I'm choosing between Waterloo (CS or Comp Eng) and Oxford (CS) as a Singaporean
My priorities:
- End up working in US tech making good money
- Not lose my mind in a cohort full of people gunning each other down
- Keep options open for grad school / startups later
Waterloo: co-op pipeline straight into FAANG / quant / startups, huge alumni network in SF and NYC, the brand is basically a hiring shortcut for US recruiters. The thing that turns me off is the cohort is massive (1000+ in CS) and from what I've read it can be pretty leetcode-grindy with people treating each other as competition more than peers. I really don't want that to be my next four years.
Oxford: way smaller cohort, tutorial system means actual relationships with profs, three-year degree (and I can maybe do masters in the US), brand carries globally. What I can't get a clear read on is how well Oxford CS actually places into US tech. No co-op, no obvious recruiting pipeline, plus the visa headache. I don't want to be the guy who took the "prestigious" path and ended up locked out of the US market.