CSUN vs. UCSC?

Hello, I am a community college transfer student majoring in molecular biology. I unfortunately had a couple bad semesters in my cc career that left me with a cumulative 2.83 gpa. I am hoping to use my B.S degree as a means to jump in the medical field/grad school. I WILL be working on my GPA my remaining years.

My question is, which school would be a better path for me?
CSUN is very impacted but I would live at home, and UCSC seems like a better choice because it’s a UC, but I would have to live away from home and it would be more expensive.
Should I look into staying in community college one more year and reapplying to other schools next application term?
I am an older student and would like to have my bachelor’s degree as soon as possible, so staying at cc one more year would really set me back and is not something I would rather do.
help?!

If you have been admitted to both and can afford it, UCSC is probably a better choice.