Electrical Engineering PhD

[Sura]

Hi all,

I am an undergraduate from India who got admitted in UCLA, UIUC and UMD's electrical engineering department for the PhD program. UCLA and UMD gave me fellowships while UIUC put me as a research assistant in a POI's lab. Research wise all 3 same to be equally attractive. But UIUC's department seems to be a bit better, while UCLA has the brand-value advantage (or so I think). Also I am thinking about LA vs Urbana-Champaign (the comforts and nice weather of LA wins!). I am not really sure which would be a good fit. Could you guys tell me about the factors which I should take into account (other than research) for a great graduate life? If so, could you shed some light about the 3 places?

Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance.

[zaphyr]

Congrats on the great admissions you got. I believe living in a big and vibrant city is a big advantages that UCLA is offering you. If I were you, I would choose UCLA without any doubt . However, working under a particular POI and your sub-specialization in EE are two main factors that might lean you towards UIUC. 

[compscian]

@Sura Congrats. It might be beneficial to state your research area too. UCLA is very strong in RF, devices; while UIUC is good in signals & systems. However, the classification is soft - the systems group (Ali Sayed, Vandenberghe, Soatto etc.) at UCLA is obviously strong too. However, UIUC is definitely the superior brand by a long way.

I would also give a lot of importance to living conditions, flexibility of program, and the community in general. For example, some programs are notorious for making students take irrelevant courses in the name of breadth requirement. Some programs weed out many students after qualifying exams. You should also consider the "community" - e.g. conference vs journals; applications vs algorithms; proof-based vs computational etc. If you are very specific about academia, UIUC is likely to offer more based on track record. UCLA feeds primarily into the industry in SoCal. However, LA beats Urbana by a long way - weather + urban facilities + large Indian population.

[Sura]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the suggestions. I applied in information theory (communication theory) and I have been assigned specific research advisors in all the places. I had a chat with them and research/reputation wise all are big shots in the field, I have absolutely no preference amongst the three. In this scenario, would you still suggest I should lean towards UIUC because the group there is better (since the advisor is all that matters right? and I have been assigned already) ?

Thanks!

[compscian]

@Sura If you are happy with the POIs assigned, and have no preference among them, the next step would be to compare the programs on the whole. This can be coursework, flexibility, attrition rate, qualifying exam pass rate, summer internships, and most importantly the climate and your compatibility with it. On some of these, UIUC is better, while on the others UCLA is better. Depending on how important the above factors are (very subjective), different people are likely to choose different universities.

I was admitted to UIUC last year (for MechE, again top 6-7 by rankings), talked to professors, and loved it. I was developing an interest in ML and signal processing at that time, and was told that I can work with nearly anyone in CSL - which is definitely comparable to LIDS, ISL, or CITRIS at top universities. However, I was totally put off by the climate. This also seems to be the trend with many universities which aren't in the best of localities (UIUC & Cornell, in particular), where many professors are leaving for greener pastures. Hence, it's very possible that by the end of your PhD, UCLA is ahead of UIUC in rankings.

[Sura]

@compscian

Hmmm yeah, I got to do a bit of research into those I reckon.

Thanks a lot for the insightful information man! Wish you all the best on your graduate schooling

[blacknighterrant]

The weather in LA is better, but the area that UCLA is in is extremely expensive (honestly though you'll probably be so busy as a PhD student that the weather won't be a very big deal so the expense will end up being a more important factor). Traffic is also a nightmare near Westwood and UIUC has a stronger program. The reputation factor will probably make a bigger deal if you plan on seeking employment outside of the US in the future, in the US UIUC's reputation among engineering companies is fine. 

Edited February 23, 2016 by blacknighterrant