hello! I’ve been accepted to the schools above and am really torn on where I should go. I am an environmental science major. Any thoughts? (I live in texas)
Is money a factor in your decision?
fortunately, no @Gumbymom
My older son is a Environmental science major, so when he was deciding where to attend, he made a spreadsheet for the following (costs were also not a consideration).
- Curriculum
- Ease of major change (just in case)
- Rankings (although not too important, still wanting to know if the school had a good ranking for his major)
- Research/Internship opportunities- spoke to several students in the program during admitted student visits
- Campus- location
- Fit (academically and socially)
We are California residents and he was only looking at California schools.
His top choices were UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis and Cal Poly SLO. He selected UC Davis based on the above criteria with SLO as a close 2nd.
Thank you! I am deff going to make a spreadsheet 
@Gumbymom
@atxnicole - The 4 and 6 year graduation rates for Cal Poly are lower than for the Texas schools. A lot of Cal kids go OOS because it’s so hard to get into required classes and graduate on time. Use College Navigator for comparisons. https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
The graduation rates at SLO are skewed due to 25% or more of the students are in Engineering majors which have high unit requirements for graduation along with the Architecture program which usually requires 5 years to complete the degrees. If you go in with some AP credit, it will help decrease the required credit units to graduate.
My kids, including one at TAMU, are engineering majors. Engineering at SLO is very good, but there were a lot of complaints on the CC and other boards about getting classes. My middle son’s roommate last year at Miami Ohio is a business major from the Bay area. A lot of his high school friends went to SLO, but he wanted to have a good shot at graduating in four years, so he opted for the Midwest. His parents told me that the entire UCal and Cal State systems had problems with kids getting into required classes.
Anyway, anecdotal, and I don’t know a thing specifically about environmental science at any of your options. Good luck wherever you go.
Getting classes can be an issue with the UC’s and CSU’s but you also have to be flexible in your choice of class times and professors. Most of the students complaining about not getting classes are individuals not willing to take a less preferred time like 8:00 am or taking a class with another professor. I have one son at a UC and one son at a CSU and both will be graduating easily in 4 years. I have a co-worker whose daughter goes to Chapman University -Private, and her daughter has had some issues with getting classes also. My advice is be willing to take that early morning or late evening class with a less preferred professor if needed. Do not expect to have no classes on Fridays so you have a 3 day weekend every week. Always double check the courses needed for your major. My son’s have found that some are only offered once yearly (mainly upper division) so plan accordingly. If you want graduate in 4 years, do what you can to make it happen.
Do you know if all of Cal Poly SLO’s environmental science decisions have been sent? My daughter applied under the Environmental Management & Protection concentration and hasn’t heard anything as yet. Her scores and GPA were well within the acceptable guidelines.