I really have a hard time to choose between these two schools.
I have lived in San Diego with my family for almost 6 years, and UCLA has been my dream school ever since high school.
The campus of UCLA always has motivated me studying, and it has been my first choice before getting into UC Berkeley. Honestly, I really did not expect UC Berkeley to accept me. I had never thought of going to Berkeley before, but I thought transferring to UCLA was very doable.
My major is Statistics. I searched up for Statistics programs at both schools. UC Berkeley is ranked way higher than UCLA. UC Berkeley is ranked at the top 3 while UCLA is ranked at 15-20th. People around told me to go to UC Berkeley since going to Berkeley will offer me more internship opportunities at great tech companies, and Berkeley is slightly more prestigious than UCLA.
For the future, I want to go to graduate school if my GPA is good. However, I also want to make sure about job opportunities after graduation because I don’t know what my GPA turns out to be, and I don’t know if I change my mind later.
I also have talked to Statistics majors who are going to both schools. But, it still makes me confused and hesitant about choosing one. I looked up the internet, and people say that there will be no difference wherever I go at the undergrad level.
Is it true…? And to whoever was in the same boat, how did you end up and why…?
@hodol2006 , maybe I can help or maybe I can confuse you more. I hope I can at least make you laugh a little. I have 2 kids going to college in the fall. One chose Berkeley and the other chose UCLA over Berkeley. I think it comes down to fit. How do you feel walking the 2 campuses? Does one make you feel more comfortable? I look at the 2 schools this way: Let’s say a family is going to have a Thanksgiving dinner and two cousins are expected to show up. One cousin is UCLA. He’s smart and successful. He shows up with neatly pressed slacks, has his hair combed, and he shaved that day. He also takes off his shoes before entering the house. Now there’s cousin Berkeley. He’s crazy brilliant, but he shows up a little late. His shirt is missing a button; he’s overdue for a haircut; and he’s wearing flip-flops. The wine bottle he brought still has the price tag on it. And, I’m sorry to say, his fly is slightly open. If the 2 schools were the odd couple, UCLA would be Felix Unger and Berkeley would be Oscar Madison.
When I walk the UCLA campus, I say to myself: “This place is gorgeous. No preppy private school has anything on this place. These kids are so lucky.” When I think of Berkeley, I think of top-rated academics across the board. They seem to be in the top ten in every damn field. Amazing! But, you see, there’s some baggage that goes along with that. They take you aback with things, like, the coed bathrooms in the dorms for instance. Huh? No such thing at UCLA, as we know there shouldn’t be. And then there’s the brass at Berkeley, who introduce themselves to the crowd with: "My name is so-and-so and I go by the pronouns… Say what? Pronouns? Never heard this before in the real world beyond Sather Gate. Did I miss a recent memo? No, it’s just another Berkeley thing to digest!
Then there’s the dorms, which are few in number, not exactly on campus, and many of which feel like minimum security prison inside. And yes, there are quite a few colorful characters around Telegraph Ave., one of which came into the restaurant where we were eating and got into a spirited verbal altercation with the owner to the shock of all us customers eating our gyros. My kid then turns to me as if to say, “You seriously want me to go here?” Berkeley strikes again!
So the decision isn’t easy. I told my kid, if you want the absolute best academics just go to Berkeley and don’t look back, but be ready to be tested in many different ways. But if you want a better overall package and less stress, go to UCLA.
I hope some of this helps. Good luck with your decision.
If the only thing that is making you reconsider UCLA is the higher ratings of Berkeley, I’d not give it a second thought and go to UCLA. Those ratings don’t even pertain to the undergraduate departments.
Career statistician here. The discipline hasn’t changed much in 50 years. At the undergraduate level, you will not get to the point of being able to be very independent. You will need a graduate degree for that, but few undergrad stat majors end up being practicing statisticians. You should examine opportunities to get involved in research projects where you can use your stats skills. Experience with those will be very important going forward. I can’t weigh in on either program as I am in the East.
As a Stats major who got waitlisted to UCB, I’d say UCLA.
Haha, just kidding.
My best advice to you is to choose the environment in which you think you’ll thrive… and enjoy. You’ll be making it your home for the next few years, so choose wisely! It’s important to remember, you can’t lose with either school. They’re both prestigious and there are plenty of opportunities in both places.
Did you already make a decision? If so, let us know!
