r/UIUC_MCS

Pretty much what the title says I'm planning on doing CS 538 Advanced Computer Networks and CS 498 Cloud Computing Applications but with the dumb breadth requirement I can't really take either (technically I can by I don't want to give up CS 425). Anyways my question is how different are they they seem to be based a lot on computer networking a top approach which I think I can definitely read and understand by spring 27' but I don't know if CS 438 would be very different.

And I guess while I have y'all here, what do you think of my possible options? Also if you guys have any idea how hard any of the classes are I would appreciate your input

Option 1 : I Study 438/435 on my own if equal or possible

Path:
Networking + Software
Area:
Systems and Networking + Parallel computing + AI + Software Engineering

CS 441 Applied Machine Learning 💯 AI Path
CS 425 Distributed Systems 💯 Networking + Software

CS 498 Cloud Computing Applications 💯 Networking Path
CS 484 Parallel Programming 💯 Software Path
CS 427 Software Engineering I 💯 Software Path

CS 538 Advanced Computer Networks 💯Networking Path
CS 521 Topics in Programming Systems 💯 Software Path
CS 537 Advanced Topics in Internet of Things 🧠 Security 

Hi everyone,

I received my Fall 2026 UIUC MCS rejection in mid-May and submitted my appeal within the two-week deadline. It's now been almost a month, and I still haven't received a decision. The admissions office previously told me that appeal decisions were expected within 5–10 days. A friend of mine submitted his appeal around the same time and received a decision after about 20 days (unfortunately it was denied). Has anyone else experienced such a long wait for an appeal decision? I'd really appreciate hearing about your timeline.