Hi There! My S. is having a hard time deciding between Tulane and UC Berkeley for pre-med. Tulane gave him a scholarship, he is out of state for UC Berkeley - that’s a 20K per year difference in tuition. He loves both schools, but UC’s large class sizes really scare him, plus he does not know about research opportunities at UC, getting to know professors, competition, etc. Can someone address these issues - how easy is it to get research ops? How are the dorms? How about making friends on such a large campus - he is not a wallflower, but not the most popular/outgoing kid. Also, sports opportunities - he played football in HS, and would like to get involved in intramural sports like Rugby, track, soccer… What is the best path toward med school for him - T or UC? He loves the south and the culture there, but feels at home in CA, since he is from Boulder, CO - very similar culture to UC. Any help would be appreciated - thank you!
What other win-win decisions in your life do you agonize paying an additional 80k for?
Lower cost is usually better for pre-med purposes. Is Tulane his lowest cost option?
Considering the very substantial difference in cost, not to mention his obvious anxiety regarding large class sizes, Tulane is definitely the wisest choice. It’s a reputable school, and clearly appears to be the better fit for him, based on the info you’ve provided.
This is a no brainer. Trulane has the same prestige as Berkeley in pre-med, if it is cheaper and your S like it and most likely will succeed in that school. GO there. Now if it is computer science. there is some debate to be done.
to ucbalumnus - yes, Tulane would be approx. $40k per year, while UCB is $57k. He also got into Emory, Wake-Forest, Georgia Tech and Univ. of Colorado honors program with a small scholarship, but does not want to stay in him home state. He LOVES California, but feels intimidated by the large campus. The thing is, would UCB toughen him up for life, having to advocate for himself constantly, vs. Tulane, where it’s really comfortable, but that doesn’t challenge him? Does the “Berkeley” brand mean something when applying to med schools? Is grade deflation at UCB a major factor in student gpa’s?
Trulane has the same prestige as Berkeley in pre-med. - Does it? In the research I did Berkeley is consistently ranked pretty high in pre-med education, while Tulane is not even mentioned… Maybe it’s a west coast thing? I know rankings are notoriously hard to obtain for these programs because most schools don’t really have pre-med programs as such, only life sciences… anyone have any more info on this?
Both are fine schools. While Berkeley may have an edge in “reputation” the better option is to choose the school where your S feels he will be happiest and most successful. You can get into top grad schools out of either place.
I’d have to agree that that’s probably not true.
Fortunately, we are talking about pre-med here and not investment banking. Also, a private school would likely be better equipped to prepare your son for med school than a large, competitive state school.
Considering the tuition difference as well, Tulane is probably the better option.
I disagree as well that Tulane is equal to Berkeley. However, for financial purposes (wanting to go pre-med) Tulane would be the best option if there is nothing cheaper.
Go cheaper and go where the student will have the most interaction with professors. More importantly, go to a place where the student can get good grades and also like alternative majors because most people do not end up applying to medical school.
Going to a CA undergrad will not help the student get into a CA medical school. It has great students, and they will also be competing for grades, research opportunities, etc. There are clinical opportunities, but the competition is stiff. Applying junior year is also very expensive because so many schools will be on the opposite coast.