<p>Yes Bone, I agree. FAFSA, I believe, expects way too high an amount from a middle class family, but eventually the middle class family of a freshman becomes the financially struggling family of an upperclassman…at least after they’ve been cleaned out the first two years anyway ;).</p>
<p>Haha. I wonder how often that actually happens. I bet a lot when you factor in younger kids starting college before their older siblings are finished.</p>
<p>a college’s reputation isnt everything. sure, urbana may be a top university, but UIC is very competitive as well. The class work is rigorous and difficult. but it is much more important to decide which college to go to based upon how happy you’d be at both. Some people would rather live in the city, while others would be happier in the middle of a cornfield. it all just depends on what you want!</p>
<p>Oh you’ll work hard at UIC, just as you’d work hard at UIUC, but a degree from the flagship is a bigger door opener than a degree from UIC. Once you get the interview, no matter where you’re from, you need to sell yourself.</p>
<p>@NAFTA
Your basing all of your opinion off of 1 transfer student? Well, my friend who got his bachelors degree from UIC in mechanical engineering and his Masters at UIUC in Aerospace Engineering said they where pretty much the same level of difficulty. So, you are actually not correct.</p>
<p>I have taken classes at UIUC, UIC, and two different community colleges. Community college’s difficulty depends on the professor but most professors tend to be slightly easier than UIC or UIUC (not by much). I have taken classes at both UIC and UIUC and believe me they are the exact same difficulty. It’s just that for some reason in today’s society people get recognized as being smarter/more intelligent/ recieving a better education just for attending UIUC… when really it is the exact same difficulty. You simply get taught the same material anywhere you go, even community colleges… It’s school… i dont get why there is so much competition on where you attend school, it should be what you come out of that school learning… UIC is just as difficult as UIUC in my opinion.</p>
<p>uiuc is overrated…uic is underrated</p>
<p>I suppose Harvard & Princeton teach basically the same material, too. I can put regular gasoline in a Mercedes as well as a Chrysler, but it’s obvious which car you’d rather have, no?</p>
<p>Good post people! Appreciate everyone’s contribution, but the bottom line is, what is the main point of education? Some of us might actually enjoy it but definitely rather spent time laying on the beach, but we want to get a good start in life and good financially stable job, without going inverview after interview after interviews. So it doesn’t matter if dorm stinks or if corns are around or if nightclubs walking distance. After all we are there for determined time, with determined focus to secure a well paying job right after graduation. So lets consider that. I woud appreciate responses and recommendations on which school is better UIC or UIUC for Civil or Industrial Engineering? I don’t care how campus looks neither where i have to live, but how good of a job financially I can get and how fast after any of these, specially nowadays. Thank you in advance.</p>
<p>UIUC rejects kids (not all but some) that UIC accepts in engineering. WHy? because they think those kids wouldn’t be successful with the rigorous course load at UIUC. </p>
<p>So UIUC kids with a 33-36 ACT get A’s and B’s in those classes, but have truly struggled to get those grades. What would the 26 ACT kid (who ended up at UIC) get in the same class, had he gone to UIUC? Probably wouldn’t have passed. The grades are based on curves, and therefore, those less bright kids wouldn’t have survived it.</p>
<p>Remember, these top students beat the pants off the UIC kids in high school too.</p>
<p>Sorry. The rigor and competition is way stronger at UIUC.</p>
<p>Please just let this thread die. It is just filled with misinformation on both sides. Homerism at its worst. I never knew UIUC and UIC people detested each other so much (probably because in reality they don’t). Give it a rest.</p>
<p>boneh3ad, I do not think anyone detests anyone from either school, but the OP and others truly wonder what the differences are between the 2 campuses. If you’re not from Illinois, or have not done a lot of research, you might not realize how differently the 2 schools are perceived. True the student should go where ever he/she decides is the best fit, but before investing their time and money he/she should be free to hear pros/cons of both schools from people who have attended both schools. Biases aside, perceptions are reality to many.</p>
<p>Take a quick look at the original post. Note the date. This thread is SIX AND A HALF YEARS OLD. The OP is irrelevant at this point. Every few months, someone revives it by throwing out an opinion (usually of an inflammatory nature) and then several other people then chime in on the flame war and then it dies. This thread needs to be locked and forgotten and next time someone has a question about the two it won’t be answered on the backdrop of all this ridiculousness.</p>
<p>umm d101parent did you read what you just wrote?</p>
<p>You base your opinion on no concrete evidence that UIUC is more rigorous than UIC other then some statistics about ACT scores. You said “PROBABLY wouldn’t have passed.” I assume you didn’t go to college after reading that! Did you even read what people said when they attended both schools? It is the same difficulty. </p>
<p>@Savant007 You are another example of someone just talking out of their ass. This can not be trivialized education with your absurd automotive example. If you look at the hard facts, you will find that Princeton and Harvard graduates earn extraordinarily average wadges when they get out of school an years on. </p>
<p>This whole debate stems from a deeper problem with some graduates from prestigious schools, and that is they can’t abide others who went to another university. </p>
<p>I had no problem getting a job at an international company out of UIC, and I am working with UIUC graduates. A few of my friends that graduated from UIUC are making the same amount I am, and are performing equivalent to I am. Others who picked the wrong majors from high class universities are unemployed right now. </p>
<p>Show hard evidence that UIUC is more rigorous. I think UIUC graduates attacking so much on this thread is proof that UIC does have something, because they are very threatened by us.<br>
(My degree is in science not English, so please forgive my grammar)</p>
<p>I’ve met people who have gone to both schools. When asked what school is harder, the general consensus is that it is not an easy answer. It depends on the class and the individual. </p>
<p>All generally agree both schools will give you a good education.</p>
<p>@Helicased. And your “defending” with such ardor suggests an inferiority complex, methinks. Additionally, by apologizing for your lack of grammatical skill due to your majoring in science fully depicts your inadequate education as well as a careless willingness to excuse yourself from a higher standard of excellence, to which you will certainly reply with a predictable personal insult. UIUC requires all its applicants to submit two (2) essays for admission. The ability to express one’s thoughts clearly and skillfully is a serious matter at UIUC regardless of one’s major. There is never an acceptable excuse for bad grammar. Oh, and just for the record, I attended NIU.</p>
<p>A couple of points: I agree with Bonehead to let this post die. </p>
<p>However, I would like to add an addendum to my previous post. I recently took a trip out to UIC to take a look at the Jane Addams museum, and therefore got a chance to look at the campus, something I haven’t done in years. I was pleasantly surprised at how really nice the campus looks, and it obviously has made tremendous gains over the past decade or so. There is a tremendous amount of research going on at the campus. It has become a viable alternative in Illinois. More people are choosing this option for cost and other reasons and there really is nothing wrong with UIC.</p>
<p>I admit my previous post is based on biases. However, those biases unfortunately still do exist in Illinois. Maybe the campuses are equal as far as rigor (I do not know) but there still is an impression out there that one surpasses the other. Whether or not that will make a difference in future employment? I don’t know.</p>
<p>i would feel bad about all of this, but I make more money then my friends that went to UIUC, so you decide what is the better school…</p>
<p>Savant007:
YOU: And your “defending” with such ardor suggests an inferiority complex, methinks. </p>
<p>Me: Methinks you are saying I have inferiority complex, because you have no proof to back up any of your previous claims. So you resort to the childish ad hominem responses. </p>
<p>You: Additionally, by apologizing for your lack of grammatical skill due to your majoring in science fully depicts your inadequate education as well as a careless willingness to excuse yourself from a higher standard of excellence, to which you will certainly reply with a predictable personal insult.</p>
<p>Me: And this has what to do with what is a better school? ME THINKS YOU NEED PROOF. I am making more than my UIUC friends, explain that one buddy?</p>
<p>You: UIUC requires all its applicants to submit two (2) essays for admission. The ability to express one’s thoughts clearly and skillfully is a serious matter at UIUC regardless of one’s major.</p>
<p>Me: Since when has the number of essay’s a school requires to write has ANYTHING to do with how good the school is? You’re telling me if a school had 100 essays you had to write, it would be better based on that? That seems silly to me. </p>
<p>You: The ability to express one’s thoughts clearly and skillfully is a serious matter at UIUC regardless of one’s major.</p>
<p>Me: Obvious you are not an engineer. See, engineers do require basic grammar skills, but our job depends heavily on other skills. </p>
<p>You: The ability to express one’s thoughts clearly and skillfully is a serious matter at UIUC regardless of one’s major. There is never an acceptable excuse for bad grammar.</p>
<p>Me: Okay, do you realize the logical problems with this statement and assumptions? You assume that if a college does not require multiple essays they don’t put any weight at all on English. This just doesn’t make sense at all does it? When UIC requires you to take core classes, and yes a few of those are English. I personally, have had very little interest in English, and that is my fault, not the universities. Going off of what you wrote, you are not the king of the English language either lol!</p>
<p>You: Oh, and just for the record, I attended NIU.</p>
<p>Me: Then why are you on this forum?</p>
<p>I attended UIC my freshman year, and now I am a sophomore at UIUC. I took intro to programming at UIC, and I did not think it adequately prepared me for UIUC CS classes. I had a lot self-learn a lot of things in the beginning of the semester and I believe many students were ahead of me. Another thing that I noticed in UIC, is that there were a few students that went to office hours, while at UIUC, the queue list for help is endless. UIUC is definitely more rigorous from a CS major perspective. UIUC student tries a lot harder and therefore the average in the midterms is higher than usual. The engineering building is a lot nicer ( and I do mean A LOT) at UIUC, I think the state’s budget to Urbana is much greater than UIC. </p>
<p>So far my experience at Urbana greatly exceeds UIC. </p>
<p>Here is an unorganized/run-on/lazy list of my opinion of each school:
UIC:
A lot of commuters, somewhat easy GenEd classes, next to city, bus is crowded with non-students, medical school is on west campus, one of the most diverse student population…others…</p>
<p>UIUC:
Rigorous classes in general, a more college-friendly-environment, good engineering and business program, hardworking students, Greek system is widespread around campus, if you are an international student (from Asia) you should definitely come to UIUC because there are MANY international students here
others…</p>
<p>If I was a senior in high school choosing between UIC or UIUC, I would choose UIUC especially if I was considering a engineer/business major.</p>