MIT's name factor when compared to UW

[dirkhaim]

If I choose between UW and MIT, what would you say is the actual difference as far as the name ("wow") factor that MIT has over UW? How much will it really open doors? And what are the other factors that matter?

Thanks

[arienandthesun]

I do not know if it is too late to answer but what I think is both of them are really good school. It depends on who you will work with, which area. You should also consider who did what after graduation. Industrial relations may also affect, how helpful is the department to find you a job etc. For people who knows the area there may not be much difference.

[dirkhaim]

Well, it's too late, but you confirmed what I thought

I chose UW. It was hard to say no to MIT and I have a feeling that some people here will say that I am just plain stupid, but considering the circumstances and the research in what I want to do, I decided UW is the best option of the two.

[vvepoijpovfr]

Just wondering, what research are you doing?

[finest_engineering]

Congratulations on your decision! UW is an awesome CS program and Seattle is an amazing city to live in! I would have gone there but I was too concerned about ranking at the time (I am not in CS, UW is good in my field too but not quite as good as where I am going now). It turned out that I am super happy with my professor now though so I made out well in the end. Currently the dream is to get a faculty position at UW when its all over.

When you consider the age old question "how much does the MIT (stanford, caltech, etc.) name matter after graduation?", keep in mind chicken and egg problems. At top schools like Texas, CMU, etc. you will find a very disproportionate number of professors are from a handful of schools. However, this does not mean that going to those schools makes it easier to get a faculty position. It means that better (and more academia inclined) people tend to go to those schools in the first place. Being in the NBA doesn't make you a great baller- great ballers are the only ones that get to the NBA though. The same reasoning applies to fellowships (assuming you have funding). The quality of your research and your vision/perspective for future research is what will matter in the end. The committees that review your applications in the future will understand your work and will give zero brow raising for MIT over UW.

If you want to actually work in software then Seattle is a better place to be than Boston. Northern Cal is probably a notch better, but that is not that far away anyways.

You can get the MIT name when you are a professor there or the president of the university in a few years =).

[dirkhaim]

You can get the MIT name when you are a professor there or the president of the university in a few years =).