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 Northern Virginia Community College, Tidewater Community College, Germanna Community College, and Lord Fairfax 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 James Madison, Bluefield, Norfolk State, and Virginia State.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider Mary Baldwin.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Virginia State, Hampton, Norfolk State, and Ferrum.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Southwest Virginia Community College, Bluefield, Patrick Henry Community College, and Danville Community College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of Southern Virginia University, University of Richmond, Hampton, and Roanoke College.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Ferrum, Bridgewater, Emory and Henry, and Southern Virginia University.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at William and Mary, University of Virginia, University of Richmond, and Virginia Tech.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at University of Virginia, William and Mary, University of Richmond, and Bluefield.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at University of Richmond, Emory and Henry, William and Mary, and Roanoke College.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
James Madison University • Harrisonburg, VA
Studying Computer Science (completion in 2001)
• 1/13/2012
"The education I received wasn't bad for the tuition. I did not appreciate never being able to takes some classes I really wanted due to scheduling conflicts, particularly over multiple years."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I've talked to younger students and still talk to some of my professors occasionally. The program seems to have improved over the years, but I'd need to know the current tuition costs before making a recommendation. |
| Program Reputation | I cannot answer this question because I haven't heard opinions from colleagues one way or another. As far as I can tell, my school doesn't have much of a reputation, either bad or good. | |
| Program Quality | 6 | In speaking with colleagues, I've come to understand the program I went through was very relaxed and not particularly in depth. The course matter was spread across several departments which didn't bother to compare class schedules, which lead to me never being able to take several classes I wanted to take over the course of four years. |
| Instruction | 5 | The older professors who taught things like C and assembly were great. Newer teachers taught in Java. While Java is a decent language in certain situations, it was far over-used in my program. While the program taught 'how to program' decently enough, it didn't teach what a job will be like. |
| How Difficult | 5 | The program mostly taught high-level concepts in the Java language. I've spoken with colleagues who went to other schools, and those who were 5 - 10 years older than I. Other places taught in C/C++ and students had to build things like basic operating systems and file systems. My program didn't get anywhere near that sort of detail. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There was definitely a mix of teaching strategies. Almost all computer science classes had a lecture and lab component. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 5 | There were usually several sections of a class to choose from. Some summer offerings were available for the lower-level classes (100-200 level). Evening classes were rare and there were no online options. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | At the time, the academic building was brand new. The labs, libraries, and computers were all new and plentiful, so most everything worked well. Advisers, tutors and professor accessibility were all average. |
| Social Life | 5 | Organized social events were rare. I focused more on work and study than socializing, but school spirit, athletics and parties were not in short supply. |
| Placement Services | 5 | The school does things similarly to most schools. There is some basic job search assistance and a career fair once in a while. |
| Alumni Network | I'm not sure what is meant by an 'alumni network'. As far as I know, my school doesn't have an official alumni network. |
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