<p>I applied to all three of these schools as an out of stater. I hope to get into one of them, Berkeley or UCLA being my top choices for California...but if I get in is it worth the 50k plus per year?
I have already been accepted to Northeastern, UMass Amherst, and Purdue (and almost positive Boston University will accept me)
BU costs about the same as UCLA. The question is, how do these schools i've been accepted to compare to the UC system, and is the extra money worth it? </p>
<p>Finally...will California's economy lower the UC system's academic potential in coming years?</p>
<p>Cal is really horrible–I live right by it. I’m not going to lie. Whenever I go to Cal, I keep thinking I’m going to die. Any moment. Like I literally feared dead bodies falling from the trees onto me, and I die of rigor mortis or some crap. No joke. Everything looks ghetto, the campus looks horrible, the squirrels look mutated, the girls are hideous and unfriendly. I feels like China and India combined their population in the undergrad classes…and no diversity at all.
Don’t go there…people are waaay too stressed out.</p>
<p>UCSD is never worth it. Its a joke.</p>
<p>UCLA is probably the best UC around. Among the schools you’ve applied to, I’d seriously consider this place. Very friendly, hot girls, intelligent people, cool professors, etc. The campus is sooo gorgeous. I would say this place is definitly worth it.</p>
<p>But its your decision. Start by first visiting these places.
Good luck :]</p>
<p>wait i’m confused…what is Cal? I think I’ve heard of Berkeley referred to that way? Is that what Cal is? And yes thanks you’re not the first i’ve heard say that about ucsd</p>
<p>Okay, cool thanks. You’ve given me some stuff to think about, I appreciate it. Why is UCSD such a joke? Like I’ve heard the campus isn’t great but I thought the academics were okay.</p>
<p>^The campus is definitely not great. And why go for UCSD academics when UCLA academics clearly outrank it? </p>
<p>Another note, Berkeley’s grad school is great, but I strongly advise you against it for undergrad. UCLA undergrad is only one ranking below Cal’s. So in terms of academics, UCLA and Cal are about equal.
Now for a good college/social life…UCLA wins hands down. Don’t settle for anything lower like UCSD. You’re better off at Purdue in terms of education, cost, social life, etc.</p>
<p>The biggest issue I see is that it’s going to be hard graduating from a UC is 4 years, so with all of the cutbacks now, you need to plan on 5 unless you have lots of AP credits. That makes them potentially more expensive than most privates. Even with lots of APs, it may be hard to get the classes you need in 4 years. And you can expect large classes, shorter library hours and lots of headaches.</p>
<p>I’d say it really depends on your goals and major. I might endure California’s budget woes for UCLA’s film, Cal’s engineering or SD’s bioengineering, but it would have to be something like that. And they are the most prestigious schools on your list if that matters to you.</p>
<p>Yes, I think that UCLA would definitely be my top choice out of the three; I would definitely go there over UCSD in any case, I’m just saying in the event that I don’t get into UCLA would it still be worth it? And it sounds like a no, thanks for the info, I was already thinking about crossing UCSD off my list but you guys pretty much confirmed it. I want to major in engineering, but I’ve heard UCLA’s engineering is very strong too, is it not?
Thanks for the replies, very helpful :)</p>
<p>If you have the stats to get into Cal, I would assume that you would recieve merit money from BU. Then the value of the deal changes. IMO, the UCs are not worth the OOS price at full pay. But there are others who disagree.</p>
<p>I would honestly suggest any private college over the UCs due to the budget cuts to the California school systems but that may just be me. However, but Cal and UCLA are both excellent schools. UCSD is really a joke though.</p>
<p>UCLA is amazing, if i didnt live 10 mins away from the school id totally apply, but i want that “college experience” haha, its got amazing programs, the school is pretty freaking bed, its located in like one of the SUPER nice areas of LA, 5 mins away from beverly hills and your right in westwood which is THEE hang out and has EVERYTHING. Its TOTALLY ideal for any college student.</p>
<p>Wait, you said you want to major in engineering, then Berkeley is ahead. UCLA is no where close to Standford and Berkeley in term of Computer Science and Engineering</p>
<p>Do not. It’s not worth it for the same price as a private education. </p>
<p>I live in California, and many of my friends have gone to UCs. </p>
<p>The classes are enourmous, especially at the freshman level. A friend of mine has two classes with over 500 people.
Almost all of your classes will have over 50 people. The only definte exception will be your basic english course, which is led by a TA.</p>
<p>Also, there is no money anywhere in the system because of budget cuts and the situation is only going to deteriorate in the next few years.
If you are going to pay the same amount, go to a Private School.</p>
<p>I’m an international and i pay the same fee as an OOS. I attend Berkeley right now and went over the exact same dilemma a year back - in terms of money and school. I chose to pay that sum and attend Berkeley. I’ll say I’m glad I made that choice.</p>
<p>UCLA engineering blows, at least in comparison to UCB. Anecdotal evidence (lol) plus rankings.</p>
<p>I’m thinking UC in general might not be a good choice for people with strong stats. I’m not worried about myself since I study from books, but it’s going downhill.</p>
<p>If you are full pay, Cal is a GREAT choice since it has international prestige along the lines of HYS. But, OOS kids have instate choices at less than half the cost, if not close to free.</p>
<p>cal is BOMB. It’s such a great school. I go to berk at least everyday. I mean I guess it depends on way your from, but the girls def aren’t hideous and there are no mutated squirrels. Cal is hippie boho town. walking down the street you’ll see people chillin on the sidewalk smoking and there are homeless people up and down telegraph (main street of cal). People are usually really friendly to the homeless people though. And cal school spirit is great. I recommend it.</p>
<p>I don’t think most of us can tell you what’s right for you. I’ve been to Cal several times, and I will say that it’s quite different from many of the other colleges I’ve been to. You need to see it for yourself, sit in on a couple classes, and ask yourself whether or not you could see yourself here. If money is an issue, again, I would advise against it, but if you can afford full OOS tuition, than a visitation shouldn’t be too much of a financial burden. Myself? I would complain that the class size and the resources are not to my liking, but if you’re looking for environment, Berkeley has got its own flair and SF is a Bart ride away.</p>
<p>I live in San Francisco. Having been to Berkeley a couple of times and LA once, I can say that the UCs are not for everyone. The size of Sproul Plaza at UCB overwhelmed me, and my first impressions were not good. But while I would hate the impersonal environment, another person might love having innumerable academic offerings at their fingertips. Would you prefer to be in larger lecture halls, or do you tend to like discussion-based classes? Do you like seeing mostly new faces everyday, or seeing many familiar faces? If you think you’re equally likely to be happy at a UC and a smaller private school, don’t be deterred by the higher OOS cost. It’s comparable to the cost of a private college education, anyway.</p>