Machine Learning: UCSD vs. Columbia

[cabby]

Hey guys,

What do you guys think of the ML programs at UCSD and Columbia? Where are the relative areas of strengths/weaknesses for each of these ML programs?

Thanks so much!

Edited May 19, 2011 by cabby

[President]

Hey guys,

What do you guys think of the ML programs at UCSD and Columbia? Where are the relative areas of strengths/weaknesses for each of these ML programs?

Thanks so much!

I honestly feel that you haven't looked into their websites and faculty profiles before asking this question.

[cabby]

I

I honestly feel that you haven't looked into their websites and faculty profiles before asking this question.

I did browse their websites, but wanted opinions from people on this forum who may know about this.

[nobody2008]

Well, I think you would have chosen your school by the time I post this reply but UCSD is much better than Columbia in Machine Learning. UCSD has recently hired a lot of faculty in Machine Learning. If you go through the Machine Learning Journal Committee - there are around 7 people in UCSD from Machine Learning. Further, in terms of publications (quality and number) UCSD is much better.

[cabby]

Well, I think you would have chosen your school by the time I post this reply but UCSD is much better than Columbia in Machine Learning. UCSD has recently hired a lot of faculty in Machine Learning. If you go through the Machine Learning Journal Committee - there are around 7 people in UCSD from Machine Learning. Further, in terms of publications (quality and number) UCSD is much better.

Thanks! Do others agree with this? Any examples?

[cabby]

Thanks! Do others agree with this? Any examples?

I was wondering if other people agreed with this. I'm not making a decision, just curious.

As for examples, I meant specific faculty or research going on.

Thanks!

[symbolic]

Thanks! Do others agree with this? Any examples?

Microsoft Academic Search supports what nobody2008 said.

http://academic.research.microsoft.com/RankList?entitytype=7&topDomainID=2&subDomainID=6&last=0&start=1&end=100

Notice that UCSD has 3.5x the number of citations as Columbia, despite only having 2x the number of publications. In the last 10 years, it has 2x the number of publications and 2x the number of citations. In the last 5 years, it has a little under 2x for both (though I think the more recent data on papers is incomplete, so it could favor either UCSD or Columbia on a per-capita basis, but UCSD still likely wins in absolute # of publications/citations). So in both absolute measures of research/impact and per-capita measures (I assume that UCSD has many more people doing ML research than Columbia), UCSD is quite a bit ahead of Columbia for ML.

Interpreting this as a ranking of research for US universities:

Last 5 years: UCSD #6, Columbia #14

Last 10 years: UCSD #5, Columbia #13

All years: UCSD #5, Columbia #20

So UCSD is solidly one of the best for ML research and has been for a while, Columbia is still pretty great and has steadily gotten better (or maybe others just have gotten worse). Both are awesome, exciting places to do ML but UCSD definitely has the edge.

(by the way, ignore the H-index next to the institution - that's overall, for all their research, not for ML research)