Current students @ UCSC, UCD, or UCSB

<p>Hey there, I'm new on this site so be nice! I am a CC transfer coming to an end of my second year at CC.
I was accepted into:
UCSC - Neuroscience
UCSB - Biospych
UCD - Neurobio</p>

<p>While I have been pretty set on UCSC, I want to know when I make this decision that I will not have any regrets. I know about the rankings, but I also know that these are all UC campuses and my education is in good hands, no one will look down on me for going to Santa Cruz over say Santa Barbara, right?
If you are or were a student at any of these campuses (especially a science major) can you perhaps give me a few details on the school? What are some of the lesser known things about your school that you like or dislike?</p>

<p>Being a UCD student, I’m biased – I’ll throw that out right now. UCD is very strong in the sciences and engineering, and you can’t go wrong by going here. The only thing that sets us apart from Berkeley is the name. Also, one plus is that because of the bicycle accessibility at UC Davis, I was able to get by for two years without buying a parking permit, or dealing with trying to find parking. Our sports are just OK, but we have one of the loudest student sections among all colleges in the west, with a ton of spirit. Amtrak provides easy access to Sacramento and San Francisco. One negative is that housing is expensive in Davis, but if you look early, you could snap up a deal in a reasonable part of town.</p>

<p>Visit the campus before you choose it, though.</p>

<p>Yeah I’ve visited all 3 of the campuses multiple times. How is the party scene? How about student morale and such?</p>

<p>The party scene varies, but if parties are your thing, I’d consider UCSB. I’m not the best person to ask, though, because I’m not that much of a partier. I’m more of a college sports kind of guy.</p>

<p>Student morale varies as well. Your time here will be stressful, as any science-related major isn’t for sissies. My morale was not all that great during the past two years, mostly over worries about the gargantuan cost of college, but that could be applied at any college. My second worry was grades. It’s probably the same, no matter which UC you choose, but I had to seriously bust my butt to maintain a 3.33 GPA here. Thanks to grade inflation, I got into all 6 grad schools I applied to. Some of my colleagues here are in danger of slipping below a 2.0, and you have to have above a 2.0 to graduate.</p>

<p>The bottom line – if you come here looking for parties, you’ll find them. Make time to enjoy yourself, but don’t overdo it. I hope I didn’t scare you away.</p>