Cornell versus CMU CS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have one at Cornell and he had a few friends who had to make a decision between SCS and Cornell COE CS.

He says the hardcore CS will go to CMU SCS. Competitive programming types who live and breathe CS. The others, who are also great at CS but have broader interests go to Cornell.

While CMU is a top 4 CS school, Cornell CS is still a top 5 program (in reality, there are probably 4 schools that have a claim at #5) but the difference is Cornell is top 10 in many disparate , other fields than CMU. That interaction with those others is part of what defines Cornell.

Obviously CMU is in a nicer city though.

…nicer? It’s bigger for sure, but not sure I’d go with “nicer”.

[Anonymous]

CMU average CS grad salary is 201K. Pretty jaw dropping. They are super into it. Doubt its fun to attend but it does not get more cutting edge. Of course my kid was WL.

Cornell though it is high ranked is going to be more preppy and honestly I still don't think of of it for CS. Im in software and have yet to see a Cornell developer. We cant afford the CMU ones. If you are vibe-ing with Cornell, by all means, you cant go wrong, its Ivy. But if your kid is a super geek gonna-make-a-billion in CS, CMU is the place.

That said, It seemed like your kid wanted a more balanced life so maybe Cornell.

[Anonymous]

Cornell over CMU for undergrad. I'd really think about CalTech based on your description. Your kid might even be able to play a sport as a walk on.
CMU isn't in that Stanford and MIT league for CS either and isn't pumping out unicorn founders lately (not that MIT has been either).

[Anonymous]

Cornell hasn’t released decisions yet ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
CMU isn't in that Stanford and MIT league for CS either

Yes, it really is according to those that hire

and isn't pumping out unicorn founders lately (not that MIT has been either).

This is how you judge the quality of a school's CS program? For real?

[Anonymous]

DD is going to transfer from CMU, CS major, to another school after her freshman year there. CS is a very tough program and DD feels miserable there. CS @CMU is for someone who is smart, works hard, and does nothing but studying all day long. DD feels like it is not the place for her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is going to transfer from CMU, CS major, to another school after her freshman year there. CS is a very tough program and DD feels miserable there. CS @CMU is for someone who is smart, works hard, and does nothing but studying all day long. DD feels like it is not the place for her.

CMU CS is super intense. If your kid is serious about CS, CMU. If your kid wants a more "fun" experience, don't do CMU.

My high stats CS majoring DC looked at CMU, was serious about attending, #1 choice. But, after hearing about the lack of social life and not being a fun environment, they decided that environment was not for them. I think DC could've handled the rigor but not the lack of social life.

[Anonymous]

Does any9one have recent experience with Caltech? It seems super small and would have fewer opportunities than MIT for a kid that could get accepted to that kind of place

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is going to transfer from CMU, CS major, to another school after her freshman year there. CS is a very tough program and DD feels miserable there. CS @CMU is for someone who is smart, works hard, and does nothing but studying all day long. DD feels like it is not the place for her.

May I ask where she is considering for a transfer? Op here. Thank you for all the responses. My student is not one who will be happy or even able to study all day over a sustained period. That's why the question, CMU is obviously the bigger brand name, Pittsburgh more convenient, but ultimately fit is what sustains

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD is going to transfer from CMU, CS major, to another school after her freshman year there. CS is a very tough program and DD feels miserable there. CS @CMU is for someone who is smart, works hard, and does nothing but studying all day long. DD feels like it is not the place for her.

CMU CS is super intense. If your kid is serious about CS, CMU. If your kid wants a more "fun" experience, don't do CMU.

My high stats CS majoring DC looked at CMU, was serious about attending, #1 choice. But, after hearing about the lack of social life and not being a fun environment, they decided that environment was not for them. I think DC could've handled the rigor but not the lack of social life.

Where did they attend?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does any9one have recent experience with Caltech? It seems super small and would have fewer opportunities than MIT for a kid that could get accepted to that kind of place

I’m the MIT PP from page one and I had a good friend from caltech in college (she was doing her master’s at MIT while I was an undergrad). They’re both excellent schools but have a bit of a different vibe. Caltech is much smaller and more intimate; I got the impression students tend to know a good percentage of their class, there are school wide things that most people participate in, etc. Kind of like a small liberal arts college (although coursework wise lol). MIT is much more a big universities where students need to find their own groups and intro classes have 100s of students. I definitely was much happier at MIT (I was absolutely wild to try on my newfound adulthood and independence) but my friend who’d had a rough time as a teen definitely made a better choice for her going to caltech. As with CMU or Cornell, you’ll get an excellent education and lots of opportunities at either, it’s more a question of which school will suit the student’s personality and what opportunities they want.

[Anonymous]

My DS got into both CMU and Cornell for CS, and if it was only between those two, would have gone to CMU. He ended up choosing a different option altogether but was extremely impressed by the caliber of the faculty and other students at CMU CS. Cornell was more of a mixed bag. My son preferred a more well-rounded experience than both those schools could offer though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cornell hasn’t released decisions yet ?

Ivy Day is tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CMU average CS grad salary is 201K. Pretty jaw dropping. They are super into it. Doubt its fun to attend but it does not get more cutting edge. Of course my kid was WL.

Cornell though it is high ranked is going to be more preppy and honestly I still don't think of of it for CS. Im in software and have yet to see a Cornell developer. We cant afford the CMU ones. If you are vibe-ing with Cornell, by all means, you cant go wrong, its Ivy. But if your kid is a super geek gonna-make-a-billion in CS, CMU is the place.

That said, It seemed like your kid wanted a more balanced life so maybe Cornell.

Cornell ranks #6 in the country according to USNews so it is very strong for CS (though below CMU which is #2)

[Anonymous]

I have a kid at Cornell and know a kid who did CS at CMU. I would say for the money while Cornell CS is outstanding, it is a notch below CMU. That being said the workload at CMU is tremendous. Kid I know had a friend at Michigan doing half the work and got the same level job as her. She was at Amazon for two years but left for a start up now. I think CMU is on fire right now and only will go up-but be careful of burnout--she literally cried the first year.