"I'm choosing UCIrvine over Cal. Am I out of my mind?!"

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

<p>Disclaimer: My friend is not a transfer, but I wanted to post here because it's a "neutral" UC board and will not has as much bias. I also posted this thread on the UC Berkeley board.</p>

<p>I'm posting for someone else.</p>

<p>Friend got into these 2 schools, though ironically was rejected from UCLA and USC. Under normal circumstances, my friend would choose Cal over UCIrvine, but there are a few things to consider now.</p>

<p>a) Friend got accepted to UCIrvine as a Business Administration major under the Paul Merage School of Business. My friend's goal is to become an accountant and hopefully get recruited by a Big 4 firm. Being in this major GUARANTEES that my friend will get the accounting classes she so desperately needs by junior year, which will be perfect for the on campus interviews during recruiting season. This offers a sense of security, especially since the Business Administration program is a bit prestigious compared to the Business Economics and regular Economics major. The major was also pretty difficult to get into.</p>

<p>b) Without a doubt, UCIrvine is going to be a bit easier than Cal. It's just a fact. Since competition for Haas is insane at Cal, I would imagine trying to get that 3.4+ GPA needed for Big 4 recruitment is going to be that much harder at Cal relative to UCIrvine.</p>

<p>Overall, UCIrvine offers a "comfort zone." My friend is guaranteed in her major and is guaranteed in her accounting classes. Done deal.</p>

<p>On the other hand, Berkeley offers major uncertainty...</p>

<p>a) Haas is ridiculously competitive. If my friend is accepted to Haas, well that's great. But the looming question is, what if she isn't? Being a regular economics major doesn't really mean much and without the accounting coursework, Big 4 firms are not likely going to offer you a position as a summer associate. There is a sense of insecurity and even stress by choosing to attend Cal. It's almost as if my friend's fate is riding on the ability to get or not get into Haas. While it is possible to get into Haas, it isn't guaranteed and quite honestly, the typical GPA of an admitted student hovers between 3.6-3.7, which is simply ridiculous, especially at Berkeley.</p>

<p>b) Naturally, Cal is harder and more rigorous. Economics is a capped major because everybody wants to try and do business at Cal. If my friend can't even muster the grades to get into Haas...then it's like..."Now what?" Even if my friend were not to get hired by a Big 4, it's still ideal to have Business Administration w/ accounting emphasis. It's basically an accounting degree and she can still work for smaller firms around the area. A regular economics degree at Berkeley won't take you too far and it's more than like one would have to go to graduate school to make any use of it.</p>

<p>So yes. Do you think those are legitimate concerns? Or is my friend a pure fool for not choosing Cal?</p>

2

<p>If she wants to work for Big-4 then they recruit at both Irvine and Cal.</p>

<p>Why go through all the extra hassle and hardships at Cal for an accounting job when you can get the same results at UCI without the hassle and hardships?</p>

<p>Is she a fool? No, doesn’t sound like one. Sounds smart actually.</p>

3

<p>Your friend should really visit both campuses, and make the decision that she feels comfortable with.</p>

4

<p>“Why go through all the extra hassle and hardships at Cal for an accounting job when you can get the same results at UCI without the hassle and hardships.”</p>

<p>Not that I disagree, but her response would be, “Because Cal is prestigious, fun, and offers the traditional college experience.”</p>

<p>And to her I asked, “Are all those things worth the extra hardships? If yes, I say go to Cal. If no, I say go to Irvine.” She’s obviously reluctant to answer the question and is leaning toward UCI.</p>

5

<p>“Your friend should really visit both campuses, and make the decision that she feels comfortable with.”</p>

<p>Actually she has visited both campuses. The funny thing is she “loves them both.” Aha. I told her she couldn’t go wrong with picking either school. I said no matter which one you pick, there are going to be pros and cons to both and you will never be fully 100% content. With one or the other, there are going to be complaints.</p>

<p>If she chose Irvine: “but I’m missing out on the fun, prestige and college experience!!”</p>

<p>If she chose Berkeley: “but it’s so freaking hard and I might not even get into my major!!”</p>

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<p>“Because Cal is prestigious, fun, and offers the traditional college experience.”
Sounds like she would like to attend there for its name but doesn’t want to deal with their rigorous competitive coursework.</p>

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<p>Oh lol. Well, I would tell her that although Berkeley will probably be harder, it won’t be by much. The difference in difficulty between the UCs isn’t that large. Not saying that Merced is as “hard” as UCLA, but it’s not much easier either. Although I love UCI, it seems like beneath her comments she wants to go to Berkeley a bit more, and is just a little afraid to. Fear should never be a reason to not attend a university in my opinion. Berkeley won’t be easy, but neither will UCI.</p>

8

<p>Tell her if she wants to have fun, join a frat or at least meet new people. I always assume people at CAL are missing out on “fun” because they are stereotyped to be nerds and geeks.</p>

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<p>“Oh lol. Well, I would tell her that although Berkeley will probably be harder, it won’t be by much. The difference in difficulty between the UCs isn’t that large. Not saying that Merced is as “hard” as UCLA, but it’s not much easier either. Although I love UCI, it seems like beneath her comments she wants to go to Berkeley a bit more, and is just a little afraid to. Fear should never be a reason to not attend a university in my opinion. Berkeley won’t be easy, but neither will UCI.”</p>

<p>Well that, but also because at UCI she already got into the Business Administration major (not as PRE-major, but is already in the major), meaning she can enroll in those accounting courses with no problem. And she has priority enrollment for them.</p>

<p>Meanwhile at Cal, the chances of getting into Haas are morbidly low, and the chances of getting into accounting classes are harder.</p>

10

<p>@notaznguy</p>

<p>I didn’t know that UCI gave acceptances to the full major upon admission to freshman. She might want to double check to be absolutely sure. Well, I guess then it comes down to whether or not she is willing to go to Berkeley and potentially not getting into Haas. It’s difficult, yes, but not impossible. If she is willing to go into another major, or really wants to go to Berkeley, then she might want to choose Berkeley. If not getting into Haas is deal-breaker, or almost one, she might want to go to UCI. Both schools are great, and remind her that going to a certain school, or even major is never a guarantee of success or even employment. You have to work hard, gain experience, and be patient for that.</p>

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<p>Just called admissions. They said my friend would guaranteed a Business Administration major as long as she retains a overall 2.0 GPA (which is standard). No necessity to apply into the major.</p>

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<p>If I got into both UC Berkeley and UCI, and I had to choose, I would most definitely choose UCI.</p>

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<p>Personally I would choose UCI based off your post. Business recruiters look at your GPA and work experience so might as well go to the school that gives you a higher GPA. But of course it all boils down to personal preference…you’ll have to work hard wherever you go.</p>

14

<p>Well whatever my friend chooses, I just hope she doesn’t regret it. I only wish the best for her and I want her to have the best college experience (academically and socially) she could possibly have.</p>

15

<p>My vote is for Cal. </p>

<p>I wouldn’t pigeonhole yourself to accounting just yet. By the time you get to your junior year, you might have changed your mind about accounting.</p>

<p>UCB offers way more opportunities. You can get lucrative positions in ibanking, consulting, and finance that you won’t get at UCI. </p>

<p>Also I am pretty sure the Big 4 recruit more at UCB than they do at UCI. (E&Y doesn’t come tot UCI)</p>

<p>For the accounting classes, they is always summer or community college. You can get them done easily.</p>

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<p>if your friend wants to pass up the chance to attend the number one public university in the world, and cannot see that it would make them more competitive in the job market, among other things, then who cares? uci is also a great school. so let someone else take that admission spot at UCB (from the waiting list). i cannot understand why all these students apply to these incredibly desireable schools when they don’t even want to attend. don’t they realize that they are taking spots that could better be given to kids who really do want to attend? and it is certainly not easier to maintain a high GPA at UCI. who made that factoid up?</p>

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<p>dont want to be mean, but…she was rejected by UCLA (bzecon or econ i guess). how many chance she has to get accepted by HAAS. so why did she even consider this dilemma b4 getting offer from HAAS.</p>

<p>for you question, i would definitely go for UCI.</p>

18

<p>@itransfer. I have to disagree with you here.</p>

<p>Ernest and Young do recruit at UCI–There is even a E&Y near UCI. You’ll see the building on the 405 freeway next to the super huge 24 Hour Fitness. They also recruit at UCSB and other reputable schools.</p>

<p>How do I know? My friend got recruited by Ernest and Young after she graduated from UCI. </p>

<p>And several LA I-Banking corporations recruit at Irvine also.</p>

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<p>Why not just go to sjsu or some other csu big four recruit their too… Plus your friend won’t have to worry about difficulty</p>

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<p>

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<p>They don’t come on campus and hold events. You just send your apps online. </p>

<p>Pretty sure they are more active on the UCB campus.</p>

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<p>Again we are talking comparative here. UCB will have more and better opportunities than UCI.</p>