UW vs Harvard, Computer Science Ph.D. Program

[RedGeezer]

Hi guys,

 

Anyone familiar with the two programs who could help me make a decision here? What is the overall reputation and quality of both programs? I am leaning towards UW as I like the school more, any reasons why I should re-consider? Is there a clean winner in this? Any and all opinions are welcome!

Looking to research in either ML or Big data possible in the ICTD theme.

Cheers!

[peachypie]

are you talking UW as in Wisconsin or Washington?

[RedGeezer]

Apologies for not being clearer. I meant University of Washington, Seattle.

[Icydubloon]

UW CS is miles better than Harvard.

[RedGeezer]

Hi lcydubloon,

 

Thank you for your comment. When I browsed through the faculty and on-going research, I came to more or less the same conclusion as you. However, Harvard is undoubtedly a top university and I am just looking for other opinions and see what others think, perhaps there is more the the Harvard program than I know of.

 

Cheers

[pl1]

I can only talk about Systems (but may apply to other areas): research-wise UW is better.

 

Check: http://www.washington.edu/news/2012/06/28/new-hires-catapult-uws-expertise-in-machine-learning-and-big-data/

Edited March 1, 2014 by pl1

[DGChaos]

Well, sure UW may be miles ahead. But that doesn't necessarily mean that Harvard wouldn't be a better fit. I think it comes down to talking to faculty and figuring who are the folks you would most like to work with.

[Icydubloon]

Well, sure UW may be miles ahead. But that doesn't necessarily mean that Harvard wouldn't be a better fit. I think it comes down to talking to faculty and figuring who are the folks you would most like to work with.

 

You're correct. But if I were to answer every question with "Well, it depends." That really wouldn't help too much. Sometimes a black and white answer is necessary for simplicity's sake. Statistically speaking, take any CS student off the street, it is more likely they will have a better fit at UW than Harvard, which is why I said my original comment.

 

 

Hi lcydubloon,

 

Thank you for your comment. When I browsed through the faculty and on-going research, I came to more or less the same conclusion as you. However, Harvard is undoubtedly a top university and I am just looking for other opinions and see what others think, perhaps there is more the the Harvard program than I know of.

 

Cheers

 

Harvard is a prestigious university yes, but UW is better at computer science (and machine learning/big data, see [1]). Honestly I would pick Harvard over UW because of the name. For what I want to do in life, the brand name is (unfortunately) very important.

 

[1] http://escience.washington.edu/blog/new-phd-tracks-big-data

[skyentist]

Seattle is awesome city also. UW all the way!

[dat_nerd]

Harvard is a prestigious university yes, but UW is better at computer science (and machine learning/big data, see [1]). Honestly I would pick Harvard over UW because of the name. For what I want to do in life, the brand name is (unfortunately) very important.

 

[1] http://escience.washington.edu/blog/new-phd-tracks-big-data

 

UW has a much, much better name than Harvard when it comes to computer science. UW is a top-10 school. I don't know anyone who would consider Harvard to have a better CS program.

 

OP, congrats on the acceptances!

[RedGeezer]

Thank you everyone for your input!

Adding more detail to the situation (which btw, I left out intentionally): I feel I am a much much better fit with UW. I have already worked with a top UW proff for a while now (and its been great working with him) and the other UW professor who has contacted me post-admission is also very exciting. I was (although impressed) not nearly as excited by the Harvard faculty.

The reason I left this bit out was because it would have resulted in everyone answering "Go for UW!" - and perhaps rightly so - but that would not have answered the real question - on the whole which program is considered better.

Anyways, I think I will go for UW! =)

Cheers everyone!

[Icydubloon]

UW CS is miles better than Harvard.

 

 

UW has a much, much better name than Harvard when it comes to computer science. UW is a top-10 school. I don't know anyone who would consider Harvard to have a better CS program.

 

OP, congrats on the acceptances!

 

Did you even read this thread?

 

Harvard has a better "wow" factor than UW. Harvard CS's "wow" factor is comparable to UW CS in industry, from what I've seen. For academia, UW is better. It's pretty obvious that UW CS is better than Harvard. That doesn't change the fact that Harvard is a more prestigious school (overall), which was the point of my post.

Edited March 5, 2014 by Icydubloon

[dat_nerd]

Did you even read this thread?

 

Harvard has a better "wow" factor than UW. Harvard CS's "wow" factor is comparable to UW CS in industry, from what I've seen. For academia, UW is better. It's pretty obvious that UW CS is better than Harvard. That doesn't change the fact that Harvard is a more prestigious school (overall), which was the point of my post.

 

Honestly I would pick Harvard over UW because of the name.

 

Yes Icydubloon, I most certainly read the whole thread. I only wanted to clarify the differences between undergraduate name-brand and CS graduate program rankings. Like you, I am here to offer my advice to the OP, and I appreciate your input and advice as well. 

Edited March 5, 2014 by dat_nerd

[dat_nerd]

Thank you everyone for your input!

Adding more detail to the situation (which btw, I left out intentionally): I feel I am a much much better fit with UW. I have already worked with a top UW proff for a while now (and its been great working with him) and the other UW professor who has contacted me post-admission is also very exciting. I was (although impressed) not nearly as excited by the Harvard faculty.

The reason I left this bit out was because it would have resulted in everyone answering "Go for UW!" - and perhaps rightly so - but that would not have answered the real question - on the whole which program is considered better.

Anyways, I think I will go for UW! =)

Cheers everyone!

 

Congratulations on your decision! Just out of curiosity, what research area are you interested in?

 

Now go celebrate!! 

[RedGeezer]

Congratulations on your decision! Just out of curiosity, what research area are you interested in?

 

Now go celebrate!! 

I am looking to research within the realm of ICT4D (Computing for Development).

 

My research during ugrad was mainly about early epidemic detection using unconventional sources, but that is not really something I am looking to stick to. As you may know, ICTD projects often span across different fields; my projects involved NLP, Machine Learning and a bit of HCI. Among these, ML really appealed to me, NLP was enjoyable and HCI was meh. My university final year project however was about WSN Network Localization using swarm based techniques.

ML is one of the main focuses for me. But I also want to do independent projects in Big Data, AI and maybe even systems/networking before I commit to a thesis.

Oh and I have been celebrating since the day I got these admits! I mean, I can't really go much wrong here regardless of the decision I make

[kcyc]

Call me a rookie, but isn't PhD research more about how much hardwork you put into it/insights you made? Your faculty advisors don't make too much of a difference? So Harvard faculty should be good enough for your research and career development.

 

I think go to Harvard. Just the networking opportunities with the most influencial and intelligent people in US will probably help you greatly in your career later on. Also UW does not hold much of a prestige outside Washington, except in CS. Harvard is all around a better school.

[Salty_Jelly]

I think that, for CS at least, MIT/Berkeley/Cornell/U Washington far outrank Harvard.  Harvard does well (top five) in a lot of fields.  But computer science is not one of them.  Goto U Washington.

[kechemukwa]

Call me a rookie, but isn't PhD research more about how much hardwork you put into it/insights you made? Your faculty advisors don't make too much of a difference? So Harvard faculty should be good enough for your research and career development.

 

I think go to Harvard. Just the networking opportunities with the most influencial and intelligent people in US will probably help you greatly in your career later on. Also UW does not hold much of a prestige outside Washington, except in CS. Harvard is all around a better school.

Faculty advisors make a huge difference. Your PhD research is what will define your career as an academic/researcher. Choosing a good advisor can make or break both your project and overall experience in grad school. For me, a good faculty advisor is the most important factor in my decision making. A great program can only do so much for you if you have a shit advisor, because in the end, your advisor will guide your project and growth as a professional, not the program you chose.