Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Software Engineers For Systems
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Santa Monica College, Pasadena City College, Berkeley City College, and Moorpark College.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider Bethesda Christian, Cal State L.A., The National Hispanic University, and Cal State Stanislaus.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider Mills College and Humphreys.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Northwestern Polytechnic University, Rio Hondo College, The National Hispanic University, and Cal State L.A..
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Palo Verde College, Mendocino College, Brandman, and Monterey Peninsula College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Cal Tech, Stanford University, Santa Clara University, and Southern Cal.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Stanford University, Westmont College, Simpson University, and Point Loma Nazarene University.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at Cal Tech, Stanford University, Southern Cal, and Cal Berkeley.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Stanford University, Cal Tech, Cal Berkeley, and UCLA.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Cal Tech, Stanford University, Mills College, and Pacific.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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California Polytechnic University • San Luis Obispo, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2010)
• 7/6/2011
"It is in a very nice area. It taught me very well. I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather have gone."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It is challenging, but you learn accordingly. It is also well respected and will undoubtedly get you a job. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | They've got quite a good reputation in the science and engineering majors. Many companies hire seniors before they've even graduated. |
| Program Quality | 10 | It is a very hands on school. It is also well respected by many companies looking to hire engineers and scientists. |
| Instruction | 9 | There is a lab for almost every class you take. When you're going into the field, odds are you've had hands on experience doing that type of work before. |
| How Difficult | 8 | It's quite a difficult program. There are many labs and each of them is challenging. They don't want you to graduate without having to work for it. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | As a computer science major you study a lot of math and theory. However, Poly is known for being very hands on, and nearly every class had a lab component. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | They offer a very wide array of summer programs, which I took advantage of. Their flexibility for classes and substitutions from other schools is also quite good. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | The labs and lecture rooms were up to date and well kept. The other facilities on campus I did not see much of, but seemed to be of a similar standard. |
| Social Life | 8 | It is by the beach and in the middle of downtown, so there is a lot to do. The weather is amazing and it encourages everyone to be outside almost all the time, no matter the time of year. |
| Placement Services | 10 | As I said before, it's not uncommon for many students to have jobs lined up before they've even graduated. Many technical companies in California look to Cal Poly to hire new employees. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I know that there is such a network available. It's hard for me to judge, however, because I'm not very active in it. |
UC Berkeley • Berkeley, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2013)
• 7/7/2011
"I'm fairly satisfied with the overall education here at the school. Some administrative problems need fixing, but that's about it."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | This school is one of the top schools for CS in the nation. It offers a difficult, but intellectually rewarding, experience. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | This program rates very well and is one of the best in the nation. It even draws students from IIT, which can be considered one of the top 5 schools for CS in the world. |
| Program Quality | 10 | Berkeley has one of the best CS departments in the nation. It's courses are difficult and for many areas exceeds what is offered by MIT. |
| Instruction | 7 | While the work can be considered difficult, the instruction is not always the best. One would have to drill GSIs for results. |
| How Difficult | 8 | The work load can be very difficult depending on the major. If one decides to go into systems level software management or computer science research, a higher level of discrete and abstract math is needed plus an understanding of kernels. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Both are required to do well in an engineering school. Berkeley does a fair balance and tries to offer a 1:1 ratio. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 7 | Classes for CS are fairly inflexible if one wants to complete a degree within 4 years. The classes here are oddly positioned and need a large time commitment. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | The resources here are fairly good especially for engineering. Amazon recently donated a lot of cloud service computing capability that adds a lot of web application development potential. |
| Social Life | 7 | There are many clubs and societies to join here no matter how busy one is. There are events and gatherings made to optimize the time spent for even the busiest individual. |
| Placement Services | 8 | There are many opportunities at job fairs here. Students in CS can easily find hundreds of companies with booths and presentations here to give career options. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | Support is okay for many majors but generally tends to suffer more in the CS departments. It's rare to hear of developments from that area. |
San Diego State University • San Diego, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1981)
• 7/10/2011
"I was happy with the education I received. I was prepared for the working world."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | The latest programs are very good at my school. Student will be able to get good paying jobs in the field. |
| Program Reputation | 3 | My school does not have a good reputation overall. But it is improving. I do not think many people know about the major offered there. |
| Program Quality | 8 | They are better now, but at the time the classes were under the math dept. It is better to get some engineering experience along with programming. |
| Instruction | 8 | The correct skills were taught, including languages. They also taught algorithms and logic. More engineering might have helped. |
| How Difficult | 9 | The courses were very challenging and required many hours in the computer lab. Compared to other majors, this is a difficult one. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | My school offered a mix of theory and hands on learning. Much of the program consists of writing software, so that part is hands on. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | My school does allow for evening classes and I was able to work during the day and go to school in the afternoon. They are much more flexible than other schools I attended. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | When I went to the school the facilities were not very good. They did improve towards the end and are much better now in terms of computer labs and resources. |
| Social Life | 7 | I was not into partying or social events. However, my school has many activities for those who are interested. |
| Placement Services | 6 | My school was able to find me an internship. But for a permanent job, they did not get many recruiters in. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I did not receive much in the way of news or followup. But the alumni association is very active, just not in my major. |
University Of California San Diego • San Diego, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1987)
• 7/11/2011
"It's near the top among large research universities. It's a rigorous program where I learned a broad range of basics and learned how to learn new technologies and techniques."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | A student will receive a higher quality education than they would at any other college or university in San Diego. As a state school, it's a good value for California residents. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | UCSD routinely places in the top 10 or 20 schools nationwide in quality surveys. The computer science program is often cited as one of its strengths. |
| Program Quality | 7 | It's a research university; teaching is not its strong suit. Many classes were huge (250+ students). Many instructors were visiting foreigners with unintelligible accents. |
| Instruction | 5 | I learned a lot, but very little of it was directly applicable to the real world job of a software engineer. For example, I had to take three quarters of chemistry, three quarters of physics, and six quarters of math, none of which I've used. |
| How Difficult | 8 | It was difficult to keep up with the workload, particularly while working part time. Several times I had to drop a class part way through and retake it later. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | A third to a half of all coursework was hands-on lab work. Only a handful of math prerequisites and computer science theory courses had no hands-on component. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 3 | Weekend, evening, and online options were nonexistent or almost so. I could always find something to take during the summer, though. |
| Academic Facilities | 5 | With a few exceptions, professors were not interested in teaching and held only the minimum number of office hours. Computer labs were adequate. Libraries were crowded. Libraries are open shorter hours now or have closed completely because of budget cutbacks. |
| Social Life | 2 | Whether it was because I was a commuter student, or because I was taking a full course load and working part time, I never experienced the social side of college life. Had I lived on campus I might have been more involved in campus social events. |
| Placement Services | 4 | I've tried using their career services a couple times since I graduated, but their are a number of administrative difficulties for alumni. They are geared much more toward serving current students. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I am regularly asked for money by the alumni association. The benefits I've reaped from 20 years of being an alumni member are a newsletter, limited library privileges, a few talks and performances, and a tote bag. |
CSU Chico • Chico, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1984)
• 7/18/2011
"I enjoyed my time there. I am relatively certain that I can attribute my successful professional career to the breadth of experience I picked up in school."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It's a good environment to pursue a degree. In the real world, 98% of employers (HR resume screeners) don't care much about "where" a degree came from (only that it's an accredited outfit)... and specific hiring managers generally only show (irrational) bias for their Alma Mater and/or against schools attended by unfavorable (ex)employees (often a sample size of one). While costs have gone up over the years (and continue to rise), Chico is still a pretty good deal for a bachelor's or master's degree. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | I don't really know. Most schools worked to provide adequate Computer Science education - so it's hard to imagine that a small school out in the boonies would maintain a leadership position (that and they stopped teaching data structures in assembly language). |
| Program Quality | 10 | At the time, Chico was one of the top Computer Science schools because of it's relationship with HP. The program provided excellent breadth and depth as well as some insight into future trends. |
| Instruction | 8 | In general, the real world was at least a generation ahead of the academic world (e.g. CPUs, languages, etc.). Specifically, my career diverged into areas largely excluded from my formal education (ASIC/chip design, simulation, and validation) - which isn't really the "fault" of the school/program. |
| How Difficult | 8 | The computer science specific coursework was mostly "easy" for me (natural aptitude, and/or enjoyment of many hours of effort passing "unnoticed"). Related coursework in math and physics required considerably more effort/focus to get an acceptable grade. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Computer Science does not lend itself well to pure "book" learning. All the same, I recall a modest level of theoretical and research work. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | A lot has changed since the early 80's, I would assume? I was a full time student at the time, so I never considered whether an arrangement was "flexible" or not. I don't know what is available today, and would not expect that it would be much better than similar institutions. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | I'll give a high mark for the broad range of computing resources available (the aspect that I valued the most over the years), even if the quantities weren't quite sufficient to meet the demands of the user population (long wait times, or off-hour access). I don't recall any issues getting into any classes that I wanted/needed, and was comfortable with the level of access I had to instructors. I have no idea what things are like today. |
| Social Life | 8 | It didn't quite live up to it's reputation as a "party school," but being in the center of a relatively small town surrounded by farms, it was considerably more social than similar schools in "big cities" (e.g. CSU Hayward). Since then the town has grown a bit, and some efforts have been made to shake the "party school" reputation. |
| Placement Services | 9 | At the time, a broad range of companies actively recruited on campus. Also, co-op work/internships were readily available (virtually a requirement for graduation). |
| Alumni Network | 7 | I have neither attempted to hide from nor maintain contact with my school - all the same, they have been able to maintain contact. They send very informative publications. They appear to have multiple organizations (all seeking financial support) with similar, possibly overlapping, goals. |
UC Berkeley • Berkeley, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2010)
• 9/15/2011
"I couldn't have asked for more. This was the best place to prepare myself for a better career."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It's very difficult to get into Berkeley. If you do, don't even think of not going! |
| Program Reputation | 10 | UC Berkeley's EECS department is considered to be the best in the world. See the recent US News ranking survey! |
| Program Quality | 10 | UC Berkeley is ranked first for graduate studies in Computer Science. It is the best! |
| Instruction | 8 | |
| How Difficult | 10 | It was the most challenging program ever. Graduate studies in Computer science at Berkeley are tough, to say the least. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | They make you code everything. You come out of berkeley as a coding machine. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | We make our own time-table. What more can you ask! |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | A lot of funding from government, alumni and industry makes sure we have cutting edge technology in our labs. |
| Social Life | 10 | There are a lot of parties. Best place ever! |
| Placement Services | 10 | A ton of companies come and offer jobs to Computer Science people at Berkeley. We are in demand! |
| Alumni Network | 10 | We have alumni in top positions in almost every Silicon Valley company. |
San Francisco State University • San Francisco, CA
Studying Business (completion in 2009)
• 9/17/2011
"It was very helpful in enhancing my skills. Instructors were great."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | All my fellow graduates are working in good positions. Additionally, the school does a good job of promoting entrepreneurship. |
| Program Reputation | 9 | It ranks among the top universities in the west by U.S. News & World Report. |
| Program Quality | 8 | I learned communication, writing and presentation skills in my school which were helpful in my job. My GPA also helped a lot. |
| Instruction | 7 | |
| How Difficult | 7 | Often assignments were strenuous and burdensome, but they improved my writing skills at the end. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I had a lot of reading to do. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | I was an international student, so online options were limited. But there was good flexibility with summer and evening options. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | It had a very spacious library and computer laboratory. The school had many branches, including one downtown. |
| Social Life | 7 | I gained experience in communicating with people of various cultures. I participated in many social events. |
| Placement Services | 8 | The career services for students is very helpful. I was able to attend over 20 interviews for internships. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I am not part of the alumni network. |
UC Berkeley • Berkeley, CA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2009)
• 11/1/2011
"I learned as much knowledge as I wanted. I like what I learned from there."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Come here for engineering. It'll be hard and busy and fun! |
| Program Reputation | 10 | The school is always ranked in the top 10. Most of the time I see it in the top 3. |
| Program Quality | 10 | UC Berkeley has world-class computer science classes. The material I learned in classes was excellent. |
| Instruction | 10 | We had great professors, too. They answered questions carefully in class. They are helpful in office hours. |
| How Difficult | 10 | There are lots of projects. Some of them are hard. We had to code overnight sometimes and learned much new material. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Engineering projects required both hands-on and book learning. I had to read books to learn coding and then practice through projects. The school provided detailed instruction for these. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | There are many classes to choose from. Summer classes are offered as well. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | There are many libraries on campus and enough computers to access. Students always come to libraries to prepare for midterms and finals. |
| Social Life | 8 | I had team projects that occupied much of my time. I built some programming projects with my teams. |
| Placement Services | 10 | Big companies come and hold interviews with us. I learned about job interview preparation before I graduated. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | We had a good website for the alumni network that was full of information. I received weekly news from there. |
Stanford University • Stanford, CA
Studying Economics (completion in 1998)
• 1/10/2012
"As I said before, Stanford is an intense place for learning. Our alumni network is second to none."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would not necessarily recommend enrolling in the Economics program as a path to a career in information systems. However, the programming culture here is so strong, I actually know English majors who write Python scripts, so programming will always be a career option. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | It remains a highly competitive program to enter. If anything, Stanford's reputation has been enhanced in recent years. |
| Program Quality | 8 | My academic training is not in computer science. I was in a very good economics program, and some time after graduating, I transitioned into more of an I.T. role. |
| Instruction | 5 | The Stanford Economics program is very strong and good at preparing individuals for work as economists. My exposure to programming (Fortran, some 4GL languages such as SAS and Matlab, and Unix system utilities) was adequate, but not the primary focus of the curriculum. |
| How Difficult | 9 | Again, the economics training was among the best in the world. Stanford's model is to condense a semester's worth of material into one academic quarter. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | My school brands itself as an elite school, so there is a natural emphasis on theory, logic, core principles, mathematical proof. That said, most courses demanded that we write some code solo, and part of completing a course with a good grade is an expectation that you are capable to at least bang out a prototype of something. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 4 | Because of the quarter schedule, elective flexibility is limited. Evening, weekend, and summer courses are almost unheard of here. We are now experimenting with free online courses in the CS realm: AI, programming fundamentals, neural networks, etc. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Resources are outstanding here. Class size tends to be small. We have a large cluster of Linux timeshares with a pretty remarkable public tree of licensed software. I worked as a tutor while I was a student. There must have been dozens of us the students could engage -- free of charge to the student. |
| Social Life | 3 | My school life was dominated by working and studying. There were some nice events like basketball games, free movies, some big public parties, and the like. Dating was extremely difficult. |
| Placement Services | 7 | Stanford does seem to attract an above-average number and quality of firms to job fairs and on-campus interviews. That said, job search is a process largely owned by the job seeker. |
| Alumni Network | 10 | Stanford's location makes its alumni network especially valuable. Many graduates, in all disciplines, choose to stay in Silicon Valley and remain connected to technology companies. |
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