what do you guys think ?

[implosion]

So i've been accepted to UofT Scarborough for Computer Science. I know that it's a legit university but i really want to go to Waterloo. I know i either want to do Computer Science or Software engineering, something to do with programming. I've got two possibilities that I'm thinking of:

1) Go to UTSC and then during second year apply for a transfer to St. George campus or Waterloo.
2) Stay back in highschool for an extra year. repeat my courses and apply again.

i feel i have a really good shot at making it into waterloo for computer science, this year i didn't because i thought for sure i was going to stay back an extra year and didn't bother to fill out any forms but then i got this offer. Also for computer science i didn't need chemistry or physics (kept my average low)... soo much suffering. lol. Another thing that crossed my mind was that what if i do come back, apply again and still don't get in... i just wasted another year. Although for software engineering at waterloo, mcmaster it is an engineering course and i need chem / physics. If i do somehow lets say transfer after second year and make it into software engineering.. why is there chem/physics needed and how screwed would i be ?

so yeah... what do you guys think i should do ? No hatting please =)

oh and how much does co-op at utsc give ?.. i know for waterloo its like 40 - 50 000 ?. and like 2 years experiance.. utsc just has 3 - 4month co-op..so only 1 year exp.

[jbking]

My suggestion would be the first one as it may allow you to transfer some courses and reduce how many you'd have to take at Waterloo possibly. I'm thinking more here of electives as I'm not sure how well courses within the faculty you'd be entering would accept credits from another university, i.e. if you do for Computer Science at Waterloo, I'm not sure how well would the Math and Computer Science courses transfer into credits. This also gives you an opportunity to experience university and see how well it works or doesn't work for you. Granted there is a bit of a financial commitment here, but I suspect that will provide some motivation to not be a slacker or think, "Well, I can totally mess this up and be ok..." kind of thing.

Cheers,
JB

[endless]

i stayed back to get my maths after i took a semester course, and am now soon going to waterloo for CS. although i had no choice but to stay back because i didnt have math.
if i were you i would go to U of T and get your undergrad.

plus you have to remember, if you stay back and go to waterloo, thats an extra year caused by staying back, then an extra year from the 5 year undergrad at UW. ex. ill be almost 24 when i get my undergraduate.

[Dark]

Either way you are going to a public Canadian University for an undergrad, I don't think the difference will be too great.

Plus, as I'm sure you've heard, University is what you make of it. If you are smart and/or go out of your way to learn different coding techniques not taught in class, you'll do fine.

I've been told an undergrad doesn't really matter reputation-wise, so IMO just go to UTSC.

[implosion]

alright you guys... I'M GOING TO UTSC !!
but man, i'm so nervous for the courses, especially the math. and i was trying to look at what courses i have to take... i'm so confused. lol
it probably would have helped if i went to the seminar thing yesterday but my mom got us lost on the way there. anyone know what courses i'd have to take so that i'd still be able to transfer over to St. George or Waterloo and still graduate on time ?

[implosion]

damn it !!... I'm starting to second guess myself... part of me wants to stay back and redo my courses and then apply to Waterloo but part of me says go on your ready for it and then just try and transfer... i guess the 2 things that are scaring me is that i don't think I'm ready for university and then making friends... utsc is only a half hour drive from where i live so it is pointless to get res. and I'll save a lot of money... but i want to live in res cuz i think that's the only way I'll make friends and can get the university experience, I'm a pretty quiet guy; don't talk much unless people talk to me first... but sometimes pending on how i am i can't stop talking. aha.. but yeah. i don't know how i can get involved with my peers if i'm just going to school, going to lectures / tutorials and then coming home.

[Tony]

implosion @ Sun Jun 07, 2009 8:53 pm wrote:

i'm so nervous for the courses, especially the math.

Waterloo's Math is demanding. It's not just the Math courses, but also the amount of Math in CS courses themselves.

Just remember, your University experience largely depends on what you make of it. UTSC doesn't have to horrible, unless you make it be. By the same token, no University is guaranteed to make for a good experience. I've had horrible experiences with UW's administration and bureaucracies.

[DemonWasp]

Tony @ Tue Jun 09, 2009 8:06 pm wrote:

I've had horrible experiences with UW's administration and bureaucracies.

QFT. I've had more than a few unhelpful interactions with CS advisors, the finance advisors and constantly-changing course prerequisites (seriously, who changes the prerequisites for a required CS course every other term?).

I also have one huge complaint about UW, and that's this: Every single webpage they use is awful.

Quest sucks. Quest is the system you use to check your fees, add / remove / swap courses, etc. It's getting a replacement soon but the previews of the replacement do not fill me with hope.

JobMine sucks. JobMine is the system you use to get co-op employment. It gets the job done, but it takes me three times as long as it should, presents information in a confusing and unhelpful manner, and often goes down at peak demand - which, in a university FULL of CS majors with a total population of only a few tens of thousands at maximum, is completely unreasonable. It's also getting replaced, but absent any previews I'm not really holding my breath.

UWAngel sucks; it's used once you're in a class to distribute course notes, announcements, assignments, etc. It works...sort of. It currently has no support for IE8, has been missing support for Firefox in the past (no word on Opera or Safari to the best of my knowledge) and loads incredibly slowly. Often, in Firefox on Linux, it would lock up the browser for upwards of a minute while it did...I-don't-know-what. You also couldn't navigate it any more intelligently than click-wait-click-wait; trying to open tabs breaks its fragile mind.

Even the main UW page isn't laid out particularly well. You'll find that you google things with "site: uwaterloo.ca" frequently if you want to actually find stuff.

[jernst]

Tony @ Tue Jun 09, 2009 8:06 pm wrote:

I've had horrible experiences with UW's administration and bureaucracies.

I think you'll find thats common with most universities. Every university I've dealt with recently has been awful for various reasons, but I guess that comes with having such a large organization with stretched resources. It seems to get worse as you get into grad school. Maybe the role switches from being a paying customer to someone who is essentially taking up some of their funding.

Edit: whoops quote fail

[jbking]

implosion @ Tue Jun 09, 2009 4:06 pm wrote:

i don't know how i can get involved with my peers if i'm just going to school, going to lectures / tutorials and then coming home.

Why can't you get involved in clubs that may exist on the campus? I remember at Waterloo there were clubs for every major, though in some cases the same club represented multiple majors like the Pure Math/Applied Math/Combinatorics & Optimization Club, a.k.a. the PMAMC&OC or the Acturial Science and Statistics club. Then there are other clubs that may be of interest like a film club or a club of people from a certain part of the world like a Caribbean Student Club for example.

I'd also suggest that you find a way to spend time on campus and you may be surprised how it can be easy to socialize in some cases. I remember the Comfy Lounge in the Math building being a place where I was introduced to Bridge and had a lot of fun with the Bridge Club, but just as easily could find people doing assignments for a class where some do help each other.

To reiterate another reply, university is what you make of it. Seriously.

[jernst]

+1 to what jbking said, get involved as much as you can without hurting yourself academically. The connections you make will be priceless. You get perspectives from people outside of comp sci (or whatever your program is), which is always good sometimes. Volunteering or showing interests outside of your program shows you're well rounded. Its also possible to be involved too much as well, so just guard against that. Balance is key.

[implosion]

I don't know why, but i keep second guessing myself. I know UTSC is a good university, but seeing as i have the opportunity to stay back and fix up courses is bugging me. How hard would it be to transfer over ? A big reason for me not wanting to go to utsc is that i will be staying at home, and i have 4 younger siblings... they are a pain in the ass, and my parents work all the time... but on the hypocritical side of that if i do go to utsc there is no point staying is rez since its only a half hour drive. Thats why i'd rather go to waterloo or St. Geroge, waterloo more though cuz i really like the campus. When i was at waterloo it just seemed really easy to make friends the way the residences are set up etc. how would i find out about stuff to sign up for... i play guitar ?.. i also wouldn't mind going my religious group if there is one over there.. but thats all i can think of... when i'm there (lets say all day ?). when the year first begins i'd probably be going to class, then while waiting for another class prepping/reviewing material.. then when my last class is done.. i'd probably be going home ? A part of me is really scared because i'm not sure what to expect... i'm that kind of guy where i need to be able to see where i'm walking before i take the step... hah i'm so indecisive and its bugging the hell out of me !!!

[[Gandalf]]

Don't worry, you'll find things to do on campus wherever you go. Just hang around, talk to people who you sit beside / randomly meet, etc. People are generally more friendly like that in university, as opposed to high school where closed groups of friends form more-so.

implosion @ 2009-06-15, 10:19 pm wrote:

How hard would it be to transfer over?

Hard enough that you'll probably be content with your choice and not bother going through the trouble. Easy enough that if you decide you hate your time there, there's a big chance you'll manage to switch over. Remember though, getting accepted into and starting at a university is easiest the first time around.