<p>My family efc is 0, which probably means that both Berkeley and USC will be providing me near full scholarships. I will definitely be living on campus</p>
<p>I visited USC for 5 hours last Friday after a three day visit to Berkeley. </p>
<p>I have tons of friends in Berkeley who showed me around, took me out to eat, and introduced me to a bunch of super nice people. Everybody I have met in Berkeley is super friendly and helpful. A group of students stayed with me till 2 AM, basically persuading me to attend Berkeley for its Industrial Engineering and Operations Research program. The only thing that I did not like about Berkeley is the professors. They have so many student and it seems like they do not care about their undergrads at all. Unlike professors from other UCs, these professors' attitude and motivation were extremely poor, at least in my opinion. I am sure Berkeley has every type of students and staff members. However, I felt good at Berkeley, I felt like I belonged there with all the other Asian kids. I didn't dare to approach the athletes because they seemed intimidating.</p>
<p>Now when I visited USC, BY MYSELF!!! :'(, I also fell in love with the campus. I felt inferior because the majority of the student body is white and A&F beautiful. As a short and skinny Asian, I was scared to look at people in the face. I love the SoCal weather and the alumni Trojan thing that they have going on. If USC is such a wonderful school, why is its ranking so low compared to other universities? I am really searching for a place where I can fit in and get a more personalized and individualized education, which is something Berkeley cannot provide. I do not even know if USC has Operations Research. Something about USC just stood out to me. Unfortunately, I am admitted for Spring 2010... Would my Cal Grant still work though? Anyways, I guess I have to get out of my comfort zone since I live in a community largely populated by Asians. In the end, I think the education part is more important. Correct me if I am wrong, but are Berkeley kids in general nicer? Nobody at USC shook my hand, even after I introduced myself...</p>
<p>I love both schools very very very much and I am extremely frustrated about choosing the right college. I live in LA county and I cannot wait to leave HS!!! I would really appreciate any opinion that you have, especially if you have visited both Cal and USC. </p>
<p>Even if you have an EFC of 0, the schools might not cover everything w/ grants/scholarships - you’d have to take out loans. I would stick w/ the one that would make me take out fewer loans.</p>
<p>Another name for USC is Univ. of Spoiled Children. It seems like your description fits with this somewhat. In general, the students are much wealthier and honestly, I wouldn’t feel comfortable around them.</p>
<p>I advise you to go to the school you are more comfortable with - It may be a good thing to experience a different area (I’m from SoCal so Berkeley’s really different) but in the end it’s all up to you! Good luck with the decision!</p>
<p>Actually, the median salary of the kids who attend USC is less than the median salary of the kids who attend UCLA. Furthermore, USC has been gradually moving up the rankings list and I wouldn’t be surprised if it creeps past UCLA in 5 years and ultimately, this doesn’t matter because you go to school to land a job and simply put, the USC career center/alumni network dominate both UCLA and UCB.</p>
<p>The OP would definitely fit in more at UCB not only because of the Asian factor but also because USC kids tend to be more social and a tad superficial so being skinny and short doesn’t help much.</p>
<p>USC and Berkeley were 2 choices that I had to make 2 years ago, however, Berkeley was an easy option for me. You need to ask yourself whether you prefer LA or SF–So Cal and Nor Cal are different, to say the least. I think of myself more as a Nor Cal person who doesn’t embrace the superficiality of the likes of USC. Also, if you are already intimidated by the gorgeous student body of USC, how are you going to make friends? You don’t want to go to a campus where your self-esteem can easily drop. I know one small reason I went to Cal was that I wouldn’t have to be in the constant presence of white, blond, and tan LA girls. At Cal, people look average which is better for your confidence level.</p>
<p>“I know one small reason I went to Cal was that I wouldn’t have to be in the constant presence of white, blond, and tan LA girls.”</p>
<p>Sparetire, I must say that I find it funny that you can casually make this type of remark about the USC student body, but if I was to say the following, it would probably be described as racist:</p>
<p>“I know one small reason I didn’t go to Cal was that I wouldn’t have to be in the constant presence of asian girls.”</p>
<p>Regardless, only about 30% of USC students are from southern California and the school does have the most international students of any university in the country. I suppose stereotypes are tough things to break.</p>