<p>The UC schools are excellent in terms of academics covered. But bear in mind that they are large and are comprised nearly entirely of Californeans. They are also a bit short on amenities because of the money crunch. You really need to be independent going there. It seems to me that there are a lot of commuters at those schools. It is very,very difficult to get into UCs as an out of stater, particularly the more popular ones which seem to be the ones you are eyeing. They are having trouble accomodating their own kids in the state that are guaranteed a UC admission, much less those out of state who may just make the requirements that have NO guarantees at all. Forget about the money, too, unless you are truly stellar in stats (think HPY). </p>
<p>However, catholic schools such as University of SanDiego, Santa Clara, Loyola Marymount are excellent admission deals. They have beautiful campuses, many amenities, and some chance for merit aid as they would love to have some east coasters on their roster. Catholic schools tend to have merit money for those in the upper ranges of their stats which can help. </p>
<p>I know a number of kids who so wanted to go to NYC for college but NYU and Columbia were just out of range academically and financially for them. FOrdham, Manhattan College, St Johns were great solutions that way. Excellent admission deals. A lot of kids here go to Stonehill in Mass, and they love it there. Sienna in upstate NY is also a great admissions choice. Providence is a bit restrictive, I hear from my son who visited it, but he like the school academics there, and it is near you. Quinnipiac is also a popular choice around here. </p>
<p>If you can, you should take a visit to CA and look at the atmosphere at the schools you are considering. You’ll see what I mean.</p>