Reviewed on Jul 31, 2025(Enrolled 2024)
What Students Say
Likes
- There are a lot of opportunities for students who want to go for research/PhD after their masters.
- Campus is huge and there are some really good facilities like gym, sports, medical, cafeteria etc.
- Most of the professors at least in EECS department are good, in terms of their teaching style.
Dislikes
- On-Campus jobs hiring process is broken, you need to know people to get an on campus job here, everything works on referral and luck. It does not depend on your qualifications.
- Assistantships are difficult to get and they have a preference for PhD students, odds for a fresh grad student to get a TA/RA position is less.
- Department operations is too slow. For approving a CPT they need a month, one of my friend had to wait for a month to get his CPT approved, he had to convince his company to extend the joining date. This can create a lot of problems for students.
Course Curriculum
8
- Most of the courses are a mix of both; sometimes there are few courses that are research-oriented or more towards the theoretical side.
- Most of the courses that I have taken were a mix of theoretical and practical course content, most of the professors are non-native English speakers so sometimes it is difficult to understand what they are saying.
- If you take three courses in a semester, you will have six hours of classes per week. Usual timings depend on the courses. Sometimes the classes are in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon or evening.
- On average there are 40 to 60 students in each class.
- Majority of students who come to class on a daily basis are Indian students and south Asian students.
Admission Experience
-
I applied to the following universities:
- CSU Northridge: Rejected
- CSU East Bay: Rejected
- CSU Dominguez Hills: Admitted
- Florida Atlantic University: Admitted
- Texas State University: Admitted
- Central Michigan University: Rejected
- Colleges that confirmed admission:
- CSU Dominguez Hills
- Florida Atlantic University
- Texas State University
- Colleges that rejected:
- CSU Northridge
- CSU East Bay
- Central Michigan University
- My GRE score was less (Overall: 296), which was the reason why I got rejected; CSU's actually gave me that feedback.
- I chose this university because of the courses they offered, location and ranking.
- Admission process was smooth; after submitting my application, I got an acceptance letter from them within a week.
- The IELTS minimum was 6; there was no GRE required, but GRE scores were accepted.
- Overall, the admissions process was smooth; there were no issues or challenges.
- I applied for the FALL 24 intake; I made my decision based on the courses, ranking and location
- The application process was done in a couple of days; they took all my documents and I filled in all my details. After submitting my application, I got an acceptance within a week. In total everything was done within a week. I was supposed to accept the offer within a month.
Faculty
10
- There are fewer than 50 faculty in computer science and there are hundreds of grad students.
- Teaching methodology of the professors is good; they use presentations, whiteboards, and videos. Teaching methods are sufficient for securing a job.
- Faculties do assist their students but a lot of faculties work mostly with PhD students.
- I am trying to do a Master's thesis. Dr. Zhu is an excellent faculty member at FAU; he is guiding me.
Campus Life
10
- FAU has Five campuses all over south Florida : Boca Raton, Davie, Fort Lauderdale, Harbor Branch and Jupiter.
- There are several facilities like dining, on-campus housing, library, sports area, rock climbing, archery, gym, student union building, several study areas, etc.
- Program board organizes most of the campus events; there is a barbeque that happens every fall semester organized by the CS department; American Football is the biggest event on campus; and there are tailgates every time there is a sporting event.
- There are various clubs like the archery club, rock climbing club, literature club, etc.
Part Time Jobs
- Few students are able to secure TA or RA positions, as there is a lot of competition.
- TAs/RAs usually get 15 to 20 dollars per hour and half of their tuition is removed.
- There are other jobs like working at the front desk, in operations or in dining; most of the time they get paid less than 15 dollars per hour.
- Maximum 20 hours is allowed for students.
- It is very difficult to get an on-campus job; you would have to network a lot, there is not a transparent application process. A lot of jobs don't get posted anywhere.
- Usually students get paid less than 15 dollars per hour. It is very difficult to get an on-campus job; you would have to network a lot, there is not a transparent application process. A lot of jobs don't get posted anywhere. Online applications are mostly neglected, as a lot of people apply for jobs, the best way to get an on-campus job is to network, talk to people and build a network. Honestly, most of the time someone who is already working will refer their friends and they get that job.
Placement
8
- Very few students secure on-campus jobs within 6 months.
- Usually students get paid less than 15 dollars per hour.
- Online applications are mostly neglected, as a lot of people apply for jobs, the best way to get an on-campus job is to network, talk to people and build a network. Honestly, most of the time someone who is already working will refer their friends and they get that job.
- Placements mostly depend on your own skillset and the job market situation, a lot of my seniors have secured good jobs in good companies, while a lot of students are still struggling to find a job.
- Companies do not directly hire from the University. Although job fair is frequently attended by companies like Ford, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, etc.
Accommodation
Off Campus
10
- Initially I went for on-campus housing; I just reached out to the housing department through email and luckily they had a spot for me. Usually for grad students there is no on-campus housing.
- My monthly rent was 1300 including everything (water, electricity, etc.).
- Initially I faced a lot of delays because there was no way you could apply for on-campus housing as a grad student but the overall process was smooth.
- I would suggest going for off-campus housing, as it is more affordable.
- Almost all of the Indian students stay off campus. I am now living off campus, which is around 2 miles from the University.
Exams
- IELTS was the only exam that was required. I had my GRE scores so I submitted them as well. GRE was accepted but not required. An IELTS score of 6 was a requirement.
- Statement of Purpose, two Letters of Recommendation, College transcripts and a CV.
- Interview was not a part of the application process. The entire process was easy and I got a response from them within a few days.
Fees
- To graduate we need to complete 30 credits, which is 10 courses in total (since 1 course is 3 credits). per course fees are around 3000 USD which includes in-state and out-of-state fees. in total 30 credits will cost you around 30000 USD as Tuition for the entire program.
- Fees are charged semester-wise.
- Boca Raton is expensive in terms of rent so depending on your lifestyle, a shared room with 1 to 3 roommates can cost you between 700 USD per month and 300 USD per month. A single room can cost you between 900 USD and 1600 USD. Depending on your lifestyle, you can expect 1500 to 3000 per month for your living expenses.
Scholarship
- I did not receive any scholarships.
- I have not met someone yet who has received a non-federal scholarship. Most of the students who get academic help get assistantships. For assistantships they had to apply online and the department reaches out to them if they get selected. The process is not very transparent.
- I don't really know; I have never met someone who received a scholarship that is nonfederal.
