imcls@ihuxq.UUCP (C. L. Smith) (05/07/84)
I am looking for information on good computer science programs, undergraduate that is. As a com sci person myself, I am pleased to announce that #2 daughter has an interest. No pushing mind you - it just came out that way. In any event what are the recommended choices for cs undergraduate work. I know that doesn't map into the best choices for graduate work. All of this of course depends on the definition of 'recommended'. Lets assume this implies a school that provides a good foundation in the basics. As a potential contributor I would prefer something in Illinois, but I am open. C. Smith (ihuxq!imcls)
grunwald@uiuccsb.UUCP (05/08/84)
#R:ihuxq:-92100:uiuccsb:14700003:000:405 uiuccsb!grunwald May 7 20:02:00 1984 Not to boast, but if you want something in Illinois, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is usually ranked in the top 10 C.S. departments in the country. I went through here as an undergrad, and I thought the program was pretty good (I'm in grad school right now), although the classes are a little large sometimes. dirk grunwald ihnp4 ! uiucdcs ! grunwald grunwald.uiuc@csnet-relay
jain@hpda.UUCP (Atul Jain) (05/18/84)
MIT. Mind you, my view is quite biased since I'm a student there but here
goes.
In general, the course requirements at MIT allow significant freedom of
choice. Unlike most other universities, there are no formal core courses
to be taken during the first two years. Sure, there is a two term physics
requirement and some others. However, there is opportunity to be exposed
to a potential major early on in one's college career. I would say that
it is the norm for a hopeful CS major to take the first computer class
(LISP/SCHEME) sometime during the first year. In fact, I took it my freshman
year and that was the first time I touched a computer.
I don't mean to give the impression that one is rushed through things too
early either. Such freedom can be confusing but it's not too difficult
to put a tentative schedule together. Each student has a faculty adviser
for that purpose. Freshmen are assigned professors randomly to serve as
their advisers. Sometime during the sophomore year, you are asked to specify
a tentative major and are assigned a professor in that department as your
adviser.
I guess "exposure" is the key issue. Being able to take the introductory
computer course during the freshman year let's you know if the field is
possibly for you. Should you feel that it is not, there is plenty of time
to investigate other areas. I have many friends who did not commit
themselves to a particular major until the end of their junior years. They
ended up taking a number of courses in areas other than their majors but
that did not set them back much. Instead of fixing a large set of core
requirements, MIT allocates a number of units, usually about 6 to 9 courses
worth depending on the major, as "unrestricted electives." These are
separate from a second list of "restricted electives" in your major.
Another source for exposure is the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program
(affectionately called UROP). Through this program, undergraduate students
are given the chance to participate in research activities for a faculty
member. Often, the work done by the undergrad in this program is quite
remarkable. Certainly, it let's one apply the things learned in class to
real-world issues. Being able to work first hand with world-renowned
researchers and state-of-the-art equipment is nice.
There are also a number of cooperative education programs which provide
exposure to industry. Many departments have their own. The EECS department
has one, the 6-A program. Applications to the program are accepted at the
beginning of the 2nd semester of the sophomore year. Applicants interview
with a number of companies such as Xerox, IBM, and Hewlett-Packard. If
accepted by a company, the student spends the next two summers working
at the company. MIT gives credit for the work assignments and the company
covers travel expenses and salary. During the senior year, the student
applies for admission to the graduate school. If admitted, the student takes
four graduate courses in the department and returns to the company for a
period of seven months to work on a joint Bachelor's and Master's thesis.
It's a good way to pick up a Master's degree in an extra six months or one
year.
Life at MIT has its highs and lows. Expect the all-nighters. The place
is most certainly a challenge but most of the people who get in do get out.
There are fun times too: parties, intramural sports, Boston, Cape Cod, hiking
in New Hampshire, sailing on the Charles. The campus is very open and lies
on a two and a half mile stretch along the Charles River. Up the block is
Hahvahd. Boston's a college town and that makes it easy to explore other
turfs. MIT has cross-registration with a number of schools, including
Harvard and Wellesley.
Atul
{hplabs,ucbvax}!hpda!jain
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/* ---------- */gds@mit-eddie.UUCP (Greg Skinner) (05/25/84)
<e to the x, dy/dx> The above is a cry most often heard at football and basketball games. Tell me, would YOU go to a school with a cheer like that? :-) > MIT. Mind you, my view is quite biased since I'm a student there but here > goes. Well, so am I, I am about to get out, and now here's my chance to flame after being here for soooooooooo long. > In general, the course requirements at MIT allow significant freedom of > choice. Unlike most other universities, there are no formal core courses > to be taken during the first two years. Sure, there is a two term physics > requirement and some others. However, there is opportunity to be exposed > to a potential major early on in one's college career. I would say that > it is the norm for a hopeful CS major to take the first computer class > (LISP/SCHEME) sometime during the first year. In fact, I took it my freshman > year and that was the first time I touched a computer. It is the norm now for a potential CS major to be hopeful to be able to take the first computer class in SCHEME (they don't teach Lisp anymore here -- it has grown beyond all imagination). Starting last spring, due to overcrowding some freshmen were required to leave the class. This was the first time this had happened in a number of years. The reaction was very violent. Since then, this has propagated to our software engineering course (using CLU) and a microprocessor course (they make you take an exam to be able to take the course now). > I don't mean to give the impression that one is rushed through things too > early either. Such freedom can be confusing but it's not too difficult > to put a tentative schedule together. Each student has a faculty adviser > for that purpose. Freshmen are assigned professors randomly to serve as > their advisers. Sometime during the sophomore year, you are asked to specify > a tentative major and are assigned a professor in that department as your > adviser. During the second semester of your freshman year, you fill out a form with your intended major. You can remain undesignated until halfway through your sophomore year, and then you must choose. separate from a second list of "restricted electives" in your major. > Another source for exposure is the Undergraduate Research > Opportunities Program (affectionately called UROP). Through this > program, undergraduate students are given the chance to participate in > research activities for a faculty member. Often, the work done by the > undergrad in this program is quite remarkable. Certainly, it let's > one apply the things learned in class to real-world issues. Being > able to work first hand with world-renowned researchers and > state-of-the-art equipment is nice. Score one point for MIT for UROPs. That's the one thing about MIT that's really good. You can really learn a lot by hacking around and a UROP gives you this opportunity. Other schools may be less demanding but don't nearly have as much hardware & software as the 'Tute does (who can boast a zillion VAXes, 4 DEC-20s, lots of Lisp machines, Altos, IBM PCs, ...). Not to brag, but I really enjoyed being able to work on a whole bunch of different machines. > Life at MIT has its highs and lows. Expect the all-nighters. The place > is most certainly a challenge but most of the people who get in do get out. > There are fun times too: parties, intramural sports, Boston, Cape Cod, > hiking in New Hampshire, sailing on the Charles. This person obviously lived in MacGregor house, notoriously known for their trips to Cape Cod. MacGregor probably has the best view the Charles, since it is the tallest dorm on the Charles (15 stories + house tutor's rooftop apartment). No kidding though, I spent my share of all-nighters and will be relieved not to have to do it for a while. I guess it was worth it going here, now that I am finally graduating, but it will be good to get away for a while to relax and get back to the simpler pleasures of life (being asleep instead of awake at 4am). I noticed that people are complaining about registration. At MIT, it's done in two steps. Note, we are on a 4-1-4-3 schedule here -- fall term runs Sep-Dec, 1 month (Jan) is called IAP (Independent Activities Period) where you can take all sorts of fun seminars and do all sorts of other fun things, spring term runs Feb-May and a limited number of courses are held in the summer term Jun-Aug. Three weeks before a semster ends, registration material is available for pre-registration. At the end of the semester, you hand in your registration forms with what you think you'll be taking next term. When the next term starts, on the first day (Registration Day) you go to your undergrad advisor and have him sign the registration form you filled out the term before (he may discuss it with you if he thinks you are taking too much or too little) and then you take his signed form and bring it to a place where it is collected, and you pick up your ID sticker for the semester and you are officially "registered". Registration day tends to be a madhouse sometimes, because a lot of people change their minds from what they thought they'd be taking when they first filled out the form (I personally never took what I thought I'd be taking) and some people swap sections. All in all, it seems a lot better than running around from class to class hoping it is not closed yet. About hardware: (Pardon me for my smug smile.) The majority of undergraduate CS work is done on a DEC-2060 running TOPS-20 -- it has 1.5 Mb of core and about 600 Mb of online disk storage. The Scheme course has now moved to a set of HP9638 personal computers. A few courses are run on this machine (mit-eddie) and the rest on a VAX-11/750 running (gasp, choke!) VMS. Everything (except the HPs) are connected by the Chaosnet, a 10Mb (I think that's the right speed) Ethernet-like local area network which connects many of the other research machines around the 'Tute. Soon, a number of VAXes will be coming to MIT for Project Athena, and many more Institute courses will be using them (not just the EE dept. either). -- [This space available for rent.] Greg Skinner (White Gold Wielder) {decvax!genrad, eagle!mit-vax, whuxle, ihnp4}!mit-eddie!gds And he who wields white wild magic gold is a paradox ...