<p>I am currently about to transfer as a Philosophy major to a four-year university from a community college in California. I've worked really hard and have done really well in community college, with only one B (in a non-transferable class) on my academic record in CC. To transfer, I applied to both UC schools and CSU schools (and have gotten into some of both already, still waiting on UCD, UCLA, and UCB), and am now having to start to decide which school I would like to attend. I know that UC schools are more highly regarded than the Cal States, but I also know that they are more focused on graduate education than undergraduate education. Class size and personal interaction with professors is quite important to me, and I hear that CSU's are better in this department. However, my main goal is to go on to graduate school (pretty much necessary for a Philosophy major), and I want to get into a good grad school (such as NYU) when the time comes. Being that UC's are more focused on graduate school, I feel this might be significant in my decision.</p>
<p>My question is, when I am applying for graduate school, will where I went to school as an undergrad play a big part in whether or not I am admitted? Should I choose a UC over a CSU for this reason?</p>
<p>Being at UCB, once you get into upper divisions the class sizes are smaller and allow for more interaction. Professors almost always reserve time for students during office hours which a lot of students choose not to go (im my experience). I think the UC’s will have more opportunities than a CSU to be honest. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>Your undergraduate institution does matter, but not in the way it would for employers. It matters in two ways: 1) name recognition with the admissions committee at your grad school and 2) the resources and opportunities available to you.</p>
<p>1) Some departments are qualitatively better than others. If you go to a school with a well-known philosophy department, a school that’s known for turning out successful philosophy doctoral students, or a department with a few famous philosophers who teach classes and mentor students, that is going to be better than a school with a less well-known philosophy department. The best departments tend to be at bigger name schools for reason #2, although that’s not the case 100% of the time. I’m not in that field so I know nothing about it, but consider whether your UC schools have better philosophy departments with well-known scholars in the field. If you are already interested in grad school, check out some recent philosophy journals or published books in your field and see who writes them.</p>
<p>2) This happens far more often than #1, I think. I went to a small LAC for undergrad and am at an Ivy for grad school. In the transition one of the things I’ve realized is that money can get you a lot of things. More money means that your professors are probably doing better, more cutting-edge research that you can get involved in and maybe publish on. More resources means that your access to library sources is going to be far bigger and more expansive than a smaller school (Columbia has faaaaaaaaaaar more library resources than my SLAC). You’ll get exposed to more things earlier, perhaps. Flip through a course catalog at the UCs that you are interested, and then the CSUs. Who has the classes that sound interesting? Who has the classes in your field that will help you? Who has the big-name philosophers coming to give guest lectures in your field? Our provost is currently a famous psychologist who does research in my field and I’ve gotten to speak to him personally. This is not an opportunity I got at my SLAC, although it was very good.</p>
<p>There are trade-offs, of course. One of the things I loved about my small college was more personal attention and interaction with my professors, and direct mentorship from them. (Here, professors directly mentor graduate students, but not undergrads. Undergrads are mentored by grad students and post-docs.) I had small classes even for gen-eds, and there was a very intimate learning environment that really boosted me. My SLAC was also well-known for turning out successful doctoral students, and so there was that. Many PhD-bound students did research at our nearby state flagship and prestigious private universities.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, consider the difference in resources between the schools, and consider the departmental recognition that is possible (but not automatic) by going to a bigger-name school. I wouldn’t choose a UC over a CSU solely for this reason, because people often do get admitted to doctoral programs from smaller, less-well-known universities and colleges. It’s less about where you go than what you do there. However, do consider that ‘what you do there’ is going to be largely shaped by your environment. Pick an environment in which you can thrive and do the kinds of things that prepare you for doctoral studenthood in the field.</p>
<p>If you want a sense of where graduate students at a top program like NYU come from, why don’t you check out the NYU Philosophy Department website? Most of the grad students tell you where they went to college, and with minor web-stalking you could probably figure out where lots of the rest went.</p>