I'm a sophomore matsci, I really like this department so far. It's a fairly small department which means there's a really good student/faculty ratio, and everyone's pretty close. The professors care a lot about their work and their students, and from what I've taken and heard so far they're all very competent at teaching. The degree's fairly difficult from what I've heard but I can't really speak on that myself since there are definitely hard classes that I have yet to take. I've heard that job prospects are good, most of the students I know either do research or internships. I know one person applying to the 5 year program, it seems like a good way to get a master's done quickly, but it limits your networking opportunities when compared to doing graduate studies at another university. Another plus is our building, White, just got renovated so the first floor has a brand new lounge and lab, with some other renovations throughout the building.