Umass vs UMCP. Which one to apply

[wouldbegrad]

Hi,

My profile is GRE 325 (Q166, V159), AWA 4.0

TOEFL 115

Work exp. Developer in top semicon company. -- 6 years

I am planning to do MS in fall 2013. I already applied to NCSU, UCSD,UCD. However I am stuck to choose one of the above colleges for my application. Can any one suggest one of the above where I have good chance of getting into ? I am looking for AI related field as my research interest.

Seeing that both the colleges are difficult to get into, can u suggest one?

[fdhkjal]

They're both great programs in my opinion. If you're dead-set on AI, then I think UMass is a better option, although, I would say that UMCP is a slightly better program in general. If you're looking for the current research area's of both schools, UMass - https://www.cs.umass.edu/faculty/research-clusters ; UMCP - http://www.cs.umd.edu/areas/ . UMass definitely covers all aspects of AI, whereas UMCP is a little more lacking.

Honestly, I would try to apply to both programs and see where you get in. They're both top 20 programs, and from what you posted of your profile, you have a chance at either.

[wouldbegrad]

Thanks for the detailed response.

[ab2013]

I'm currently applying to UMCP because I felt that the school had a broader range of strengths. Is it better in distributed systems/security compared to UMass?