Tell me about the CS program at William and Mary

[Anonymous]

Tell me about the CS program at William and Mary. Is it direct admit? Is W&M a cut throat school? Do kids enjoy the town? Do companies recruit from there? Do seniors have multiple job offers before they graduate like VT or UVA or even GMU CS grads do? Please share everything you know (positive or negative). How is racial diversity there?

[Anonymous]

It's not direct admit (no majors at W&M) are but there are no caps, and no special requirements that need to be met to declare, other than number of credits.


The CS program is currently under a massive period of growth, with W&M currently planning a new school of computer and data science that will allow those departments to become more competitive. At the same time, W&M CS classes are much smaller than the average public (think 40-50 kids max versus hundreds at UMD, Tech, GMU). But currently because of that, they are not able to offer concentrations, although that is coming very soon from what I've heard.

[Anonymous]

Glad to hear they are working on this. DS turned it down a few years ago. It just didn't have what he needed. My liberal arts kid has it at the top of the list though.

This is an example for people who don't get the U.S. system of colleges and rank obsessed people about how and when overall rank doesn't matter.

[Anonymous]

PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

Lots of schools have CS in and out of engineering. And even kids at engineering schools have liberal arts core requirements.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

Lots of schools have CS in and out of engineering. And even kids at engineering schools have liberal arts core requirements.

Yes, but often times you can only get a BS through engineering. A BA is CS is less valuable for the average person. And yes again about the core requirements, but there are often also a lot of (unneeded) engineering core reqs as well thrown in - UVA engineering's program for example requires multivar, chemistry, intro engineering, intro physics. How is this useful for a software dev??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

Lots of schools have CS in and out of engineering. And even kids at engineering schools have liberal arts core requirements.

Yes, but often times you can only get a BS through engineering. A BA is CS is less valuable for the average person. And yes again about the core requirements, but there are often also a lot of (unneeded) engineering core reqs as well thrown in - UVA engineering's program for example requires multivar, chemistry, intro engineering, intro physics. How is this useful for a software dev??

A BA in CS from a SLC is fine.

A little less math but the "core" CS courses are taken.

[Anonymous]

None of the schools mentioned in the OP are SLCs though. It's different if your school just simply doesn't offer a BA. I certainly wouldn't seek it out over a BS however

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:None of the schools mentioned in the OP are SLCs though. It's different if your school just simply doesn't offer a BA. I certainly wouldn't seek it out over a BS however

*just simply does not offer a BS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

It is not higher than Mason CS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP - I think it is honestly a very good program because it is not part of an engineering school and so students also have to take part in the liberal arts curriculum. I also believe it is now ranked higher than Mason's CS program

It is not higher than Mason CS.

On USNWR it is. And they are investing a lot into it.

[Anonymous]

If you need to go instate, but can't make UVA or VT, then do it.

[Anonymous]

It's a strong CS program of the type that is outside an engineering school. One great thing about it at W&M compared to some other universities, is there is only the one program so there's not the choice of CS in engineering versus CS in arts and sciences (like UVA). Also, you just declare it as your major--you don't have to be accepted into it. It's currently a very under looked option--though of course you have to have the stats to get into WM, and you have to be strong enough across the board academically to make it through core classes outside of CS. I think the major investments they are making into CS and data science, which are building on the investments they made in their integrated science center are going to make it a much more popular option soon.

I think there are a few directions for CS majors in the future now that AI is eating up basic programming/development--either they go into the more intensive technical AI/machine learning/engineering route or they link CS expertise with a data content area expertise like medicine, public health, international policy, environmental science, government. William & Mary is never likely to produce the top people in the former, but they are likely to be top-notch in the latter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
If you need to go instate, but can't make UVA or VT, then do it.

It's harder to get into W&M then VT.

[Anonymous]

My kid could get in, but will choose GMU over W&M for com sci because he does NOT want to take more Spanish/foreign language courses. That's where a "liberal arts" school is different from a CS degree via an engineering college.