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> I find that crazy. Both teach basically the same thing. If they are both accredited, then it is almost indistinguishable. Speaking just on computer science h

> I find that crazy. Both teach basically the same thing. If they are both accredited, then it is almost indistinguishable. Speaking just on computer science here, but the depth of CS courses varies radically across universities. Sure they all might follow the ACM model curriculum, but how much of the book you're actually reading (and which book you're using in the first place), the number and difficulty of practice problems you're assigned, etc. is definitely not basically the same. I went to an average engineering school, and also took a handful of grad classes. Many of the assignments in Master's classes were a similar difficulty level to the assignments in undergrad MIT classes on OCW. Not all of the courses were this way, but many were.

enjo 11y ago
It's not just the depth, but the breadth as well. Better universities do an amazing job of teaching their students how to learn. The curriculum is thoughtfully designed to produce well rounded students who are capable of achieving expertise in their chosen field (they don't leave college as experts by any stretch.. and THAT is the disconnect surrounding education these days). The big difference between someone coming out of a higher-end school and a community college isn't (necessarily) intelligence or even knowledge, it's that the university educated ones have been prepared to reason about the world in a more complete way. Which is comforting for me to know when I'm hiring. I should note: I didn't finish college (I made it through three years). My wife on the other hand went on to a PhD. At 24 I was convinced that I had missed nothing. It wasn't until about a decade later that I began to understand that she was capable of seeing so much more nuance and detail than I was. Partly because she's smarter, but partly because she had so much more substance to her education. It gives her a basis to reason from that I don't have. It's a gap I'm feverishly trying to close through completing my own education... but it sure would have been easier to have done it in my 20's...
- dhimes 11y ago
  For someone who can't see nuance, this is a remarkably perceptive comment.
- ScottBurson 11y ago
  > it sure would have been easier to have done it in my 20's Not necessarily. It might have required less determination to go along with what others around you were doing, but a lot of people who try learning subjects like calculus as adults report that it seems easier. They have better focus, and most important, they understand why they are doing it. In short: it's never too late! Study on!
waterlesscloud 11y ago
An interesting thing about OCW and some of the moocs is that they allow us to see what different schools are like, to some extent. Even with the semi-watered-down versions of classes from Stanford and MIT, I definitely feel those schools in particular are more challenging than most others. Other ivy league schools, not so much, at least from the watered down versions, and with some exceptions from notables (Financial Markets taught by Robert Shiller, for example) Most schools, at least in the mooc versions, tend to be about the same level, regardless of prestige.
- tedmiston 11y ago
  That's really cool. It would be interesting to see a list that highlights those courses that are the notable exceptions.

enjo 11y ago

It's not just the depth, but the breadth as well. Better universities do an amazing job of teaching their students how to learn. The curriculum is thoughtfully designed to produce well rounded students who are capable of achieving expertise in their chosen field (they don't leave college as experts by any stretch.. and THAT is the disconnect surrounding education these days). The big difference between someone coming out of a higher-end school and a community college isn't (necessarily) intelligence or even knowledge, it's that the university educated ones have been prepared to reason about the world in a more complete way. Which is comforting for me to know when I'm hiring. I should note: I didn't finish college (I made it through three years). My wife on the other hand went on to a PhD. At 24 I was convinced that I had missed nothing. It wasn't until about a decade later that I began to understand that she was capable of seeing so much more nuance and detail than I was. Partly because she's smarter, but partly because she had so much more substance to her education. It gives her a basis to reason from that I don't have. It's a gap I'm feverishly trying to close through completing my own education... but it sure would have been easier to have done it in my 20's...

dhimes 11y ago
For someone who can't see nuance, this is a remarkably perceptive comment.
ScottBurson 11y ago
> it sure would have been easier to have done it in my 20's Not necessarily. It might have required less determination to go along with what others around you were doing, but a lot of people who try learning subjects like calculus as adults report that it seems easier. They have better focus, and most important, they understand why they are doing it. In short: it's never too late! Study on!

waterlesscloud 11y ago

An interesting thing about OCW and some of the moocs is that they allow us to see what different schools are like, to some extent. Even with the semi-watered-down versions of classes from Stanford and MIT, I definitely feel those schools in particular are more challenging than most others. Other ivy league schools, not so much, at least from the watered down versions, and with some exceptions from notables (Financial Markets taught by Robert Shiller, for example) Most schools, at least in the mooc versions, tend to be about the same level, regardless of prestige.

tedmiston 11y ago
That's really cool. It would be interesting to see a list that highlights those courses that are the notable exceptions.