<p>I don’t think its crazy to decide you prefer SD over Cal, but you ought to prefer the real version of it over some caricature of each school. Visit both schools and then decide. Talk to some current students, try to picture yourself living there. </p>
<p>You have some misconceptions about the schools. UCs are going to be similar; it isn’t as if they have large classes at Cal but don’t elsewhere. Whoever told you about 400+ classes taught by TAs is off-base. They don’t do that. Probably this HS kid (I’m guessing) is conflating the discussion section with the lecture. Yes, they do have 400+ classes at UCs. At all of them. You go to lecture 3x a week and have a professor teaching it. Then once a week you go to a discussion section led by a TA. This is about 20-25 students. </p>
<p>I’d say at Cal you have more of a college feel, living on/near campus in a somewhat gritty (in places) town. SD is more a commuter school. Kids like to live on the beach such as Pacific or Mission beach and then commute into campus.</p>