Go to UC Davis w/o ever visiting

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I got accepted to multiple universities and my original plan was to attend SDSU but I’m having second thoughts about going there instead of UC Davis. I’ve visited SDSU multiple times but have never visited UC Davis. Did anyone go to UC Davis w/o actually going to the campus, other than orientation? </p>

<p>I feel like it might be a mistake to pass up the opportunity to go to a UC and I don’t want to have regrets about not going there, but I’m afraid that I might end up not liking it there for one reason or another. My major is political science and am a CCC transfer.</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

<p>I went to UC Davis without ever actually going to the campus except for orientation and except for the funky weather, I ended up loving it here. It’s flat, so it’s relatively easy to get around, almost everyone bikes, it has my major (Animal Science), and the arboretum is gorgeous (plus UCD was similar to my hometown, which is in Irvine). Plus there are lots of trees, so there’s plenty of shade when it’s hot out. UC Davis is also about 20-30 minutes from Sacramento, and it seems like a lot of PoliSci majors tend to intern in Sac.</p>

<p>Is there any way at all you could visit before deciding? If you have visited SDSU and liked that atmosphere, I would think you might not like Davis. It is an extreme opposite from the SDSU campus, from location and type of surrounding area to the general make-up of the student body. I am not saying one is better than the other, just that they are such very different campuses. Davis is going to be more expensive also, in case that is an issue. Davis is the more prestigious campus, but I would not attend without visiting. We are in So. Cal. and visited recently while on a tour of campuses. My son was not interested in Davis at all after seeing the school, but loves the San Diego atmosphere. Of course everyone is different, but worth a visit.</p>

<p>takeitallin</p>

<p>Thanks for the response, I’ve lived in SoCal my whole life so I am used to the SDSU type atmosphere in a sense. I have to decide by Friday cause that’s when the SIR is due, so I don’t think visiting is a possibility. I just kinda always wanted to go to SDSU for some reason, I guess cause it’s San Diego but now I’m thinking “why do I really want to go there”?, I just kinda never really gave thought to other schools and now that it’s getting close I’m defiantly stressing, I should have put more research into the other schools, and honestly I didn’t think I was gonna get in. I get the GI Bill so cost is not an issue at the moment (which makes me think even more I should choose UCD) Thanks for the advice!</p>

<p>sopranokitty</p>

<p>Thanks for the speedy response. Okay, awesome you make me feel more at ease with my decision, I’ve been leaning heavily towards UCD for a week now. I’ve lived so many places, both city and semi-rural, so I think it would be a matter of getting used to it, I’ve never been to NorCal, lived in SoCal most of my life. thanks!</p>

<p>I think you should choose college what you concern most. I was in same situation and visiting didn’t really helped my decision. If I was in your position, I’ll choose Davis. Since all I care is academic ranking and reputation, I might be wrong but I think Davis seems a bit higher. I would love San Diego’s weather, but I wouldn’t go unless I go to UCSD. Everyone has different standard. It’s just my opinion.</p>

<p>IMHO UC Davis is a better school. You can always transfer out if you hate it. When we visited it seemed like a great college town.</p>

<p>are you a san diegan? in my opinion (and i’m an adult, so i have a different perspective), san diego doesn’t seem all that intellectually/culturally vibrant. people are really into the beach, wearing their flipflops, the ‘game’, and beer. it’s a city in transition, and it lacks decent leadership…which makes it a little rough around the edges. sdsu is in the city of san diego (as opposed to ucsd, which is in the northern part of san diego county), so you will be right in the thick of the city. if you REALLY LIKE the city of san diego (and i’m not a fan of that city at all), then you’ll probably like sdsu. </p>

<p>as to davis being like irvine: i don’t see that. the towns of davis and irvine don’t feel similar to me at all. </p>

<p>i’ll leave school reputations out of this (though this should be obvious).</p>

<p>good luck with your decision!</p>

<p>@Calimami: I lived in Irvine for 10 years, and coming to Davis, I didn’t find anything different. Maybe it’s just my experience, but I found people in Irvine to be just as friendly as people in Davis. Only difference is Irvine is bigger.</p>

<p>kpxcsfcubt,</p>

<p>Yeah that’s kind of the whole reason I’m changing my mind, I know college is what you make of it, but why not work as hard at a better school, though I’m not hating on SDSU, it was one of my top choices after all. Yeah I didn’t even apply to UCSD, not sure why lol. Thanks</p>

<p>calimami,</p>

<p>Thanks for the advise. Yeah I’m not much for the whole partying aspect, I just thought it would be a fun place to live thought I’ll admit I’ve only been there only a handful of times. I know the school is trying to get rid of the whole party image, so that’s good. Thanks for the advice</p>