[CalmLogic]

(what if I want to apply for a PhD at MIT or Stanford next year)?

That makes it very easy then. Go to Purdue As you suggest, the CMU program is meant to be practical rather than academic, which is why they have students working in teams on projects rather than have them working alone on a thesis.

1) CMU has better ranking and reputition than Purdue but it has no funding opportunities (up to my knowledge).

While it is true that the CMU program has been the leader in establishing the curriculum for the practice of software engineering, the ROI of the tuition relative to other programs is very suspect:

According to PayScale.com, the median salary for someone with an MS in Software Engineering from CMU is $78,030. However, the highest pay went to graduates of three other programs:

Median Salary:
National University - $90,132
Seattle University - $84,048
DePaul Univeristy - $81,677

http://www.urch.com/forums/computer-...gineering.html (Got admit from CMU - Masters in Software Engineering)

So even if you just want to work in industry all your life, I would still recommend Purdue since, as you know, the tuition is relatively affordable while having relatively good opportunities for getting a TA/GA/RA position at some point.