Georgia Tech MS CS, Atlanta? South Africans at GT?

[rsa]

Hi guys! I'm a South African EE undergrad that got admitted to MS CS at Georgia Tech I haven't made a final decision yet,but I think I will accept the offer - I got rejected from all the other schools I applied to (Stanford, UT Austin and UCSD). It's pretty clear to me that the degree offers a pretty good ROI and job prospects, but I've never been to the GT campus or even to the state of Georgia, so I was just wondering what the quality of life in Atlanta is like? 

I'm also very curious if any South Africans have been admitted to Georgia Tech this season? Are you thinking of accepting? I'm guessing it's unlikely, but who knows - it's worth a shot to ask.

[launchvehicle]

I can provide my perspective of Georgia Tech when I visited the campus and spoke with current grad students. Keep in mind that these are just my first impressions and may be incorrect; I'm just trying to convey to you what a visit was like. I didn't really like Atlanta, but my only interaction with the city was the airport, the MARTA train to Midtown, and the 20 minute walk from my hotel to campus. Outside of campus, the area is a little sketchy, but during the day there are plenty of students walking to and from class. From professors and students, the weather is warm and humid most of the time, with mildly cold winters. I liked the 50 degree weather when I was there (early February), but was told that this kind of weather doesn't last too long. The campus itself is very nice, relatively walkable despite the large hills, and pretty bustling with students. The library that I went into was very large and looked like a great place to study. I also sat down to read a paper in the Student Center (which has a decent variety of food for a quick bite on-campus, in addition to study areas) and enjoyed relaxing there. There doesn't seem to be much to do in Atlanta besides go to bars - most of the grad students said they spend their free time hitting the bars with friends. I don't really drink so this was a negative for me. However, they generally seemed happy. The professors are very welcoming and eager to show you their research. There doesn't seem to be much graduate-undergraduate interaction; this can be a good thing or bad thing depending on your preference. Overall, I don't think you can go wrong with Georgia Tech, although I will most likely be declining my offer there. Hopefully this helps a little!