Which one should i choose? UIUC, UCS, U of Toronto and EPFL ? for computer eng. PhD?

[Iranist]

Hi every body!

I am facing a great decision and I have to gain as much as information I can.

I am senior student of BSc of Electrical Engineering and I have applied for graduate programs in several schools around the world! Now, I have got some very interesting offers and I do not know which one to choose??

I have got an RA from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and that is so great for me! except due to stupid political problems between US and Iran, we can only get single entry VISAs and that means beign away from family for 6-7 years!!

I have another wonderful PhD fellowship from EPFL in Switzerland. That is a great school and the offer is very very enticing!! 51000 CHF per year (== 52,000 US$ per year) and tuition is only 2500 !!! means I would have about 50000 $ per year!! I have been offered from the Communication and Computer Science department of EPFL!!

I have got also a fellowship from USC , baout 30000 US$ per year for PhD and I may get an RA position from U of Toronto!!

Now, I do not know what to do!!

first of all, I want to know how is the reputation of EPFL in US in Computer Science? I know it is an excellent school but I want to know whether it is competitive with UIUC or not?

Second, I want to know about reputation of UIUC itslef in US. It has a high ranking but is it comparable to schools like stanford or MIT? I want to know that is a PhD in UIUC-CS worth being away from home for 6-7 years?

Third, What do you know about the reputation of U of Toronto? In fact, I will be there for MASc and that is not a PhD.

thank you!

[CanuckBoy]

Hey,

Normally I would say UIUC hands down; however, it seems like a US vs Canada vs Europe decision.

It depends on what you want as a career. If you wish to pursue an academic career in a reputable institution, US is you best bet.

Good luck.

Hi every body!

I am facing a great decision and I have to gain as much as information I can.

I am senior student of BSc of Electrical Engineering and I have applied for graduate programs in several schools around the world! Now, I have got some very interesting offers and I do not know which one to choose??

I have got an RA from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and that is so great for me! except due to stupid political problems between US and Iran, we can only get single entry VISAs and that means beign away from family for 6-7 years!!

I have another wonderful PhD fellowship from EPFL in Switzerland. That is a great school and the offer is very very enticing!! 51000 CHF per year (== 52,000 US$ per year) and tuition is only 2500 !!! means I would have about 50000 $ per year!! I have been offered from the Communication and Computer Science department of EPFL!!

I have got also a fellowship from USC , baout 30000 US$ per year for PhD and I may get an RA position from U of Toronto!!

Now, I do not know what to do!!

first of all, I want to know how is the reputation of EPFL in US in Computer Science? I know it is an excellent school but I want to know whether it is competitive with UIUC or not?

Second, I want to know about reputation of UIUC itslef in US. It has a high ranking but is it comparable to schools like stanford or MIT? I want to know that is a PhD in UIUC-CS worth being away from home for 6-7 years?

Third, What do you know about the reputation of U of Toronto? In fact, I will be there for MASc and that is not a PhD.

thank you!

[opensun]

I vote for USA

[itArchitect]

Hi Iranist,

I am currently exploring for PhD in EPFL as well ( In CS ) and i came across your post.

So have you now decided and/or joined the university of your choice yet?

Please let me know and I will speak to you then! thanx.

Greetings and best wishes,

from Basel, CH

Hi every body!

I am facing a great decision and I have to gain as much as information I can.

I am senior student of BSc of Electrical Engineering and I have applied for graduate programs in several schools around the world! Now, I have got some very interesting offers and I do not know which one to choose??

I have got an RA from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and that is so great for me! except due to stupid political problems between US and Iran, we can only get single entry VISAs and that means beign away from family for 6-7 years!!

I have another wonderful PhD fellowship from EPFL in Switzerland. That is a great school and the offer is very very enticing!! 51000 CHF per year (== 52,000 US$ per year) and tuition is only 2500 !!! means I would have about 50000 $ per year!! I have been offered from the Communication and Computer Science department of EPFL!!

I have got also a fellowship from USC , baout 30000 US$ per year for PhD and I may get an RA position from U of Toronto!!

Now, I do not know what to do!!

first of all, I want to know how is the reputation of EPFL in US in Computer Science? I know it is an excellent school but I want to know whether it is competitive with UIUC or not?

Second, I want to know about reputation of UIUC itslef in US. It has a high ranking but is it comparable to schools like stanford or MIT? I want to know that is a PhD in UIUC-CS worth being away from home for 6-7 years?

Third, What do you know about the reputation of U of Toronto? In fact, I will be there for MASc and that is not a PhD.

thank you!

[HassE]

As one of the other posts said, if you plan on going into teacher, you really only have one option, US schools. If we're talking about US schools, there is absolutely no reason you would choice UIUC over USC, so you can throw USC out the question.

I've never heard of a graduate student getting paid $50,000/year, so that is an amazing offer. Normally US schools give you generally about the same. I would double check that USC fellowship, very rarely are they up in the $30,000, UNLESS you mean all year around, Fall/Spring/Summer semesters, then this is plausible. California is one of the highest places to live (especially LA, where USC is located) so take that into consideration, I'm not sure how the other schools fairs in terms of expenses and locations, that is important information.

Here's my straight up advice. If your looking to become a professor, you really only have one option UIUC.

However, if this is not your main goal, I think it would real hard to turn down your offer from the school who would be willing to pay you $50,000, especially since you could visit your family often.

Goodluck

[itArchitect]

I checked the site http://phd.epfl.ch/c...age-19722.html.

They indeed give very competitive salaries.

Though that's not everything one should look!Please check your priorities as advised by fellow bloggers. best of luck

As one of the other posts said, if you plan on going into teacher, you really only have one option, US schools. If we're talking about US schools, there is absolutely no reason you would choice UIUC over USC, so you can throw USC out the question.

I've never heard of a graduate student getting paid $50,000/year, so that is an amazing offer. Normally US schools give you generally about the same. I would double check that USC fellowship, very rarely are they up in the $30,000, UNLESS you mean all year around, Fall/Spring/Summer semesters, then this is plausible. California is one of the highest places to live (especially LA, where USC is located) so take that into consideration, I'm not sure how the other schools fairs in terms of expenses and locations, that is important information.

Here's my straight up advice. If your looking to become a professor, you really only have one option UIUC.

However, if this is not your main goal, I think it would real hard to turn down your offer from the school who would be willing to pay you $50,000, especially since you could visit your family often.

Goodluck

[OH YEAH]

... fellow bloggers...?

[HassE]

I checked the site http://phd.epfl.ch/c...age-19722.html.

They indeed give very competitive salaries.

Though that's not everything one should look!Please check your priorities as advised by fellow bloggers. best of luck

your correct. A salary should not be the main driving force. I only know US schools, so I can only advise in terms of them. Outside schools i'm not sure how theyre ranked or respected. Don't go just for the money, but if your torn and can't decide, remember it's about 5-7 years. A higher salary when you are already excited about the school will make those 5-7 years a little more manageable.

[ktel]

I think people are knocking U of T off the list too easily, likely because you've been accepted into an MASc. This is the norm in Canada, direct admits to a PhD from undergrad is very rare, and Master's degrees are usually funded. I know that U of T guarantees funding if you're admitted.

U of T is one of the top universities in Canada and has an excellent international reputation.

[csperson]

Most people in the US don't know what EPFL is. That doesn't mean it's bad though.

However, I bet UIUC is a considerably better than EPFL.

I would ignore the money from EPFL and go to UIUC. Is that $52000 after taxes? I don't know if this is correct or not, but a friend of mine lived in Switzerland and said everything was almost twice as expensive there.

[timuralp]

It depends. What field are you in? In certain fields, EPFL is pretty well known and papers from EPFL appear regularly. Same with UIUC, in certain subfields, UIUC papers don't show up as much. My advice would be to consider what your particular interests are, who the faculty in each place in these areas are, what they've been working on recently and what they've published. The rankings rarely tell the whole story.

Lastly, I know students that have gone back to Iran to visit their families and returned to US, but it usually takes a few months as they have to get another visa. In that light, you will also have a tough time going to conferences outside of US. It's one more annoying thing you have to deal with, but I don't think it should influence your decision.