USC Electrical Engineering

[nh88]

With several people (including myself) having received admission into the Electrical Engineering PhD program at USC, I thought I would start up a discussion about this school. I would like to focus this discussion upon the quality of the graduate program in Electrical Engineering at USC. For your reference, I would be in the Systems side of things.

I would appreciate the input of those who have already visited the school, or are familiar with the school. If there are those of you who are already enrolled in the PhD program, I would particularly appreciate your feedback.

As an international student, I hadn't heard of USC prior to beginning the admission process. I was first introduced to the program by one of my current Professors who is an alumni and has gone on to do many important things within the Wireless Communications field. From there, I took a look at several rankings and realized that this is indeed a highly ranked program. At the same time, it doesn't register on other rankings. Do I have reason for concern? Within California, how does USC compare with the other prominent schools like Stanford, Berkeley, and UCLA?

One of the things that I have observed about USC is that it seems like there is no shortage of research funding. As a prospective PhD student, this is an obvious plus. I would imagine that available funding translates into many research opportunities.

Another observation that I have made is that the faculty seem very well qualified with many IEEE Fellows and the like. I would like to attend an institution where the faculty are well respected, which would certainly help me in my own studies. I would appreciate someone commenting on this point.

Finally, being an international student I am not to familiar with the NSF. If I understand correctly, USC has the Integrated Media Systems Center which is an NSF "center for excellence". This sounds significant, and certainly from my research it appears as though this center has a track record of significant funding. Again, I would appreciate the input of those in the know.

That's all for now from my end. I encourage others who have also been admitted to USC to participate in this thread!

[quadsbaby]

With several people (including myself) having received admission into the Electrical Engineering PhD program at USC, I thought I would start up a discussion about this school. I would like to focus this discussion upon the quality of the graduate program in Electrical Engineering at USC. For your reference, I would be in the Systems side of things.

I would appreciate the input of those who have already visited the school, or are familiar with the school. If there are those of you who are already enrolled in the PhD program, I would particularly appreciate your feedback.

As an international student, I hadn't heard of USC prior to beginning the admission process. I was first introduced to the program by one of my current Professors who is an alumni and has gone on to do many important things within the Wireless Communications field. From there, I took a look at several rankings and realized that this is indeed a highly ranked program. At the same time, it doesn't register on other rankings. Do I have reason for concern? Within California, how does USC compare with the other prominent schools like Stanford, Berkeley, and UCLA?

One of the things that I have observed about USC is that it seems like there is no shortage of research funding. As a prospective PhD student, this is an obvious plus. I would imagine that available funding translates into many research opportunities.

Another observation that I have made is that the faculty seem very well qualified with many IEEE Fellows and the like. I would like to attend an institution where the faculty are well respected, which would certainly help me in my own studies. I would appreciate someone commenting on this point.

Finally, being an international student I am not to familiar with the NSF. If I understand correctly, USC has the Integrated Media Systems Center which is an NSF "center for excellence". This sounds significant, and certainly from my research it appears as though this center has a track record of significant funding. Again, I would appreciate the input of those in the know.

That's all for now from my end. I encourage others who have also been admitted to USC to participate in this thread!

How many rankings have you looked at? I was only aware of the US News Ranking in Electrical Engineering, where USC is ranked 12. UCLA is ranked 14. Stanford and Berkeley are ranked 1. So, I've stated all the rankings, but I don't actually think they are that relevant. Based on my personal experience (and I go to a california school for undergrad) I'd say UCLA and USC both have strong programs and a lot of good research. They don't have the absolute dominant reputation of Stanford or Berkeley, but I don't think that really matters that much.

It seems you are trying to establish some measure of the quality of the school by examining a bunch of ultimately irrelevant details. Much more important than the number of IEEE fellows and "centers for excellence" is the individual profs doing the research you're interested in. If there are profs there you want to work with, and you like southern california (it's pretty nice) then great!

[nh88]

How many rankings have you looked at? I was only aware of the US News Ranking in Electrical Engineering, where USC is ranked 12. UCLA is ranked 14. Stanford and Berkeley are ranked 1. So, I've stated all the rankings, but I don't actually think they are that relevant. Based on my personal experience (and I go to a california school for undergrad) I'd say UCLA and USC both have strong programs and a lot of good research. They don't have the absolute dominant reputation of Stanford or Berkeley, but I don't think that really matters that much.

While I do agree that rankings are not the greatest measure, as an outsider, I was trying to guage the general perception of USC. When I am doing a PhD and investing atleast 4 years of my life into a program, I need to know how the program is perceived. I appreciate your perspective on how the difference schools stack up.

I realize that I will be primarily judged based on the merits of my own research, but at the same time there is always some consideration for where one has been educated.

It seems you are trying to establish some measure of the quality of the school by examining a bunch of ultimately irrelevant details. Much more important than the number of IEEE fellows and "centers for excellence" is the individual profs doing the research you're interested in. If there are profs there you want to work with, and you like southern california (it's pretty nice) then great!

Of course I'm trying to establish some measure of quality, and while you may consider these irrelevant details, I think they are worth considering. It would suggest to me that the individual faculty is accomplished and so I would have an opportunity to learn from a leader in a particular field. Isn't that what we all want as graduate students? On the "centers for excellent", I am just trying to understand what one is and its' significance.

[quadsbaby]

While I do agree that rankings are not the greatest measure, as an outsider, I was trying to guage the general perception of USC. When I am doing a PhD and investing atleast 4 years of my life into a program, I need to know how the program is perceived. I appreciate your perspective on how the difference schools stack up.

I realize that I will be primarily judged based on the merits of my own research, but at the same time there is always some consideration for where one has been educated.

Of course I'm trying to establish some measure of quality, and while you may consider these irrelevant details, I think they are worth considering. It would suggest to me that the individual faculty is accomplished and so I would have an opportunity to learn from a leader in a particular field. Isn't that what we all want as graduate students? On the "centers for excellent", I am just trying to understand what one is and its' significance.

One point I'm trying to make is that there are better indicators of an individual faculty's accomplishments. Read papers in the field you're interested in and you'll see a certain number of key names pop up over and over--these guys are the heavy hitters in their field. Moreover, I don't think that an individual program's reputation is simply the count of faculty with some certain accomplishment (say IEEE fellowship).

I think you'll find that if you're going into research that the work you do and your advisor are more important than the school's name. As to your question: "Isn't [having an established prof as a mentor] what we all want?" Not necessarily. There are some big advantages to working with profs just starting out (and obviously some big disadvantages too).

[Confused Goose]

USC, as far as I know (EE), is a fairly well respected research institution overall. But while narrowing down on a program to apply to, the overall reputation is largely (though not completely) irrelevant. As quadsbaby said, objective parameters cannot evaluate the subjective details of a graduate programme, research quality, mentorship, etc.

The first thing that one must look at, in my opinion, is the amount and quality of research going on there in your field of work, and the best way by far is to actually read papers and watch out for who the authors are. This is not always practical since it would entail a fair bit of literature survey. You could then talk to professors at your school working in that field. If a research group piques your interest, send a mail to a student there (or directly to the prof, but getting a reply may be difficult).

Secondly, although the best graduate experience depends on the nebulous thing called 'fit', having a well known advisor can open many many doors. As an international student, visits and interviews are not always possible, so one has to use other methods while finalising. The same thing goes with the school itself. A top school can help you in your career after you graduate, especially if you are moving out of your narrow research area, where your advisor's reputation won't hold as much weight.

So, to sum it all up, try to get a balanced perspective. If you are considering objective parameters, try to gauge how they reflect your particular area of work.

Lastly, rankings mean absolutely nothing as far as graduate schools are concerned. Most lists give a very high weight to UG education, which precludes the possibility of using them as a reliable indicator for graduate education and research. If you want some sort of a list nonetheless, I would recommend you look at the ones made by the Shanghai Jiao Tung University (SJTU rankings). They explicitly give a higher weight to research output, citations, etc.

BTW...it also matters whether you intend to pursue research of just an MS. MS is effectively a professional degree in engineering if you want to work in the industry, so the way you evaluate a program would be different.

Edited February 6, 2010 by thecaesar

[awaiter]

Southern California is a nice place to be except that it gets a little hot in summer. Cost of living is pretty high. if you are looking to do research, since you are admitted into Ph.d, it is a nice place to live. The program is broad in terms of number of areas covered. Recommend planning your area of research before you start Masters as you can priortize your area of interest. It compares very well with other Ph.D programs if you are looking for industrial position after Ph.d. If you are looking for a faculty position, it mostly depends on your work and little on your school. Congrats and good luck!

[quadsbaby]

Southern California is a nice place to be except that it gets a little hot in summer.

Hehe, I came from Florida, so even in the summer SoCal was a lot cooler than home.

[ElecEng]

I have also applied to both USC and UCLA (also in the systems side) and have been trying to compare the two schools, so here are some of my thoughts:

USC does have a great reputation, especially for communication. The entire engineering school is named for PhD graduate Andrew Viterbi, famous (and rich) for inventing Viterbi Decoding. As a result, many USC grads go to Qualcomm and other telecom companies in Southern California. Graduate placement (whether in academia or industry) is highly dependent on faculty relationships, so it helps to have professors who have many connections. You should ask your potential advisers where their past graduates have gone.

USC has a fairly large EE department, which should be fine if as long as you get the attention you need from your adviser. You should find out how many other PhD students would be in the research group. A professor at a smaller university on the East Coast indicated how one might get lost in the midst of such a large program.

Another complaint I have heard about USC is that they dumb down their classes to cater to the many working MS students. Lots of companies in LA (especially aerospace companies) have employees in part-time Masters programs (which brings in a lot of money for the school), which I have heard can lead to lower course quality. This is coming from people who did not go to USC, though (and may have been jealous?).

[nh88]

ElecEng,

I have also applied to UCLA, but have not heard back from them as of yet. Are you planning on attending the PhD Open House next week for USC?

I am planning on attending and plan to meet with several faculty members that I am interested in working with.

[boston_creme]

ElecEng,

I have also applied to UCLA, but have not heard back from them as of yet. Are you planning on attending the PhD Open House next week for USC?

I am planning on attending and plan to meet with several faculty members that I am interested in working with.

I just finished my MS degree in EE (communications) at USC and got into the PhD program at both USC and UCLA.. I did not hear about funding yet from both schools. Here are my stats: undergrad gpa 3.8 from good state school, MS gpa 4.0, gre q:800, v:mediocre,aw:4.. if you got funding from usc can you please share your stats? thanks