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Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

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Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#71

Post by hugh »

sachinag wrote: post #57

I can't believe no one has said U of I yet - University of Illinois. Lots of top-tier coders, from Marc Andreessen to Max Levchin, went there. However, as with the case with all the other public schools (non-CA) mentioned so far, you will pay the out-of-state tuition rate. But you'd be at a very top tier CE school, as you saw on the U.S. News list.

I spent last week at UIUC and I was very impressed -- nice campus, good facilities, pleasant location, low cost of living, and an awful lot of very good research going on. I'd definitely stick it on the list.

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#72

Post by kynikos »

Rochester Institute of Technology

Pros: Lots of things that are brand new, solid CS and engineering departments, academically diverse campus, strong industry partnerships, growing entrepreneurial community, co-op work graduation requirement for most majors.

Cons: No girls, weather, pricey, nerdy

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#73

Post by hugh »

SwellJoe wrote: post #43
apu wrote: post #13

What state are you in? Most states have at least one good public university, and these are generally fairly easy to get into and fairly cheap (if you're from in-state). If there's not a good one in your state, try one in a nearby state. It'll be more expensive and harder to get into, but still generally cheaper/easier than a private school. I can personally recommend UNC-Chapel Hill (nice campus, small town, good mix…

I was just going to say, "Pick the best public university in your state." But you beat me to it. So, I'll add that admissions are usually nicer to in-state students (the UT system in Texas is extremely generous about who they admit from state high school graduates, for example, and cheap to attend for Texans). Since the OP has revealed he's in California, he's even better placed, though I think state schools are sign…

Hmm, I work at Davis and I wouldn't say it was particularly good for comp sci -- I think there are better options among the UCs.

I wouldn't personally recommend Davis at the undergrad level for much except agricultural and life sciences.

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#74

Post by robg »

unexpected wrote: post #66
robg wrote: post #25

I was very impressed by UT-Austin and the community there. They also have a honor's program for CS majors (Turing) that you may be able to get into with okay grades but good experience. But even if you don't get into that program, you'll still be taking classes with those folks. Also think of the relationships between schools to get in the "back" door at places where the competition might be higher. For instance, at…

UT-Austin is impossible to get into if you're out-of-state. The acceptance rate for out-of-state kids is lower than Harvard's overall acceptance rate.

If this is true, I'm not sure how CS is different. One of the CS profs involved in the Turing program told me they make a real effort to bring in out-of-state kids especially because they want it to be a national program. That may also be true of the department in general.

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#75

Post by justinweiss »

sachinag wrote: post #57

I can't believe no one has said U of I yet - University of Illinois. Lots of top-tier coders, from Marc Andreessen to Max Levchin, went there. However, as with the case with all the other public schools (non-CA) mentioned so far, you will pay the out-of-state tuition rate. But you'd be at a very top tier CE school, as you saw on the U.S. News list.

Last time I looked, UIUC was in the top 5 for CS and CE, and it'd surprise me if it wasn't in the top 10 still. I'd definitely recommend it, as it gives you a top-tier education at a middle-tier price (or low-tier price, if you can swing in-state tuition).

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#76

Post by smock »

sachinag wrote: post #57

I can't believe no one has said U of I yet - University of Illinois. Lots of top-tier coders, from Marc Andreessen to Max Levchin, went there. However, as with the case with all the other public schools (non-CA) mentioned so far, you will pay the out-of-state tuition rate. But you'd be at a very top tier CE school, as you saw on the U.S. News list.

I went to U of I and am pretty happy with the education there. It is generally very good in engineering so you'll be able to explore a lot within that discipline (I started in computer engineering, and finished in physics), and engage in some great research opportunities. I was in-state and the extremely affordable tuition is probably the biggest reason I went, though I doubt the out of state tuition is unreasonable. I'm not sure what it takes to get legal residency in Illinois, but if you plan carefully you might be able to get it after your first year.

And, you'll probably have a pretty decent social experience. Going to a Big 10 school with one of the largest greek systems in the country can be fun, even if you're not a big college sports or frat fan (and, who isn't a sorority fan?).

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#77

Post by brent »

demaratus wrote: post #17
apu wrote: post #13

What state are you in? Most states have at least one good public university, and these are generally fairly easy to get into and fairly cheap (if you're from in-state). If there's not a good one in your state, try one in a nearby state. It'll be more expensive and harder to get into, but still generally cheaper/easier than a private school. I can personally recommend UNC-Chapel Hill (nice campus, small town, good mix…

I'm in California, so Berkeley is an obvious option.

Stanford ($), Berkeley, Caltech ($), LA, SD, USC ($) are all great. This is in an approximate order (at least for graduate level).

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#79

Post by jigg4joe »

sachinag wrote: post #57

I can't believe no one has said U of I yet - University of Illinois. Lots of top-tier coders, from Marc Andreessen to Max Levchin, went there. However, as with the case with all the other public schools (non-CA) mentioned so far, you will pay the out-of-state tuition rate. But you'd be at a very top tier CE school, as you saw on the U.S. News list.

I went to UIUC for CS undergrad and I can attest that it is a great program. And very difficult. I graduated near the top of my high school class, but I felt very average when compared with my peers in college. There are some very, very smart people in the CS curriculum at UIUC.

Another great thing about UIUC is the diversity. It likes to present itself as an engineering college (and rightly so, top 10 in many engineering disciplines), so it attracts many students from other technical areas around the world (India, Korea, China, Japan, Russia, Bulgaria, etc.). I'm plain old whitebread, but I was the only one in my study group for several years. It was a great chance to meet people from very different backgrounds.

Lastly, they just recently (2004) constructed the Siebel Center for Computer Science which is where they hold most/all of their CS classes. A very modern, high-tech building that can make any CS major drool. Not to mention the other buildings which surround it: NCSA, Beckman Institute, and Grainger Library (will become your 2nd home)

http://www.cs.uiuc.edu/about/siebelcenter.php

Re: Ask YC: what non-top-tier college to apply for?

#80

Post by SwellJoe »

hugh wrote: post #73
SwellJoe wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was just going to say, "Pick the best public university in your state." But you beat me to it. So, I'll add that admissions are usually nicer to in-state students (the UT system in Texas is extremely generous about who they admit from state high school graduates, for example, and cheap to attend for Texans). Since the OP has revealed he's in California, he's even better placed, though I think state schools are sign…

Hmm, I work at Davis and I wouldn't say it was particularly good for comp sci -- I think there are better options among the UCs. I wouldn't personally recommend Davis at the undergrad level for much except agricultural and life sciences.

Interesting. I just know a few of the Summer 07 (I think?) YC groups came out of Davis--and they all seem really smart and capable. YC doesn't care about schools (much) and smart and capable people can come from any school, so this is probably not meaningful.
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