<p>im currently a HS senior and i have a serious dilemma.
naturally, i want to go to the best college i got into (UCSD).
but my parents' boss suggested that i go to UCR because it is a less rigorous and less competitive school than UCSD, making it easier for me to get a high GPA that would appeal to grad schools.</p>
<p>however, im still hesitant about graduating from a somewhat mediocre university. should i go to UCR, i hope i can at least transfer to USC.</p>
<p>so what is best for my grad school future?
-go to UCSD
-go to UCR & graduate at the top of the class
-go to UCR & transfer to USC</p>
<p>go to UCSD.
not in the sense that you won't get into grad school if you don't go there and go to UCR instead, but in the sense that you should never undershoot your potentials. If you got into UCSD, it means you can survive there.</p>
<p>And although this has never been scientifically proven, I believe that students will get the same GPA no matter which school they go to, give or take about 0.2 grade points (which makes no diff in your grad school application.)</p>
<p>In other words, I'm saying that there's no way that you'll get 4.0 in UCR, and a 3.0 in UCSD. In fact, you may even get a higher GPA at UCSD because you'd be motivated by hardworking students around you.</p>
<p>Completely nuts.:) This may not apply to all students, but I find most tend to be what I would call "levelers". That is, it does not matter where you go, you rise to the level student you want to be at. If you want to excel, you do the work needed to excel no matter where you are. If you want to coast by, you coast by. So challenge yourself. Go to the best school you can get into and do the work to be the best you can be. It may be a bigger time commitment for you at a harder school, but if it is what you want, it is what you do. If you put yourself in a situation where you do not have to put in as much effort to achieve the high level you want, you will only get less out of it.</p>
<p>You'd get a higher GPA at in a less rigorous program? Are you kidding me?</p>
<p>Example: I had an awesome set of organic chemistry professors. They really knew their stuff and made the material manageable--I subsequently understand the subject and got high grades. I had a really bad zoology professor. He was new to teaching and had no idea how to relate to undergrads (assumed we knew things that were only "common knowledge" to people who had studied the stuff for years)--so I learned little and did badly on the badly written tests. Go where the good education is.</p>
<p>That said, USC is nothing to scoff at (though its tuition is something of a deterrent), and UCR is not populated with bad professors. It is not necessarily a 'mediocre school'--it's just less rich and has fewer resources than the lucky ones in La Jolla. And by the time you're applying to grad school, you'll find that the people in your department matter more than the overall university's reputation--do you know what you're going into? Take a look at what the researchers in your field are doing and see if you could work with any of them during your undergrad years. Good research experience and recommendations are key.</p>
<p>Just remember: most undergrads change their majors several times, and by the time you settle on one you might decide you don't want to go to grad school. It is not a requirement in finding a fulfilling career.</p>