Ok guys I need some help here. I’m at the point where I need to decide which school to go to, but I can’t decide. Do you guys think I should attend CSUN? If I go to this college, financial aid will cover everything. Also, there’s a possibility I will be double majoring in physics and electrical engineering. It is 15 min away from my house. Or should I attend UCLA? If I go here, I might need student loans. I will only be majoring in Electrical engineering. And it’s 45-60 min away from home. Also regardless of what school I go I will have to work 40 hrs a week. I guess I’m undecided because I don’t know if CSUN will give me the same job opportunities as UCLA. Please guys some advice here. Should I even double major at CSUN? Does it matter where I go? Or will I have the same job opportunities? What do you guys think? Which of these schools is more hands on?
i am a transfer student from Los angeles pierce college
It is not going to be possible to complete a EE degree at UCLA and work 40 hours a week. So that leaves CSUN for you.
Briefly:
There is no advantage to double-majoring.
CSUN MAY be more hands-on. Or it may not. It depends on which area of EE you study. National resources (funded through federal grants as a regional resource) such as the nanotechnology facility at UCLA are not available at CSUN. Do you want to be a digital designer? Or do you want to do cutting-edge research? Mixed-signal ASIC design and fab? Or board layouts and component selection. UCLA has world class equipment, facilities, and researchers. CSUN has California-class of same. UCLA is a research-based university chartered to be at the cutting edge (part of professor’s time and pay is to conduct research). CSUN is chartered to teach skills to students (Professors can do research if they secure their own outside funding, but it is not core to their job).
You will likely have a different career arc if you go to CSUN than if you go to UCLA; but you will never know (since you only live life once). Either can be equally satisfying.
REALLY look at the ROI for getting all "A"s in a rigorous course load and making lifelong friends. Compare that with struggling with a (likely) low-paying job and compromising the next two years of academics. Would it be better to get of on a good footing making 4x that term-time job pay; or struggle in school and make 3x the pay when you graduate. Wouldn’t a student loan + 10-15 hours a week be a better investment? You could have that loan paid off quite quickly. Working 40 hours a week while attending school may extend your studies by a year. Figure in the lost wages at a professional salary in your calculations.
I would much prefer UCLA and the resources and relationships it has (if it were me). But I would not live in the valley and commute daily through the Sepulveda pass (or I would go in during off-hours and stay late; or take the commuter bus). This next two years is an investment. Think in terms of the next 10 years when making plans and don’t try to make it work calendar-year by calendar-year. What pile of satisfaction, happiness, and money is bigger at the end of 10 years, factoring in loans? Move near campus, really dig into the UCLA community, and come out on top in 2 years.
Just my two cents!
OP - What are your current grades and how much do your work now? Did you finish your calculus sequence and the intro physics sequence at the CC? 40 hours a week of work is too much for a full time student anywhere, particularly in engineering.
What do you mean by a “hands on” program? EE curriculum is usually fairly theoretical with a lab component. Do you mean electronic technology? That’s a different major and has less theory - it’s not an engineering degree. Does CSUN have such a degree?
I would pick UCLA. But take it slow with 40 hours work week.
Ok maybe I can lower my working hours to 30 hours… Thus far I have completed all the calculus offered by my CC… And physics if I go to CSUN I don’t need the last course. That’s why I’m wondering if to take it or not. All the classes to transfer give me a 4.0 gpa. And I have deans list and presidents lot in my transcripts
I want to enter the field and work in controls systems or aviation… That’s why I was asking which school will help me land a job more easier
UCLA has good EE so control systems courses should be good. I do t know if it’s good for aerospace engineering or not but there are tons of UCLA grads in the aerospace, particularly Southern Cal. So aviation should be good too.
I don’t know anything about CSUN so I can’t comment on the school.