ATTN: all university students @ Waterloo,McMaster,Ryerson,UofT,YORK

[beatbox]

hey i have a question for those who attend Waterloo,McMaster,Ryerson,UofT or YORK...i might as well make this thread now then make it a week before OUAC acceptance deadline (JUNE 13)
i just wanted to get opinions on these universitues for Computer Engineering

first of im leaning towards going to McMaster since its a really good university and its not that far from me...on the other hand i want to go to Ryerson only because you get to do hands on work but with a lot of user comments on various threads they bash Ryerson saying it doesnt stand up to the rest and doesnt have that reputation

YORK is more of a business scholl so im thinkinging its probably not worth going there and in terms of Waterloo and UofT everyone says its a WAY TO TOUGH!
and hear that many end up transfering universities

now im not asking anyone to decide for me but just want to get opinions on the university atmosphere, course load, and whatever you feel like adding that will help me and possibly others decide their university choice

thanks

[vonteego]

hey i have a question for those who attend Waterloo,McMaster,Ryerson,UofT or YORK...i might as well make this thread now then make it a week before OUAC acceptance deadline (JUNE 13)
i just wanted to get opinions on these universitues for Computer Engineering

first of im leaning towards going to McMaster since its a really good university and its not that far from me...on the other hand i want to go to Ryerson only because you get to do hands on work but with a lot of user comments on various threads they bash Ryerson saying it doesnt stand up to the rest and doesnt have that reputation

YORK is more of a business scholl so im thinkinging its probably not worth going there and in terms of Waterloo and UofT everyone says its a WAY TO TOUGH!
and hear that many end up transfering universities

now im not asking anyone to decide for me but just want to get opinions on the university atmosphere, course load, and whatever you feel like adding that will help me and possibly others decide their university choice

thanks

Waterloo waterloo waterloo. If it's co-op, your program.

Work experience can make up for crappy grades if the program is too hard, and it's the only school that seems to strike fear in UT students

[nfnx]

i went to comp engineering at u of t... its a deathtrap and im sure waterloos the same

unless your mandarin... forget about it... go to mcmaster and get a great scholarship along with a honorable schooling and be happy.

i turned down a 6000 mcmaster scholarship to any engineering program, for a 1000 u of t scholarship to ECE engineering and it was the biggest mistake of my life.... UofT is trying to make us fail!!

[KevC]

It's true UofT is difficult, but saying they're out to make you fail is an overstatement. Don't expect to go to another school and automatically get higher marks. True, some schools may be more lienant, but UofT is way more recognized than MAC or Waterloo. I'm not saying they're bad schools.

If you really love what you do, then there's nothing wrong with going to UofT. A couple of my friends are in nSCI and they love it there. The parties are great. Engineers work hard and party harder.

Anywhere you go, you'll have a good time I think. But UofT is in the heart of downtown Toronto. You can do so much here. And you get an internationally recognized degree.

[MrDisco]

mac is valued for their medical program. everything else is kind of blah.

[JoKeRr]

goto Queen's, it's all white here--and the policy is really nice, so u can drink hard.

[felix]

yeah, go to Queens if you're white or don't want to be with chinese people. Else go to Waterloo or UofT. UofT is hard but you'll have a better time there if you're asian. Also, you don't have to walk around as much in Waterloo, since the classes seem more or less in the buildings clumped around together. At least that's what I thought when I went to visit a friend there (also in engineering). So it's a great place for lazy people like me. I made the mistake of going to Queen's, and oh my god I was so tired from all that walking .. 15 minutes between classes from Stirling to Dupuis hall and everyone is late for those classes .. oh my god I'm so lazy ...

[TenzoR]

in any case whatever you choose take the Co-op option, it'll give the job experience you need. Though it might add a year, but its well worth it.

[gh05t]

Isn't Waterloo still tops for Computer Science.

My brother in law was the only Non Waterloo Graduate(He has a third world country's university degree in computer science but still owned Canadian graduates) working at GE Canada when he lived in Canada as GE favoured the best at the time and they were usually from Waterloo.

[Tiberius]

Waterloo is the best for Computer Science... without question...

For Engineering, it's solid. Definitely a good place to be if you want the best education - and the benefits the co-op and school reputation give you. UofT is probably solid for engineering also based on the rep.

If you are hard working and will do the work, get the best education you can.

I could have gone to Guelph for Computer Science on scholarship - I am SO GLAD I did NOT do that! Not because I got a Waterloo computer science degree (I actually switched to Business/Information Systems midway through) - but because of the co-op experience! and the reputation of the school makes me pretty much as "valued" as a Waterloo comp sci. graduate.

[coolpc]

waterloo first in North American for engineers you must go there!!! because of the coop program of course..

[CSR]

waterloo first in North American for engineers you must go there!!! because of the coop program of course..

agreed

[x-batman]

waterloo first in North American for engineers you must go there!!! because of the coop program of course..

Actually Waterloo is #1 in Canada, #3 in North America for engineering...

[m77m7]

I think before you read all of the stuff above, you need to be honest and realistic about your goals and where you stand intellectually. If you have a B average, you are unlikely to get accepted to the more difficult and popular schools like UofT or UofW.

If you have an A avg or more, then you'll definitely survive (at the difficult schools) if getting that A avg was easy and you barely had to study to get it. If you had to bust your rump to get it, then you'll probably survive if you have good time managment skills and don't succomb to the temptation to fool around (take that how you will) and not do work.

Third, the atmosphere is totally different between UofT and Waterloo. Since you're in the hamilton area, I'm sure you know the benefits and drawbacks of each city.

Don't listen to all the UofT bashers that are above and that will post after me unless they are FROM UofT. Many people are simply jealous of UofT for some stupid reason or make irrational conclusions from the experience of 1 or 2 students they know. Also, don't believe the hype that waterloo coop is better because the reality is that they have to look for jobs themselves most of the time and have a tough time getting placements. I know people in managerial roles at big (BIG) name companies who like U of T interns better because they are more willing to learn compared to Wterloo students who think they know everything. Don't concentrate on working or coop yet, just get past 1st year and 2nd year first.

[cnbc]

UW co-op is great. A lot of my friends from there are getting between $15-18 dollar/hour in their first work term. Usually for comp sci and eng, first work term starts after 4 month of school (stream 4). The extra money earned from co-op pays off everything. You can actually save up $20 000 after you graduate, which is awesome.

Maybe I'm biased because I go to waterloo. Don't take my word for it, go check each university out. Both UoT and UW are great choices for eng. The Asian/white school talk is stupid. Sure there are a lot of fobs who go there, so what? If you are white, it doesn't make you any less comfortable, nor harder to attend to a class that is 95% Chinese (no jokes, the prof is Chinese too), and vice versa if you are Asian and go to Queen's.

Anyways, engineering is not easy no matter where you go. Prepare to work hard for 4-5 years. Oh yeah, don't ever be pissed off by some extremely bright students, high school marks mean nothing.