Hi everyone,
I live in Virginia and would like to major in computer science. My family is pretty well off so I don’t think we will get much financial aid from colleges. Do you think financially it is worth it to attend UVA or William and Mary and save roughly $20,000 a year or take a more prestigious university that’s well known in computer science like Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, UC berkeley etc? Thanks
If you can get into CMU for CS – which is perhaps the most selective CS program in the country, go there. You won’t get need-based aid but you might get merit-based aid. As for others, I’d say apply and see where you get admitted, what offers you get, and then compare.
As someone familiar with Berkeley’s CS and EECS programs, I’d confidently say it’s worth the OOS price. In fact, there are plenty of OOS/Int’l students who are enrolled in those programs at Cal paying for the sticker price, and no one complains about it. If finances are not a concern for you and your family, you should consider Berkeley. But, even more so, Stanford.
Well, are your parents financially ok with paying 20k more per year? Because if it’s not, I would advise against taking more expensive option. U.Va typically ranks in the top 30 for CS graduate programs in the United States, and it is more than enough to have a fine education.
However, if you can pay without crippling your parents’ pocket and feel more comfortable in Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, I would say go ahead. I am not sure about UCB though because one, it is A LOT harder to get any kind of research and internship in ALL UCs, and two, you will get zero FA other than regent scholarship which is only about 5k