UC Riverside vs Cal Poly Pomona

[carlvine]

Hey guys,

 

I was a music undergrad, and applied to MSCS programs after about 15 prereqs at a local uni. I got accepted to UCR with some funding, as well as Cal Poly Pomona with full funding (as FAFSA covered the low tuition). I am not entirely sure whether I want to pursue a Doctorate or go into industry, so I thought a Master's would be the best way to figure that out.

 

Would UCR be worth the extra money? Would the research opportunities for a Master's student be better at UCR? In general, would it be a better school to prepare for doctorate?

 

As far as I know, UCR is ranked #56 while Pomona is not even on the list. I'm just not sure how that helps me lol

[justinmcummings]

I did my first year of my Electrical Engineering BS at Pomona, I would highly advice against going there.

[carlvine]

What did you not like about the program? I hear that it is overpopulated and difficult to find classes, but otherwise a solid program. Also, UCR is a dedicated research program, granting Doctorates etc, while Pomona only has a Master's degree and geared towards industry. 

 

Any thoughts guys?

[justinmcummings]

It is overcrowded, in my undergrad it was difficult to find classes. In general I felt like the professors didn't care about your education. I lived on campus and I quickly found out that the university has the commuter mentality. To be honest if you have even the slightest desire of doing a PhD after you need to be at a research university.

 

edit: but the campus is really nice to look at, they have wild(ish) Arabian horses and a huge rose garden. I will say that some of the EE industry like JPL and others look at Pomona for hires first, why I am not sure but the clubs I was in while I was there always had people from industry coming looking for new hires.

Edited April 10, 2014 by justinmcummings

[csforme]

Hi everyone,

 

Does anyone know how UC Riverside is compared against Cal Poly SLO (not Pomona) for M.S. in Computer Science if the goal is to enter the industry not academia. I heard that Cal Poly SLO is very good for job placement but is it only true for their undergraduate students or graduate students get the same opportunities? is UC Riverside good for entering industry?

 

Any help or feedback would be highly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

Regards.