Help with OMSCS decision (USC vs GaTech)

I was actually in the USC program for a semester, and still kept in contact with some of the people who continued and graduated. So hopefully I can offer a perspective on both sides.

I was accepted and decided to go to USC about a couple years ago. I was an on-campus student as well and liked my class. I was working full time and only took one class my first semester. Ultimately the price tag is what made me switch to Georgia Tech a year later and I have no regrets. Some of my friends are in debt, especially since there is little to no aid offered from the university. It might be a bit different on your end depending on how much work covers, but switching to Georgia Tech allowed my company to cover everything for me.

If you really are having a hard time choosing, think about what classes you would like to take at USC versus Georgia Tech. At GATech I'm doing the Computing Systems specialization. The friends that I made at USC had specialized in Computer Security, and when we talk about the work I'm doing versus what they have done, they found the classes at Georgia Tech seemed to be a lot more useful (a mix of theory and real-life application) versus what they had taken at USC. I can't speak on any of the other types of classes at USC or GATech. So my advice would be to look through the course schedules at USC versus GATech and see what fits your needs. The only downfall at GATech that I see for my specialization is that I wish there were more options. Also in my experience, I felt like the TAs care more at GATech than at USC (but this could have just been the class I took). A pro for USC was that student collaboration/networking was a lot easier since you see the same faces at class. I felt that personally, it was easy for me to let that go especially because I was already working and had enough networking opportunities through work rather than school. So think about the career path you would like to take and whether it would be okay to let school networking opportunities go or not.

Some who graduated at USC say that their school name worked for them, others it didn't. It's really what you make of it! Good luck in your decision!

/r/OMSCS Thread