In fact, most of my friends only party because that’s all they feel there is to do there.</li>
<li>USC has a wider variety of programs (minors, study abroad, etc) than UIUC. Almost all of my friends at USC have a double major or a minor and have studied abroad, whereas NONE of my friends at UIUC do either of those things because they feel restricted by their courseload. USC really encourages you to explore all of your interests, as it’s in a global city and understands that it needs to cater to a global audience.</li>
<li>Financial aid-wise, it’s kind of a toss-up. UIUC’s tuition will probably rise quite a bit in the next few years, especially for out-of-state students, due to our state’s economy. UIUC barely provides aid for in-state students, so you would likely pay full tuition unless you received a scholarship. USC, on the other hand, has incredible financial aid and provides heavy need-based aid along with merit-based aid for both in- and out-of-state students.</li>
<li>Of course, UIUC comes with a cheaper cost of living because it’s not a dense, urban environment like Los Angeles.</li>
<li>I think in general USC is more well-regarded/highly ranked than UIUC across all categories.</li>
<li>If you’re planning on working in California… USC has an extensive network of alumni here.</li>
</ol>
<p>The reputations of most academic departments are based on their graduate programs. For an undergraduate CS degree, I wouldn’t worry too much about which department has a better reputation. Illinois and USC are both highly-regarded, and for the most part, you’ll take the same core of CS courses in either school.</p>
<p>That said, if you’re interested in particular types of computer applications, certain schools offer programs with emphasis in particular areas. As already alluded to, USC is known for using computers for entertainment purposes, so it offers lots of opportunity in areas like games, graphics, and special effects for movies and broadcast. I haven’t paid too much attention to Illinois recently, but 20 or so years ago, it was THE place to go if you wanted to use supercomputers to do simulations and produce amazing graphics animations.</p>
<p>I agree with most of what’s been said - I came to USC from the Chicago suburbs as well - and especially with the point that Chambana (Champaign-Urbana, as they used to refer to it) is ridiculously boring. Like so many land grant schools, it’s huge and in the middle of nowhere. U of I is 2 hours south of Chicago and Urbana and Champaign are basically rotten mid-size industrial cities like Peoria in which you’ll do everything there is to do in the first week you’re there and after that you’ll die of boredom. Not the case with USC.</p>
<p>However, UIUC is a STEM <em>powerhouse</em> with highly ranked programs virtually across the board. Science isn’t USC’s strength (while UCLA’s medical school is top 5-10, ours is top 30-40) but the liberal arts aren’t exactly UIUC’s strength. Also, as mentioned above, USC’s tech programs are strong in that, like the rest of the university, they have a great creative bent. If you want to design video games, USC has the program that’s consistently ranked #1 in the country. But were you to want to design machines (CE/EE rather than CS) then UIUC and a few other schools might be ranked more highly.</p>