Berkeley vs UCLA vs Michigan (and UVa and UW)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I would love help on deciding which school to attend. Parents are willing to pay, so cost is not a factor.
I plan on majoring in engineering, either aerospace, civil, or maybe industrial/systems. </p>

<p>I am looking for a school that will give me a holistic education, a strong engineering background, a challenging environment, an opportunity to meet many types of people--including non-engineering people--and a great location to spend four years in. If Berkeley had an aerospace program, I would probably choose it but since it doesn't it makes my decision tougher. </p>

<p>Berkeley
Pros: Admitted to Civil Eng. program (#1 ranked), lively town, awesome Bay Area location
Cons: No Aerospace Engineering program, difficult to change engineering major </p>

<p>UCLA
Pros: Similar to Berkeley but has an aerospace program, safe/nice location in Westwood
Cons: I feel that Berkeley and Michigan are stronger in engineering, difficult to change engineering major</p>

<p>Michigan
Pros: Top-notch Aerospace Program, relatively easy to declare and change major (GPA requirement), Ann Arbor
Cons: Weather, didn't like how spread-out campus was (bus often needed to get to class), cold</p>

<p>UVa
Pros: Seems to push holistic engineering education, Charlottesville, cool engineering business minor program
Cons: more focused on (and known for) humanities than engineering, Greek life (~30%) slightly too prevalent for me</p>

<p>Univ. of Washington (UW)
Pros: Close to home, in-state tuition, know the university very well
Cons: Close to home, have to apply into engineering majors (did not get Pre-admit status), </p>

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<p>I’m effectively bumping this for you…</p>

<p>But at U-Dub, no one is pre-admitted to any engineering? Wow, that’d be tough…</p>

<p>Since your parents have ability to pay, you can probably choose the one that fits you in comfort. I don’t have much to contribute; I just wanted to ask you about U-Dub’s admissions to its E-programs. </p>

3

<p>Why do you want aerospace engineering? It, along with biomedical and petroleum engineering, are incredibly limiting for an undergraduate degree, IMHO. Defense budgets aren’t getting any bigger and there are a ton of aerospace/defense contract workers looking for jobs.</p>

<p>I would major in mechanical or electrical engineering…and I’d probably choose Washington because it’s cheaper and will get you where you need to go. You’re smart enough so I wouldn’t worry about not getting into their engineering program. Have your parents save the difference vs. sending you to Berkeley, Michigan, or UCLA for your other future expenses…such as a down payment on a home or graduate school.</p>