tobyps

I was accepted to the Master's in Computer Science programs at SUNY Buffalo, George Washington University, and New York University Tandon (formerly Polytechnic) School of Engineering. I'd love to hear the opinions of anyone who knows about these schools/programs to help me decide between them.

Most of the schools on that list don't have minimum GPA cutoffs or only look at the last two years, which is one of the main reasons I'm considering them. But in case I get rejected by every school I apply to this time, I do plan to take more CS courses and improve my background in other respects. Thanks for the advice.

No research and no internships in CS. I've been programming on my own for several years, and I've done independent projects (but nothing professional enough to include in my application). All of my recs are from professors in those courses. One of my letters is really enthusiastic, which I know because the professor liked me and voluntarily showed me what he wrote. The other two letters are probably going to be more generic.

Here are my stats: B.A. in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign2.42 cumulative GPAedit: If I include the 5 post-bacc courses I took, my cumulative GPA would be a 2.6. Is this the number that graduate schools will use?3.67 GPA for last 60 hours (including post-bacc coursework)GRE: 169 verbal, 170 quantitative, 5.0 writing Math/CS courses taken since graduation (with an A in all of them)CS50 Intro to Computer Science (online through Harvard Extension)Math E-15 Calculus I (online through Harvard Extension)CS 112 Data Structures (Rutgers University)Math 250 Intro to Linear Algebra (Rutgers University)CS 205 Intro to Discrete Structures I (Rutgers University)A few semesters of D's and F's early on in college destroyed my cumulative GPA, but my grades improved significantly later on. I'm also good at standardized tests and did well on the GRE, and got A's in the five math/CS courses I took this year. Realistically, what are my chances of being accepted by a decent Computer Science M.S. program? These are the schools that I haven't yet eliminated on my list, ordered and labeled from the highest to lowest U.S. News ranking in computer science (which I know isn't necessarily accurate, but I just want a sense of what caliber of school is possible for me): #5 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign#9 University of Texas - Austin#13 University of Wisconsin - Madison#20 University of Southern California#23 Yale University#24 Rice University#25 University of Massachusetts - Amherst#29 New York University#29 University of Virginia#29 University of California - Irvine#34 Rutgers University#40 Stony Brook University#40 Dartmouth College#48 Arizona State University#48 Boston University#52 Indiana University - Bloomington#63 University at Buffalo - SUNY#67 Syracuse University#70 Tufts University#70 College of William and Mary#70 New York University Polytechnic#90 New Jersey Institute of Technology#112 Temple University#112 Binghamton University - SUNYWhich of these schools might I have a chance at and which do I have none? And if anyone has experience with or an opinion about any of these schools I would love to hear it.

I'm planning to apply to grad school for a Computer Science M.S. However I have a 2.4 GPA, and I realize that I have an uphill climb to even get my application read (although my GPA was a 3.67 for the last 60 credit hours and I got a 169V / 170Q / 5.0 on the GRE). I figure that if I can make a good impression speaking face-to-face with the department chair and graduate program director it might help my chances.Is it considered appropriate for a prospective applicant to request an appointment like that, especially with the department chair? If so, what would be the best way to contact them? Would sending a simple email asking to make an appointment suffice, or should I give a summary of my background or any other information?If I do meet with them, what should I talk about or ask them?