USC Viterbi vs. Georgia Tech

<p>Hey all. This thread is not really for me but for a close friend. He has just been accepted to Georgia Tech and is currently waiting on a decision from USC. However, he is curious about the selectivity of USC Viterbi. Georgia Tech seems to accept many students whereas USC (whole entire school) is very selective. However, is USC Viterbi one of the more selective schools in USC? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!</p>

<p>bump</p>

<p>I could be wrong but I thought when we visited that they said that they don’t admit by major. It’s just as easy to do engineering at USC (ie. Viterbi) as any other major. Engineering isn’t impacted. Hope that helps!</p>

<p>I think USC is like Berkeley and UCLA in that it is much harder to get into Engineering. I got rejected the first time around, appealed and got in, and chose UCLA over USC. </p>

<p>@Darthpwner but it’s not like USC or UCLA are on the same level as Berkeley for engineering? I’ve heard many good things about Berkeley engineering and to my understanding, its a pretty top-tier school for that field. </p>

<p>Yes, but compared to the other schools within USC, Viterbi is the most difficult one to get into. Berkeley does have arguably the best Engineering program in the country, and definitely of all the public schools in America. </p>

<p>And yes, Berkeley COE is EXTREMELY difficult to get into. Especially for EECS, probably its most renowned major.</p>

<p>There’s no objective way to say Berkeley has the best engineering program “definitely of all the public schools in America.” The best you can do is to say their engineering program is exceptional. There are places like Michigan, Illinois or Purdue that could easily make a case for their own public school dominance and they wouldn’t be any more objectively correct.</p>

<p>There’s no objective way to say Berkeley has the best engineering program “definitely of all the public schools in America.” The best you can do is to say their engineering program is exceptional. There are places like Michigan, Illinois or Purdue that could easily make a case for their own public school dominance and they wouldn’t be any more objectively correct.</p>

<p>@boneh3ad How are all the rankings determined for the overall school? I am very skeptical of all ratings.</p>

<p>@RedEyeJedi It’s good that you are. You should be. All the rankings of which I am aware are inherently subjective. Many are based largely on peer reputation, which does a decent job of putting schools in the right general tier but other than that should be taken loosely. After all, reputation isn’t earned for no reason, but it isn’t perfect, either. So, my advice is always that the rankings will put schools in the right rough position, i.e. a school ranked 7 is generally going to be a stronger program than a school ranked 87. However, it is a lot murkier if you are comparing 7 and 17, and at that point most ranking systems fail.</p>

<p>A lot of these rankings are based on their graduate programs. It is really hard to say how well the undergraduate programs compare when they are ABET accredited. Seriously, is calculus taught at one school better than calculus taught at another? You might convince me that they may have different emphasis, but "better’ or “stronger” at the UG is very subjective.</p>

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<p>Viterbi is hard to get into, but not as hard to get into as the USC film school.</p>

<p>I know a lot of people who have Berkeley undergrad engineering degrees, and they’re not that distinguishable from the engineering grads of other schools. Berkeley’s graduate engineering program is top-notch, though.</p>

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<p>“Calculus” at Caltech is more like real analysis.</p>

<p>As a practical matter, ABET accreditation sets a high enough minimum standard that any ABET accredited engineering bachelor’s degree program is good, although some may be better fits for a given student (e.g. in terms of what subarea elective courses are offered, other requirements and offerings in the school, co-op opportunities, industrial vs. academic research emphasis, etc.). To the extent that one degree program is “better” in academic aspects other than student fit than another, the range of difference is relatively narrow compared to the potential range of difference in many other subjects (this is not so say that there is no difference, as is sometimes claimed, nor does it mean that all ABET accredited programs are the same, as is also sometimes claimed).</p>

<p>How are these rankings not based on ROI, employment, or even the potential to get into prestigious graduate/phd programs? </p>

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<p>Exactly, and this is why I believe undergraduate rankings are very misleading to a lot of students out there. At the undergraduate level, school fit is absolutely crucial, as is the relative strength of the program of interest. These should be the primary factors considered during the college search process.</p>

<p>When we were attending a parent’s orientation for Viterbi, they said that it was THE most difficult school to get in at USC, bar none. Their GPAs & SAT scores and everything else was higher than the other schools at USC. Also, they had a lot of special things just for Viterbi, including its own internship and career placement (which as parents we felt was a huge bonus). I know S was participating in engineering career fairs from his freshman year and was able to get internships after his 2nd and 3rd years.</p>

<p>Have always been puzzled about 'rankings" and what that really means. S was pleased at the number and variety of employers who would participate in the USC engineering career fairs. He and many of his classmates were able to get internships and full-time jobs.</p>

<p>Sorry, don’t know much about Georgia Tech, except that they have advertised an on-line $10K masterls in engineering. At USC, you can apply for to take an extra year (of engineering after your 2nd or 3rd year and then can get both your bachelor’s and master’s degree in 5 years total.</p>

<p>Seems premature for your friend to worry about comparing two schools when he’s only been accepted at one and doesn’t know how much he’ll pay at either or both.</p>

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<p>The people from Viterbi may have been engaging in a bit of sales puffery. According to Wikipedia, the USC film school - arguably the world’s best, has a 4%-5% admission rate. </p>

<p>@RedEyeJedi In some sense the rankings are based on those sorts of things. It is sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy, if you will. A lot of the “top” schools also happen to be where a lot of the top and high-paying employers spend their recruiting dollars most heavily. Regardless of the actual quality of a program, employers tend to flock more heavily to those perceived to be the best. That isn’t to say that employers don’t hire people from smaller schools outside the top 10 - they do - but a lot of those schools might have Boeing or Lockheed or SpaceX depending on who is more regional, whereas the “top” schools are going to have all of the above. After all, the rankings are certainly in large part a popularity contest, but so is hiring. Maybe that’s just me being overly cynical… who knows.</p>

<p>USC has a phenomenal engineering school. I would have gone if I had gotten a better financial package and it is ranked higher than UCLA, albeit probably because of its enormous expenditure which is part of the reason for its high ranking. Nevertheless, I have heard great things about USC’s program. I’m not as familiar with Georgia Tech, but my cousin got her Ph.D at Georgia Tech in Chemical Engineering and it was a great program, so you can’t go wrong with either one.</p>