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 Lane Community College, Portland Community College, and Central Oregon Community 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 Portland State, Eastern Oregon University, Oregon State, and Western Oregon University.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Lane Community College and Portland Community College.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Eastern Oregon University, Northwest Christian University, Umpqua Community College, and Portland Community College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of University of Oregon, Northwest Christian University, George Fox, and Portland State.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of George Fox, Northwest Christian University, Western Oregon University, and Southern Oregon University.
Excellence
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Northwest Christian University.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Oregon Health & Science University, George Fox, Oregon Institute of Technology, and Southern Oregon University.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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Portland State University • Portland, OR
Studying Computer Science (completion in 1984)
"I attended more than 10 years ago. I attended more than 20 years ago."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | It's a good commuter school. It's convenient to attend part-time while working full-time |
| Program Reputation | 7 | I presume that it's a bit better than when I was there. I know that it absorbed a local private graduate school, meaning that it now has a reasonable graduate program. |
| Program Quality | 8 | I really enjoyed all my classes, and it prepared me for some for very rewarding jobs. The only reason I didn't give a higher rating is that it's not a top-tier program. |
| How Difficult | 6 | I took some graduate level classes which made it harder. Some classes had large projects that took a lot of time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The department, at that time, was recently spawned from the Math department, so it was heavy on applied math. That was the book learning part of it. All of the computer science classes required programming assignments. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | Don't know about now. Online wasn't an option then. I took a lot of evening classes; I was working full-time and mostly went to evening classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Profs were very accessible. 25 years later my advisor is still one of my best friends. Computer Lab open all hours, and staffed with knowledgeable tutors during regular hours. |
| Social Life | 8 | Less about organized school events than the group of other "older" (early 30's) CS students I hung out with. Again, still good friends with some of them. |
| Placement Services | 5 | I have no idea. I was already employed full-time in the field when I graduated, so didn't need it. |
| Alumni Network | 3 | I'm not aware of much of an alumni network. I only hear from them when they want money. |
University Of Oregon • Eugene, OR
Studying Digital Art (completion in 2011)
• 7/14/2011
"I'm glad I did it. I was really ready to go by the end, though."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I ended up doing programming which is something I did before school as well. If I had known nothing, I don't think this major would have prepared me at all for that, but it's nice to draw from art sensibilities in making software now. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | It's pretty good and they have produced some good students. I think there are some really noteworthy schools, like MIT, that have much better programs. |
| Program Quality | 7 | I learned a lot and did get exposed to quite a bit that I would have otherwise not even known about. There should have been a few more opportunities that I could not find on my own to give college level value to the program, though. |
| Instruction | 5 | Some instructors are excellent and I was lucky to get them. Some were terrible. UofO lets graduates teach some undergrad classes. Some grad teachers are excellent, and some are a total and complete waste of time. They don't filter them. |
| How Difficult | 8 | Being an art focused program, the academic workload was relatively moderate, but then again I might call the “academic workload” anything I didn't enjoy, like art history. The regular work load (projects) was pretty intense at times with many projects due at once. But it was really fun. There were a bit too many pointless requirements, however (traditional art history for digital art doesn't make much sense). |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I did lots of projects which really pushed my abilities and quality of work. That was fantastic. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | Classes were easy to schedule and fit around my activities. Summer classes were nice as some were very short and intense which kept the boredom factor at bay. Plus, I dislike multitasking with multiple unrelated projects all due at once. It creates extra stress with no extra payoff. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | There was pretty good access to labs and stuff. Not a lot of completely out there equipment like a program like this should have. There was a laser cutter but I was never able to get access to it due to busy scheduling and the sign off class requirements that I never got a chance to take. |
| Social Life | 4 | UofO is a football school. If you're into that, great, the school spirit was outstanding. Also, if you are a male wannabe hippy or sorority girl, you'll have plenty of like minded people. But if you're non of those, you're somewhat alone. |
| Placement Services | 3 | I have no idea. I got my job on my own. I haven't really seen any assistance so I'm thinking it's pretty low. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I really don't have a good answer for this as I haven't used it yet. From what I have heard it is good, but I do not have first hand experience to back that claim up. |
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