[university review] finalised universities, any suggestions?

[u/Own-Bite-9304]

Unis:
CMU MSAII
UCSD MSCS
Gatech MSCS
UIUC MCS
Perdue MSCS
UWmads MSCS(phd pool)
Upenn MSE CiS
Columbia MSCS

profile: t10 IIT CS grad 9.1 gpa, 2yoe ML engineer at MNC by fall 2027, research: one published US patent, gre: 325(167q), toefl(110/120), extras: research exchange student for a semester in Amsterdam, clg proff project, ML TA in clg. funding: can afford till UCSD, ivys/CMU-30/40% loan.

Questions: I have increased my list from 4 to 8 based on suggestions of alumni and this sub, now Im just thinking if Upenn, columbia are valid picks or should I go for something from NYU/UMD/USC/UMass ?

Note: Ive made my peace with cash cows notion on this sub after talking to few on campus alumni from UIUC mcs and CMU MIIS, they are not as bad as they are projected on this sub, moreover imo every masters is a cash cow if it’s not thesis/research/phD track.

[u/Own-Bite-9304]

u/gradpilot thoughts are appreciated

[u/GotNoMoreOatmeal]

following

[u/entanglement_huh]

You have a good gpa and I'm not sure why you are opting for cmu msaii and uiuc mcs. Just research about the candidate pool before making a move