Running Out of Time... UCI vs UCSD vs UCSB

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

I have been accepted to these three UC’s for electrical/computer engineering and despite thinking about it for a long time, I am still undecided and really only have today and tomorrow to decide before I send in my SIR. At the moment I am leaning towards UCI for convenience but there are still other factors of other schools that are preventing me from making a decision so I made a list of pros and cons so that perhaps someone could give me some insight.

UCI Pros
-Campus I close to home so I can still see my family and pets every so often and also the area is very familiar since I have been in OC my whole life.
-From what I have read and observed on my visit, most people here are chill and not cutthroat which is a little of what I am looking for. Plus it seems the chill people from my high school are coming here while the elitists are going to SD.
-It is a very safe environment to learn in.
-The Arc and beach are close.

-Can gradually become more independent.

UCI Cons
-At the moment, I am having trouble with the financial aid office after trying to report a change from living at home to on campus so I might not be able to see my aid offer until after May 1st (Current aid is about a 9000$ net cost based on living at home which should change soon.) Since the price of living at home at UCI is similar to living on campus at UCSd, it would probably be the most expensive in the end.
-I keep reading that this school’s engineering program is not really that good
-AP Physics C and Gov credit is useless so I would have to essentially retake mechanics for a third time and electricity for a second time. (I think it is the same with UCSB)
-Food isn’t very vegetarian

UCSD Pros
-John Muir College seems to be a very social environment for learning along with easier ge requirements
-Good price with about a net cost of 10000 a year and an estimate of around 24k in loans.
-Not too close to home, but not too far
-Beach is right there
-AP Physics credit, unlike the other two, would actually be accepted here allowing me to go straight to new physics material
-Possible Spic program for early friends?
-Lots of research opportunities to get involved

UCSD Cons
-Socially Dead?

-Seems too competitive and cutthroat like my highschool. From what I have gathered, people here are not as cooperative and seem like the people who would try to get ahead of everybody else for curves and grad school rather than working together. As a first gen student and completely new to engineering, I feel like I wouldn’t belong or like this type of atmosphere since I clearly didn’t at my school and am too introverted and shy to probably take advantage of various opportunities anyway.

UCSB Pros
-Cooperative environment and still prestigious
-One of the most clean and beautiful campuses I have ever seen with lots to do and the beach.
-Great engineering program.
UCSB Cons
-Way too far making it inconvenient if I need to go home.
-At the moment is the most expensive with about 12k a year and 30k loans at the end,
-Don’t think I would fit in with eh party culture and probably wouldn’t make any friends here.

Anyway,my current preference is UCI>UCSB>UCSD since it is still close so that I could gradually become more independent, smoothly transition into college, and still learn how to drive (yeeeeahhh there’s also that) and if I feel if wanted to go to UCSB or UCSD, i could eventually go to grad I would also like feel more inclusive and cooperative with fellow classmates and possible dorm mates since the type people here seem to be what I am looking for and I can see a decent future here. Despite that, the cons are what are preventing me from submitting my SIR and I have to decide, so I am going to have to talk to my counselor and possibly post this somewhere else. While I feel like going to a school based on ranking is one of the dumbest things ever, I still want to get a quality education with a combination of good academics, inclusion, and new life. Some of these pros/cons are probably bad and I might be missing something important since I made this relatively quick so let me know if that is the case. I guess I might as well ask a few last questions.

1.) How important is the prestige of a college when applying for grad school? I feel like as long as I get involved as much as i can, it wouldn’t make much of a difference but idk
2.) Should i already have submitted my sir? I know the deadline is May 1st but would i be at a disadvantage for something since it is so late?
2.) How hard would it be to transfer from a UC from a UC assuming it is one I already got into from high school? (In case i have a change of thought or something).
3.) Would the curriculum all be the same, but of different quality?
4.) Does the name of the school on the degree really matter for a job? I feel like I need to go where I would be most comfortable and happy rather than some highly rigorous and prestigious college and feel depressed.

Sorry for the long read, but your input is greatly appreciated.

2

Analysis paralysis! :slight_smile: Your reasoning is sound. Eliminate UCSD and re-analyze. Loan totals are for four years, or one year? If for one year, going to UCI and living at home makes sense. If for four years, UCSB sounds very attractive from the standpoint of personal growth. Amtrak runs from Goleta to Santa Ana, so getting home is quite feasible, just not all the time. And I suspect you’ll make friends wherever you go. It’s not high school. :wink:

Hope this helps! Good luck.

3

I agree with @PadreDeTres. Eliminate UCSD.

Are you a surfer and/or do you go to the beach frequently now? If not then it will quickly become a non factor at UCSD and UCSB.

You will be pleasantly surprised how quickly you will make friends at UCSB. If you can swing the cost, I think UCSB sounds like the perfect college experience for you. It is far enough away from home that you won’t come home every weekend but close enough that you can come home for family events that are important to you. There are a lot of OC students at UCSB and it is easy to find someone who wants to carpool.

You are not the only 17 or 18 year old leaving home for the first time at UCI or UCSB (or UCSD). The dorms, dining halls, advising, etc. know that freshmen will be homesick. They know that freshmen are going to go through social adjustments while trying to attend classes. The real question is, after the first quarter, will you feel as if you didn’t “go away” to college because UCI is too close to home?

Answering your questions:

  1. Prestige between UCI, UCSB and UCD is insignificant when applying to grad schools. Even if you had the exact same GPA out of the three, your test scores, extracurricular activities (leadership as well as demonstrated interest), essays and letters of recommendations will mean more than the name of the school.
  1. No but don't wait too much longer. Technical issues can happen and you don't want to be without a school on May 2.
  2. Honestly, this is pretty rare. Not that it isn't doable but once you get acclimated to a school, you'll stop thinking about the others.
  3. Don't know - This is an important thing to look into.
  4. Yes, happy and successful will matter more than depressed and unsuccessful.

Good luck.

4

@lkg4answers answered all of your questions in the same way I would (was a bit rushed earlier, yet wanted to let you know someone in CC land was reading your post).

Don’t base college decisions on perceptions of small differences in prestige. There is negligible distinction among most UC campuses in terms of the ABET-approved curriculum, overall quality of education and the platform for entering grad school. There is much more variation in quality of life, cost of attendance, location etc.

As a UCSD alum, I’m sad to see consistent descriptions of a cutthroat culture among undergrads. Generalizations, yes, yet perception can become reality for a good kid who is away from home for the first time. That’s the main reason why I suggested that you eliminate UCSD. And a binary choice should reduce your analytical overload.

Educational debt is an immense problem, currently $1.3 trillion in the U.S. Borrow as little as possible, within reason. Keep that powder dry for grad school.

@Leviathan245: When you said “I feel like I need to go where I would be most comfortable and happy rather than some highly rigorous and prestigious college and feel depressed,” you really answered your own question. That is the focal issue. (Note that all three are highly rigorous and prestigious–a great set of choices for you.) So which one makes you happy? Provided you can afford it, that’s where you should go.

5

Thank you both very much for your help. :bz Yes the total loan amount would be at the end of 4 years. @PadreDeTres Sorry for making suck a stereotypical generalization about UCSD. I could be very wrong, but that is what I perceived of it when I visited.

So after thinking about if for a bit, I will not go to SD regardless of what the rankings say and I will send an sir tomorrow to SB or UCI because I still need to review my financial aid for Uci and the UCI officer said my finanical aid will be ready on saturday and then I can make a final decision.

6

Happy to help. Your observations about present-day UCSD seem to be similar to many others, more’s the pity. I think it is an inevitable result of the hypercompetitive nature of STEM admissions now. The UC system as a whole bears much of the blame for failing to plan for this tech tsunami.

Basing your decision on finances and predicted fit (happiness!) makes perfect sense to me. Best wishes.

7

Good luck @Leviathan245 Let us know what you decide.

@PadreDeTres I too have been following the discussion about the solitary and cut-throat nature of UCSD (for my 2nd child who is in HS). I wonder if the University is aware of how many students turn them down because of this reputation? It is somewhat like SB being considered a party school. Reputations can help and can hurt recruitment.

8

I Ended up submitting it to UCI

9

Congratulations and best of luck! =D>

10

@lkg4answers Thank you. I still feel a really bad for turning down SB though, but I probably would feel the same way if it were the other way around. I wish I could go to both, but that’s the way it goes. I hope I can still go there in the future one day once I get my stuff together.