<p>I am currently trying to decide between USC and UCSD. I got in as a spring admit for USC and I know USC is the better school but is it worth taking off a whole semester and the trouble of catching up? I've been reading a lot of posts and people have been talking about their dream schools and how they're willing to give up other schools just for that one school. What makes a school your dream school? Is it the campus?</p>
<p>Well it’s everything combined–the program you got into within the school, location, campus, people, diversity, etc. Obviously, if you have to question whether or not USC is worth it, it’s not your dream school lol.</p>
<p>I guess that’s true to some extent, but I still don’t really understand how a dream school is supposed to be</p>
<p>If you visited and don’t know it, it’s not.</p>
<p>ok do any of you guys have a dream school? and if so can you tell me a little about why you want to go there so bad please?</p>
<p>When you can’t find any significant differences, just go to the school that costs less. Or one that’s ranked higher in the program that you’re doing. That’s probably the smart thing to do. </p>
<p>Personally, I don’t have a dream school. For a while I loved Stanford, but I slowly (and thankfully) discovered that I only liked it for its prestige and location.</p>
<p>^ good point blue ducky, so what school are you attending/planning to attend instead</p>
<p>lol took me too long to figure all this out.</p>
<p>I’m choosing between Cornell/UCB and waiting on four waitlists. Oh the uncertainty.</p>
<p>Are you from the bay?</p>
<p>No I’m from SoCal</p>
<p>Dream school is a childish concept.</p>
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<p>I strongly disagree. It is not “childish” to have a school on your list that you like above all the other schools on your list. Hmom, do you think that every student that applies early decision is “childish”? Because they are applying to their dream school.</p>
<p>Anyway, back to the point: I agree with other posters. If you’re not sure which school is your “dream school,” then neither or them are. People tell different stories about how they discovered their favorite schools: talking to interesting students on campus, a campus visit and they just knew, etc. etc. I think the thing to remember is that everyone doesn’t have a dream school. The school you enroll at doesn’t have to be your “dream.” You’re likely one of those people who could be happy at either school. When making your choice, don’t worry about the school you enroll in being your dream. Try to identify WHY you want to go there. Compare different opinions on the school. Visit campus. Make pro/con lists. In the end, the decision really just comes down to what you will like better.</p>
<p>Congrats on USC and UCSD! They’re both amazing school. Good luck!</p>
<p>lazpotatohead01, you are in Southern California, so it would be a GREAT idea to arrange to spend a day at each campus. You can call up the department you were admitted to and ask to attend a class and meet with faculty. If you have Spring break coming up, that would be a pefect opportunity. If Spring break has already gone by, it would be worth it to take a couple of days off to make a decision that will dictate the next 4 (or more) years of your life. It is a really tough decision, but you have such wonderful options - you cannot go wrong. Congratulations on your acceptances!</p>
<p>Thank you everyone! your advice helps a lot!</p>
<p>Raelah, 2 of my 3 kids applied ED and no, it wasn’t because they were childish but it also wasn’t because they were one and only dream schools. Rather, it was part of a well thought out strategy.</p>
<p>I don’t believe there is only one college for anyone any more than I believe there is only one man or woman. I do believe in college fit, but I think there are many good fits for any student.</p>
<p>I think the concept of the one dream school that you must have just leads to a lot of heart ache that’s unnecessary. There are just too many kids with 2100’s dreaming of Yale and believing the holistic blarney when they could be spending the time looking at 5 quite similar schools they can love and actually get into. And the ‘dream’, as seen here, is often not based on full understanding.</p>
<p>^ you have a good point hmom5, but I don’t think there is anything wrong with having a school that one really wants to go to</p>
<p>Usually people who are looking for a dream school are looking for that ideal college town, night environment and life, etc. USC will NOT provide you with that, SD would.</p>
<p>Personally, in hindsight, I find the concept of a dream school to be entirely silly, because the reality is that you just don’t know what you really want when you’re 17 or 18 years old and you’ve never really experienced the world outside of your little high school bubble. I didn’t angst about getting into what I thought was my dream school, because it was a safety so far as admissions go, though I fretted nonstop about whether I would get a good enough financial aid package to come here.</p>
<p>Now, I’m here, and the school is alright, but I realize now that the major I came here for is disastrously wrong for me, and what I really want to do isn’t offered here. I felt it in my gut that this school was the be all and end all for me, and I loved everything about it, but ultimately, I would up being dead wrong about who I was and what I wanted. Moral of the story: if the schools are that similar, you’ll probably be blissfully happy, ambivalent, or distraught at either. Just hope that you know yourself well enough that you’re doing what you’re doing because it’s really what moves you and makes you excited.</p>
<p>USC is not “the better school.” They are academic peer institutions. If one is twice as expensive as the other, it’s probably smarter to go to the one that costs less.</p>