UCSD Vs. USC, MS Electrical Engineering

[GotBass]

Hi Everyone,

So I got acceptances from both USC and UCSD for my terminal MSEE, specializing in signal and image processing, and I am having a tough time making this choice. 

1. EDUCATION QUALITY: Both schools seem to be about equal in terms of the quality of the education so far as I can tell from other people and ratings and whatnot.

2. TUITION: USC is about $40000 more in total than UCSD, which makes it seem like a no brainer for UCSD. HOWEVER, I am wondering what is the possibility of being able to get involved as a GSR (Graduate Student Researcher) or TA (Teaching Assistant) at either school (Preferably GSR) and thus being able to get my tuition waived. I know that at both schools, there is a very low chance of getting funding for Master's (I haven't gotten any funding for either offer). I am planning to email some of the research faculty at both schools today, who I would possibly work with and find out the viability of this option. I know that I would need to really stand out as a terrific student and probably bother the professors to some extent to get this to happen. But I'm just wondering if anyone has any insight on either school's history with this?

3. SOCIAL LIFE: I have been to both campuses (USC for graduate welcome day, UCSD just by myself, wasn't able to talk to anyone as it happened to be spring break when I went and very few people were there). USC seems like a very socially vibrant campus, whereas UCSD seems quite socially dead, and that's what I have heard from others as well. This is one of the lesser important points, but still makes some difference as I will be here for two years and want to have some social life. 

4. CAMPUS: Both campuses seem very beautiful, so I'd say they're tied on this point. 

4. LOCATION: La Jolla is beautiful and is a safe area. Being close to the beach is also a plus, as well as being close to San diego. On the other hand, USC is apparently in a bad part of LA (didn't seem THAT bad to me when I was there, but maybe I didn't see the worst of it). However, LA also has a plethora of different things to do all around. 

5. JOB PROSPECTS: This is one of my main reasons for getting a Master's degree; I had trouble finding a job in the field I wanted that didn't require a Master's degree (Besides that I wanted to continue my education anyway and am super excited for all the awesome things I'm going to be learning). I don't think that where you go for school matters THAT much for getting a job in engineering; rather, it's what you do while you're there in terms of research, projects, involvement, performance, etc. But I hear that USC's unique name does come into play. I hear USC has a very strong alumni network, making jobs very accessible for their grads. Is there really fact behind this claim? I hear it from a lot of people, but I haven't heard it from actual USC grads or any specific cases of this happening. If it is true, that's an interesting benefit. Still, with an MSEE, I can't see myself having trouble getting work in my field anyway. 

6. USC REPUTATION: I hear also that some people look down on USC as a cash cow and that they accept a lot of graduate students for that reason. Are other private schools the same way? And if this is true of USC, then to contradict my previous point, could this reputation hurt my career as an alumni of USC? For example, is it possible that I may be turned away from some opportunities in the future because of some assumption that I did not work hard to get to USC, and instead somehow paid my way in? This is probably a ridiculous idea, but it's something that I've thought about... 

7. INVOLVEMENT: I am planning to get as involved as I possibly can with research, projects, networking events, etc. At a glance, I think USC has the upper hand in this respect. Does anybody have any insight on this?

8. RESEARCH: At both schools I have found faculty that I would like to work with and whose work I am genuinely very interested in getting involved with. But I'm wondering if, as a Master's student, getting involved as a GSR would be more accessible at one school or another? 

My gut instinct has gone one way and the other. At the moment I'm torn between both choices. I know I'll win with either choice and they are both fantastic schools. But I want to be at peace with my choice, and secure in my reasoning. Thank you all for your input. I'll update if I remember any other comparisons. 

[blacknighterrant]

Go to UCSD. The money makes it a no brainer. USCD has an excellent reputation in the field and is ranked almost the same as USC. USC is definitely a cash cow program and masters students are not treated as well/have it slightly harder in terms of getting the research opportunities you want (Btw, you know you can already start trying to get a gra and reaching out to professors right? You should maybe email them and see what your chances are.). To say that UCSD has no social life sounds a bit ridiculous, it is a big school, I'm sure there's plenty of opportunities to socialize and plenty of people to connect with. The faculty at UCSD is also better and UCSD has the newest engineering program among the top tier programs and has been trending upwards over the years, so it wouldn't be surprising if it overtakes USC in the rankings in the upcoming years. Finally USC gives an MS degree in EE, while UCSD give the MS for ECE. It doesn't make that much of a difference, but an ECE degree is slightly better.