I have to make a huge decision in my life. I’ve gotten into two great schools for cs. I’m an international student, so there is no difference in cost in between two schools. Which school might be a better option for me? I know Georgia Tech has a great reputation in cs, but also UMass has a good reputation plus they are top 10 in artificial intelligence. Also, UMass’ honors program gives me a chance of writing thesis and having smaller classes which means I can get more attention from my professor; this will be good for going to graduate school (though I’m thinking of staying in either school which I get into for my graduate program). However, Georgia Tech is even famous in my country, and all of my friends in my field want me to go to Georgia Tech as well. In this situation, which school would you choose?
Georgia Tech.
Well it’s funny how the CC crowd trumpeting (rightfully so)
- quality of the program
- small class size
- fit and vibe (do you like sleeping in the library lol?) -strength in the area of specific academic interest (AI) -honors college benefits and housing -lifestyle and diversity on campus for an international student
goes incredibly silent in the face of the prestige-o-meter stuff.
Lol.
Georgia Tech is an elite school in many areas with a world class reputation.
UMass Amherst CS and AI is in the same league - perhaps more so in the cutting edge AI world. Historically it’s always produced tremendous engineering and cs grads when you talk to people in the field.
Massachusetts, which I attended, doesn’t have the university level tech focus or brand. We also don’t have the sports and cultural importance in our region that GT has in abundance.
OP. GT is probably the right option for you based on your post. It’s a unique place and unrivaled excellence and marketability.
Its not like you would be ever questioned for this choice.
But no one here can tell you it is best for you. It’s simply unknowable.
Your most frequent responses will be from well meaning and experienced college parents.
It will be much rarer to hear from cutting edge and senior CS professionals or academics.
It will be people like me who know they are both really great schools in your area of study and GT has a better ranking, brand name and overall selectivity.
You won’t have many people supporting a departure from the general public the perception of school unless there is a monetary component. It’s just not how people roll.
And those are not unimportant factors.
We just really don’t know any better than you.
Best of luck to you !
Thank you for your sincere reply @privatebanker.
I mean you are right. In my country, people really delve into the prestige of a school.
Although in the U.S people say “Oh, we don’t look at the prestige of the school,” I personally think that the intensity of pursuing prestigious schools is lesser than my country due to financial issues and etc. However, the prestige of school kinda matters. I think I have to talk to teachers and visit Georgia Tech if I have time.
CS at UMass Amherst is top-notch. I’d pick that, enjoy all the benefits of Honors and 3 years of OPT (saving money), then go wherever I want (GTech, Stanford…) for a master’s degree.