Good Computer Science schools....

[soccerbud34]

UT-Austin ... this school's CS Department is ranked up there with Universityf of Wisconsin, Univesity of Washington.
Its CS Department was ranked in the top 10 by US News during year 2001.

plus Dell's headquarter is right here in Austin

 

[gopunk]

<< Nice to see some other UW people here. I am only a lowly freshman getting my butt kicked by math, heh. Thanks for mentioning that XBOX torunament, I will be sure to check it out tomorrow. >>



which math? 125 kicked my ass so hard, it's probably the reason i didn't get into CS i'm so f*cking pissed right now... :|

btw, y'all should join the microsoft student users group... you get free sh!t

 

[CSoup]

If you cant get into the cs program at your school then you should consider tranfering down, not up. Many of the schools you listed have CS programs that are more difficult to get into than your current school. What is the reason you can't get into the CS program at University of Washington? If you did poorly in a class, maybe you can retake it. Maybe CS is not for you and you should pick something more fitting. Maybe Math or EE/ECE, Ecconomics, or one of dozens of other available majors out there.

 

[FatAlbo]

Darein:
If you decide to take CHEM142 and haven't already (or anything in the CHEM1xx series), do NOT take it from John Macklin. This guy is THE worst lecturer I've ever had. I do have to admit that it's very interesting to see all the freshmen in there panic during quiz section and lecture.

 

[gopunk]

If you cant get into the cs program at your school then you should consider tranfering down, not up. Many of the schools you listed have CS programs that are more difficult to get into than your current school.

yea some of them... but seriously, i think uw cs is more competitive than most other programs.

What is the reason you can't get into the CS program at University of Washington? If you did poorly in a class, maybe you can retake it.

well like i said, my gpa is 3.3... i did poorly in one math class, and i did retake it...

Maybe CS is not for you and you should pick something more fitting. Maybe Math or EE/ECE, Ecconomics, or one of dozens of other available majors out there.

no, CS IS for me... i just f*cked up previously. i got a 4.0 and 3.7 in 142 and 143 (the two pre req cs classes)... i am pretty positive i didn't get rejected for lack of cs skill...

 

[Sacraster]

UIUC!!!! Univer. of Illinois at Urbana Champaign

 

[CSoup]

You have to think first why you want to do CS. Is it because your parents want you to do it or is it because you really want to do it. Also, evaluate what the stuff is in CS that you like. Those two classes you have taken are likely nothing like the courses you will be taking later. Also, consider the cost. If you are taking only 10-12 credits per term then it will take you over 5 years to graduate. A school like Stanford or a UC for out of states students is going to cost you quite a bit of money.

Also (I know I should not be the one to say this), it might help if you spend less time on ATOT. Maintaining a 45+ posts per day is likely not good for your GPA even if you are only taking 10 credits a term.

 

[gopunk]

You have to think first why you want to do CS. Is it because your parents want you to do it or is it because you really want to do it.

the latter.

Also, evaluate what the stuff is in CS that you like. Those two classes you have taken are likely nothing like the courses you will be taking later.

i like just about anything related to how computers work... seriously, i'm happy with anything from hardware to database to programming to theory, etc.

Also, consider the cost. If you are taking only 10-12 credits per term then it will take you over 5 years to graduate. A school like Stanford or a UC for out of states students is going to cost you quite a bit of money.

i am lucky and my parents are willing to pay for most, if not all of it.

Also (I know I should not be the one to say this), it might help if you spend less time on ATOT. Maintaining a 45+ posts per day is likely not good for your GPA even if you are only taking 10 credits a term.

well.. my gpa is around 3.9 since i've joined AT... seriously, it's not hurting my academics.


i appreciate the help, i really do, but i'm telling you, the reasons i got rejected are things that happened in the past. at this point in my life, i am doing everything i can to increase my chances of getting in... but it's hard when you screwed up earlier. i went through a period in my life when i was seriously not on track... i dunno if it was just a coming of age thing or what, but i was just not in a good place... depressed, slacking off, etc. but i've since come out of that (the low grades sort of slapped some sense back into me), and i swear, if i had done as well my first two years as i had my past year, i would be in CS.

 

[b0mbrman]

<< no, CS IS for me... i just f*cked up previously. i got a 4.0 and 3.7 in 142 and 143 (the two pre req cs classes)... i am pretty positive i didn't get rejected for lack of cs skill... >>


Interesting...Colleges at Cal like to look at Major GPA's over overall.

That's how I got into Econ w/a 2.6 overall GPA (But a 3.9 prereq GPA )

 

[Darein]

I've already taken 142, I'm onto Phys 121 this quarter, 122 next quarter. Do you have any pointers on who I should or shouldn't take for math 126?

 

[CSoup]

<<
i appreciate the help, i really do, but i'm telling you, the reasons i got rejected are things that happened in the past. at this point in my life, i am doing everything i can to increase my chances of getting in... but it's hard when you screwed up earlier. >>



If you have improved in what you think is keeping you out of the program then I would recommend that you go talk to the dean of the undergrad CS program at your school. Tell him/her your reasoning why you should get into the program. Maybe they will give you some conditions that you need to meet, like getting an A in Discrete Structures or Data Structures, or whatever your next CS class is. I had a friend who took the honors intro CS course and got a C in it, so he was not able to get into the program. He took a sem off and did ORIE (what most people who could not cut CS and EE at my school went to). Found out he did not like OR and went and talked to the CS undergrad dean. The dean told him that if he took discrete structures and did well then he would get in. He took the couse, studied hard and got the A he needed.

 

[gopunk]

If you have improved in what you think is keeping you out of the program then I would recommend that you go talk to the dean of the undergrad CS program at your school. Tell him/her your reasoning why you should get into the program. Maybe they will give you some conditions that you need to meet, like getting an A in Discrete Structures or Data Structures, or whatever your next CS class is. I had a friend who took the honors intro CS course and got a C in it, so he was not able to get into the program. He took a sem off and did ORIE (what most people who could not cut CS and EE at my school went to). Found out he did not like OR and went and talked to the CS undergrad dean. The dean told him that if he took discrete structures and did well then he would get in. He took the couse, studied hard and got the A he needed.

wow, that's awesome... i think i will try and talk to somebody like that... i met with a professor earlier, but he wasn't on the admissions committee this year (prof. dickey, for those who go here). so do you recommend i call him? email? just show up?

btw, i added more to my sob story

 

[FatAlbo]

[edit2]
If you want to approach the department chair (David Notkin) without any notice, the best time would be trying to catch him leaving the ugrad pizza lunch next Thursday. Otherwise, it's probably best to e-mail him or call the main CSE office and see what hoops you need to jump through to talk to him. He seems very approachable from what I've heard.
[/edit2]

[edit1]
The hard part about CSE classes at UW is that after the first two intro classes, there really are no other classes a prsopective major can take that go towards graduating from the department. It is possible to take non-majors classes, but you can't take the majors equivalent for credit once you're in. I'm not sure if it can be waived.
[/edit1]

CSoup:
Out of curiousity (and laziness in looking it up myself ), what does ORIE stand for?

 

[CSoup]

<<
CSoup:
Out of curiousity (and laziness in looking it up myself ), what does ORIE stand for? >>



Operations Research and Industrial Engineering

 

[CSoup]

<<
Also, evaluate what the stuff is in CS that you like. Those two classes you have taken are likely nothing like the courses you will be taking later.

i like just about anything related to how computers work... seriously, i'm happy with anything from hardware to database to programming to theory, etc.
>>



I found an interesting quote relating to this.
Computer Science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes.
E. W. Dijkstra
Turing Award winner and Professor Emeritus in the CS department of UT-Austin.

You probably have heard of Dijksta's algorithm that everybody learns in either data structures or discrete structures.

 

[GiGoLo]

UT Austin baby!!! I'm a 3rd year CS major here and I can say its no easy major. UT Austin's CS department is rated among the top 10 in the nation. Not to mention 6th street rocks beautiful city, awesome nightlife, only complaint i have is the size of classes since we're now the largest school in the nation with over 50,000 students

link to CS department Linky


*edit* 10555 posts?!?!? GOOD GAME!