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UCLA MSCS

Program Overview

UCLA has a big brand name and is highly recognized in China. UCLA MS has a very small class size, probably only 30-40 people. UCLA MSCS is a research-oriented program, and the curriculum doesn't include many job-search-friendly courses. It leans heavily toward AI -- if you want CSAPP, storage, or OS, go to CMU instead. UCLA has never offered a single grad-level OS or Database course. Labs are fairly MS-friendly, and professors welcome research participation. If you get into a lab, you can take some easy courses and focus entirely on research to aim for a return PhD offer.

UCLA's on-campus dining is truly excellent. If you buy meal swipes from undergrads, you can eat for $8 until you're stuffed, with Chinese, Asian, and American food options. The LA area is very lively -- Westwood even recently opened a Meet Fresh. When you have time, you can also head south to Sawtelle, which has great teppanyaki, tsukemen, and is perfect for Japanese food lovers.

Admission Preferences & Representative Data Points

Very few people are admitted. Admissions mainly consist of UCLA undergrads in the 4+1 program and international students. The admission difficulty is indeed very high -- you can't get in without a 3.9+ GPA from a top international university, a top-5 Chinese university, or an outstanding research background. (In the words of a current student: "UCLA receives 3,000 to 4,000 applications per year but only admits around 120-150 students. Considering that 50-60 are internal CS undergrad transfers, the external admission rate drops to about 2%.")

  1. San Jose State University CS undergrad, GPA 3.93
  2. Korea University (South Korea) CS+Statistics undergrad, CS GPA 4.17/4.5, 2 years at SAP
  3. Indian undergrad, GPA 9.41/10, Bosch
  4. UW-Madison CS undergrad, GPA 3.92
  5. UCLA CS undergrad, GPA 3.9
  6. ASU CS undergrad, GPA 4.0
  7. UCLA CS undergrad, GPA 3.7

Job Outcomes & Data Points

Career fairs have become increasingly useless in recent years -- just rely on mass applications + internal referrals.

  1. Amity University CS undergrad, 2 years working in India, landed Amazon SDE intern
  2. NTU (Taiwan) EE undergrad, 8-month Microsoft internship, JP Morgan MLE full-time
  3. San Jose State University CS undergrad, landed small company intern and got return offer
  4. Korea University CS+Statistics undergrad, 2 years at SAP, landed Snowflake SDE intern
  5. Indian undergrad, GPA 9.41/10, 6-month Bosch internship, landed Adobe and got return offer
  6. PKU CS undergrad, quant internship + ByteDance internship, landed AppLovin
  7. UCLA CS undergrad, had Tencent Games internship, landed NVIDIA and got return offer

PhD Transfer

Transferring to PhD at LA is easy -- as long as the professor agrees, you can transfer. I know UCLA undergrad-to-MS students who transferred to the school's own PhD program.

Living & Safety

Living in Los Angeles is expensive, and UCLA is adjacent to the famous wealthy neighborhood of Beverly Hills, so rent is among the highest in the entire US. Fortunately, UCLA is a public school, so tuition is relatively affordable. The area around campus is very convenient, with several supermarkets within walking distance. A 99 Ranch Market recently opened nearby, also within walking/bus range. A 10-minute drive takes you to Little Osaka, with lots of Japanese cuisine. There's also plenty of Chinese food. Plus, California's climate is wonderful -- spring-like all year round with abundant sunshine.