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Save the money man. Where you go to school hardly matters at all. If you're truly serious about your career focus on your coding/portfolio. Not only will you be saving your parents money (in some ways yourself too) and yourself money but you will probably have an easier time academically at Idaho. Most of your actual education comes from your own desire to study and learn things. Don't waste your money.
Plus if you're actually worried about "what school you went to" worry about where you go to for graduate school. Odds are when you're done with school you will realize that you just want a decent job to support your life.
Stay out of debt. Stay out of debt. Stay out of debt. Stay out of debt. Stay out of debt.
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15k for student loans should not even factor into your decision. With the interest rate of those things it's some of the cheapest debt you can have. Your monthly payment will end up being something like $100/mo or even less, not significant enough to base a major life decision on. Take a visit to the schools you are interested in and get a feel for the campus style, culture, groups, etc and then make your decision. When it comes down to it, unless you are going very far on either end of the spectrum, undergrad is undergrad is undergrad and the most important part is the atmosphere around you. You are going to be more motivated to do well if you love your surroundings than if otherwise.
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On March 28 2012 17:39 ShadowDrgn wrote:Show nested quote +On March 28 2012 17:02 Excomm wrote: (Do not get a BA in CS it is not a competitive degree). I've never even heard of such a thing. You can seriously get a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science? I have a BS in CS and probably couldn't stop myself from laughing if someone told me they had a BA in it. Also, grad school should be far from your mind at this point. The number of people who change their minds about grad school while in undergrad is huge. Just do your best in your first few years and consider whether you want to get out or go back for more when you're in your 3rd/4th year.
I have a BA in Theoretical Physics. A lot of the older colleges in Ireland and the UK (like Oxford, Cambridge etc.) give out BAs for Maths/Science/CS courses.
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On March 28 2012 21:36 Zorkmid wrote: I see that there are opinions that are exactly opposite to what I'm about to say, but to me there are only a handful of universities from which a bachelors degree carries anymore weight than one from anywhere else. UCSD isn't among them. I agree with this, and agree with the notion that, unless going into a field where the school you go to REALLY matters (law school, med school, etc) you go with the option that is cheapest. That means for both you and your parents—don't saddle them with debt to go college in Cali for what essentially amounts to the living experience.
I really know shit about CS in general, but I highly, highly doubt that UCSD, even if it is recognized as a top school in that field, is such a huge jump in terms of education and job prospects that it makes it worthwhile to eat $120k. If you parents are that generous, imagine what you'll get as a graduation gift if you don't hand them a bill for $120k.
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On March 28 2012 23:45 epoc wrote: Whats CS?
Counterstrike. It's a first person shooter of terrorists vs. counterterrorists developed by Valve. I'd suggest studying in Israel or Pakistan depending on which side you want to play.
I'm from San Diego, make sure you like UCSD if you're going to pay to go there. I personally thought it was dregs. The opportunities available however there do add reasons to do so, though who knows where the CS field will be in four years after you get out of college really?
If you are going post-graduate go to the highest ranked free-ride school. It's not worth the money. If you can get a solid program for free, do it. There exists CS work experience opportunities locally no matter where you are (Computers are pervasive, and the internet is vast.). What kind of person are you? Will you enjoy college where you choose? Those are also important questions to ask yourself.
For personal reference, I am a UC Irvine undergraduate in Business Economics (I will be attending law school next year). I have quite a few friends in the CS and Electrical Engineering fields who have a wide range of outcomes from doing so. None of them are going to professional school, however.
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Yeah. Thanks guys. Now even more torn...
Btw, I accidentally put BA in first post
I am planning on getting a BS :|
In terms of grad school, I don't necessarily want to go, I just want to get employed. If I was in a field where a masters was better, I think i'd take the cheaper option more readily. But a MS in CS seems like an awkward degree. Grad school is also really expensive, (I've heard it can be free some places but...) and I don't partciularly want to do research. So I was trying to figure out from a pay perspective whether doing undergrad at Idaho, ASU etc and then going to do a master's, or trying to get hired right then, was the best option...
As much as I tend to conflict with my parents, I just don't want to waste their money. Call me crazy, but I'd like to pay back a lot of the cost if I go to UCSD, cause i feel bad about it :|
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You put far, far to much value on the name of the school for employment. XD Even for an Ivy or something, it's not that big of a deal. In the real world, people mostly just care about whether or not you can do your job. Forget this bullshit about namebrand employment opportunities and make your decision based on something else. Whenever you get to school focus on learning practical things and writing real code, doing stuff outside of class, and joining some research project or club involving writing something applicable. Then you can demonstrate to a potential employer how awesome you are. Of course location and admissions difficulty (prestige) matters for things like school-based recruitment and such, but that only helps you for your very first job. After that you're on your own, so I wouldn't consider that really either.
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save 100k and go to the out of state schools.
That's a ridiculous amount of money. UCSD isn't even that good to justify paying that much.
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Calgary25954 Posts
Don't know what it's like in the US. In Canada it barely matters where you went to school. Going to a good school will give you good networking opportunities, but not $100k worth and nothing you couldn't overcome.
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On March 29 2012 02:14 Chill wrote: Don't know what it's like in the US. In Canada it barely matters where you went to school. Going to a good school will give you good networking opportunities, but not $100k worth and nothing you couldn't overcome.
This reminds me of another related consideration you should be checking out. For example, the University of Toronto has a bit of prestige, but the competition there is completely insane. A 3.0 GPA there is like a 4.0 GPA most other places.
If you're looking to go to grad school, you'd need a GPA around 3.8 most likely. It may be the case that UCSD is a bit like the U of T in terms of difficulty. Grad schools aren't going to look at the name of the school on your application, just your GPA.
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Unless you have specific connections that will allow you to have a better educational experience (summer lab work, side work with professors) or the school has a rare or outstanding department, no UC is worth it for an out of state student. At least not from a purely educational standpoint. SD would be a lovely place to spend 4 years though.
Haven't heard of SD having a standout undergrad CS program. Not sure what would distinguish it from any of the other major UCs, or SJSU's for that matter, let alone any other major public university.
On March 29 2012 01:35 RedJustice wrote: (1) Even for an Ivy or something, it's not that big of a deal. In the real world, people mostly just care about whether or not you can do your job. ... (2) Of course location and admissions difficulty (prestige) matters for things like school-based recruitment and such, but that only helps you for your very first job. After that you're on your own
Statement (1) isn't really accurate, statement (2) is closer. There are numerous groups in large tech companies (Oracle, for instance) which will only hire programmers with a specific degree level from a specific pool of a dozen schools or so. You can argue that the signalling effect associated with "prestigious education" isn't worth the cost, but all things equal, it's a decent positive benefit.
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is this blog about Counter Strike or not? I'm really confused.
User was warned for this post
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On March 29 2012 03:19 BenBuford wrote: is this blog about Counter Strike or not? I'm really confused.
Computer Science.
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On March 28 2012 21:59 Excomm wrote:Show nested quote +On March 28 2012 19:38 Slithe wrote: It doesn't matter which of the two you get, the important coursework is basically the same. I don't think the companies will actually care which one you get, at least not nearly as much as the school and the GPA. The major difference between BA and BS degrees is taking calculus 2 (or whatever the equivalent course covering mutivariable calculus is). Taking the course early (along with Linear Algebra) will help immensely in advanced classes in many majors junior and senior year. A BS in general will land higher starting salaries compared to a BA, but in a field like computer science having a BA will likely make you unqualified for a lot of starting positions coming out of college.
In my experience, I have not seen differences in hiring based on BA or BS, but perhaps the policies are different for other companies. Pretty much everything about your proficiency will be decided at the interview, as your resume is only a first level filter. Also, the fact that someone has a BA doesn't preclude the possibility that they've taken calculus 2.
Also, I will mention a funny difference between the two degrees at Berkeley. As you said, the BA doesn't require calculus 2. However, the BS doesn't require an algorithms course (the likely reason is that Electrical Engineering and Computer Science are combined under one program, so they don't want to enforce the algs course on the EE students). Between those two requirements, I'd say algorithms is more important.
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30k is in state cost of attendance
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On March 29 2012 03:17 Grantiere wrote:Unless you have specific connections that will allow you to have a better educational experience (summer lab work, side work with professors) or the school has a rare or outstanding department, no UC is worth it for an out of state student. At least not from a purely educational standpoint. SD would be a lovely place to spend 4 years though. Haven't heard of SD having a standout undergrad CS program. Not sure what would distinguish it from any of the other major UCs, or SJSU's for that matter, let alone any other major public university. Show nested quote +On March 29 2012 01:35 RedJustice wrote: (1) Even for an Ivy or something, it's not that big of a deal. In the real world, people mostly just care about whether or not you can do your job. ... (2) Of course location and admissions difficulty (prestige) matters for things like school-based recruitment and such, but that only helps you for your very first job. After that you're on your own Statement (1) isn't really accurate, statement (2) is closer. There are numerous groups in large tech companies (Oracle, for instance) which will only hire programmers with a specific degree level from a specific pool of a dozen schools or so. You can argue that the signalling effect associated with "prestigious education" isn't worth the cost, but all things equal, it's a decent positive benefit.
To be honest, having worked for a small company and being involved in the HR part even as a programmer I can only say fresh graduates offer the best laughs in interviews. They mostly suck and anything they know, if they do know anything, is quite useless in the real world. I don't even care where they went to school. They need to prove they know some basics and that they can think - we don't require a lot of experience so mostly want people with a base and enthusiasm.
There are a few rare gems that do stand out but most of their knowledge comes from treating their future job as a hobby, on top of school. If someone says they've been programming something since they were 10 or tinkering with PGAs at home and show they gained some knowledge out of that, that's a sure hire, provided they can adjust to the company.
The incredibly small amount of programming you get to do at school is no replacement for experience, even as a hobby. Since we're small, people get to do a lot of stuff so a well oiled brain is mandatory, lines/hour is not relevant.
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Why do you think universities like ASU and Idaho are offering you so much money? Because nobody with a modicum of intelligence wants to go to those universities. They are simply incomparable to the education you will receive at a school like UCSD (or, even better, Stanford and Princeton). People will talk about how education is "mostly self-directed anyway" and how there "isn't that much of a difference", but I strongly urge you to disregard those who do so - the difference in the rigor and depth of the education you will receive is much, much more valuable than the paltry sum you can save by going to a bad school.
Without a high GPA from a good school, you have absolutely no chance of landing an interview at one of the top tech companies, such as Facebook, Palantir, Google, or Microsoft. Once you do get an interview, you will have to be able to demonstrate your competence in computer science--and I imagine it will be very difficult to build either the knowledge or the ability to cope with stress under limited time at a university like ASU.
On March 29 2012 00:49 Froadac wrote: Yeah. Thanks guys. Now even more torn...
Btw, I accidentally put BA in first post
I am planning on getting a BS :|
In terms of grad school, I don't necessarily want to go, I just want to get employed. If I was in a field where a masters was better, I think i'd take the cheaper option more readily. But a MS in CS seems like an awkward degree. Grad school is also really expensive, (I've heard it can be free some places but...) and I don't partciularly want to do research. So I was trying to figure out from a pay perspective whether doing undergrad at Idaho, ASU etc and then going to do a master's, or trying to get hired right then, was the best option...
As much as I tend to conflict with my parents, I just don't want to waste their money. Call me crazy, but I'd like to pay back a lot of the cost if I go to UCSD, cause i feel bad about it :|
I strongly advise against attending a school like ASU or Idaho simply for financial reasons. Given the increasing popularity of CS, if you went to those schools, your degree and education wouldn't stand a chance in Silicon Valley (or probably anywhere else in the US either) compared to graduates from UW, CMU, Princeton, Stanford, etc. As it is a degree from UCSD is already suboptimal; no need to ruin your future prospects any more than necessary.
Moreover, it has been found that a master's degree is very cost-efficient. If you want a high salary, I would recommend getting a MS in CS somewhere prestigious after your undergraduate education.
Finally, your viable internship opportunities will be exceptionally limited at schools like ASU and Idaho.
On March 29 2012 05:36 dakalro wrote: To be honest, having worked for a small company and being involved in the HR part even as a programmer I can only say fresh graduates offer the best laughs in interviews. They mostly suck and anything they know, if they do know anything, is quite useless in the real world. I don't even care where they went to school. They need to prove they know some basics and that they can think - we don't require a lot of experience so mostly want people with a base and enthusiasm.
There are a few rare gems that do stand out but most of their knowledge comes from treating their future job as a hobby, on top of school. If someone says they've been programming something since they were 10 or tinkering with PGAs at home and show they gained some knowledge out of that, that's a sure hire, provided they can adjust to the company.
The incredibly small amount of programming you get to do at school is no replacement for experience, even as a hobby. Since we're small, people get to do a lot of stuff so a well oiled brain is mandatory, lines/hour is not relevant.
That may be the case in Romania. However, undergraduate education at top computer science universities in America is exceptionally rigorous and difficult. If you go to a no-name party school and graduate with a worthless CS degree, yes, it is likely that you will be one of those hilariously bad applicants. However, that is most certainly not the case at top universities.
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I am a junior at the University of Florida right now -- I'm getting a degree in math, but I'm going to work in CS when I graduate. If a math degree is fine, there's no way a BA in CS isn't fine.
UCSD is a very good school, (it's better than mine, and all of my friends and I are working or interning at Microsoft/Google/Facebook) and if you want to work at the Googles and the Microsofts of the world when you graduate, I think going to UCSD would give you the best opportunity for that. The advantage you would have going to a Princeton compared to UCSD for getting those internships and job offers is a lot smaller than the advantage UCSD has over an Idaho. I could be wrong about this, but I imagine Idaho, and similar schools, don't have Googles and Microsofts on their campus recruiting, and that is how you are going to get those internships. (Knowing someone who works at the company is even better, but how do you think they got their job?) Going to a school where the big tech companies don't have people on the ground is going to make life a hell of a lot more difficult.
And if your parents are okay with spending that kind of money on your education, don't feel guilty about potentially wasting it. Just be a sick nerd baller in college and show them that the cost is worth it! You should be proud that they want this for you so badly they're willing to put $100k down. I'm not trying to say that you aren't--you seem to be handling everything very well--I just want to make sure you don't pick a school to do your parents a favor by saving their money.
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$30k a year for undergraduate in-state residency? Holy fuck balls. Did they calculate base on the overpriced dormitary cost or something? Never knew a state college cost so much for in-state residency.
I guess if you're the go-getter type, you'll make it happen whether your parents spent 10k or 100k in your education.
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