[Fall 2010 - MS CS] Brown vs UMN

[cmc]

Hello friends,

I got admitted into Brown and UMN without funding (No funding for MS students). I need to decide which school to go for my Fall 2010 MS CS study. There are two possibilities that I want to do after finishing MS:

- If I like research and do well, I will apply to PhD program at schools having strong OS/Distributed System research, like Univ of Washington

- Otherwise, I'll be looking for jobs in industry

Brown ranks 20th, UMN ranks 35th according latest USNews ranking table.

Brown definitely has its own advantage for being an Ivy school but the tuition is very high (even I can afford it), chances to look for on-campus jobs is slim. Do you think it worth my money to go there?

In contrast, although UMN also didn't offer any funding inside CS department, I heard that one can easily find jobs at other department, get his tuition waived and even a stipend, is that true?

[bluellie]

I did my undergrad at Brown and dabbled in the CS department. While I didn't go much further than the first theory class, the professors I had were very good. I'm not sure if the option to TA will be open to you as an MA student, but they do hire undergrad TAs for a lot of classes. It definitely wouldn't be enough to live on (I think it was close to $1,000-$1,500 for the semester), but it would give you pocket money and teaching experience. Head TAs make more, I believe, but I'm not sure by how much. Again, I'm also not sure if those opportunities would be closed to MA students as Brown does place a lot of emphasis on its undergrad program. The only TAs I had that taught classes were in the mathematics department.

A lot of the CS undergrads end up working for the usual suspects--Microsoft, Sun, Google. I believe Oracle and Pixar come to recruit on campus as well. My Ph.D. friend is currently doing his post-doc at Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne.

I will say that I've fallen in love with Providence. It's a lovely little city. You could probably live on the East Side (where Brown is, and generally a good part of town) for around $1,000/month (with roommates). Perhaps a little less, depending on how much rent is and how well you like to eat.

Sorry I can't be of more help. Best of luck in your decision.

Edited May 17, 2010 by bluellie