For a student that has attended either UCLA or Cal AND UCSD, or who has thorough knowledge about all three of the schools, how much more competitive are UCLA and Cal in comparison to UCSD? I’m speaking specifically for the Bio department but general comments would also help.
Common now, what is the chance of that, very small.
@EezaWeeza : The best you can do is maybe go search around for course material, if available, at each of the schools you would like to know about. Since you will be a freshman, go take a look at some of the introductory/intermediate biology or chemistry courses (go look on the departmental websites to get the course numbers and then type in something like: “UCSD chem x exam” in google and see what comes up) if you have the chance. Usually course websites will include exams and problem sets. I believe UCSD has a lot of stuff out there (biology and chemistry. I think it and Berkeley are on par. UCLA seems tougher with chemistry courses than UCSD, but not Berkeley) and Berkeley has this: https://tbp.berkeley.edu/courses/bio/1A/
UCLA has some of its chemistry stuff out there too. “Competition” is one thing and course content is another. If you can handle the style of exams and the content. Either way, just go look this up. I could possibly go get some materials for you through my coursehero account and then show those to you, but for now I’ll let you search around and see what you find. Again, don’t worry about the threats of a “competitive” environment (all of them will have that), worry about the actually level of the courses/their content. I hear people at/affiliated with top schools always warn science majors of how “competitive it is because everyone is so smart”. This concern is misguided because I have found the science curricula and courses at some of these schools to be lackluster. They are certainly harder than less competitive universities, but they are actually no different in how they are run with a significant amount of science instructors at said schools honestly just making their science courses like a very difficult version of a high school class by primarily focusing on memorization. “Tougher” science curricula get away from that and ask students to apply material at perhaps a much higher level on problem sets and exams than what may have been taught directly in lecture, so rigorously memorizing your notes and textbook won’t be enough. The exams will push you toward more skills like data analysis, synthesis of seemingly different concepts, and sometimes even creativity (as in you will have to wiggle your way through a problem type or context that you had no prior exposure to by somehow connecting it to what you’ve learned). I’ve looked through many of Berkeley’s and UCSD intermediate courses (I feel Cal’s intro courses were not anything special) in biology and chemistry, and the latter is exactly what they do. Now THAT (tough content and exams) and smart students= competition.