<p>I'm having a really difficult time choosing between between Cal and UC Davis.</p>
<p>Cal has always been my dream school, however, I'm finding that I don't really have great reasons to attend, other than prestige and name recognition.</p>
<p>I was offered a full-ride to UC Davis to study as a Regents Scholar, which has a ton of perks and privileges. I'm also a political science/public service major, with Sacramento nearby, there's a ton of internship opportunities.</p>
<p>Both are highly ranked in poli sci, but Cal of course is higher. I've visited both schools and liked both campuses. I liked the relaxed environment at Davis but I also enjoyed the urban-feel of Berkeley. I have friends and mentors at both schools, and they both have favorable opinions with the school they're at, which doesn't help at all. :-|</p>
<p>I guess I'm leaning towards Davis but I'm finding it extremely difficult to decline Cal. I'm also planning to go to law school afterwards.</p>
<p>At this point, I'm thinking I might just tally up votes and use that to decide.</p>
<p>You have a really difficult choice to make. Are you getting any FA from Berkeley?</p>
<p>I think you should choose Berkeley. It is very prestigious and is one of the best public universities in the country. I’m guessing that you’re in state, so it’s not terribly expensive, which is good.</p>
<p>On the other hand you have the full scholarship from Davis and with the budget cuts that could really help.</p>
<p>I received a partial scholarship from Berkeley, but it wasn’t anywhere near as generous as Davis. At Berkeley, I’ll still have to work during the school year to keep up.</p>
<p>UC Berkeley definitely stands out on a resume but wouldn’t being a Regents Scholar (top 4% of admitted students) at UC Davis be equally powerful?</p>
<p>I have the exact same decision to make. I’m a Psych major and I got the Regent’s scholarship to Davis, and just found out I got into Berkeley. For me the Regents is a full ride, Berkeley has a fairly generous offer but there’s still subsidized and unsubsidized loans in my FA package, as well as work study. I’m leaning towards Davis at the moment because I want to maintain my GPA for grad school and that will be hard at Cal, especially while working. Plus it’s hard to say no to all that free money from Davis and the early registration perks.</p>
<p>Let me know what you decide!</p>
<p>If you are set on law school after your BA, save the money and take the full ride/Regents from Davis - law school isn’t cheap. I think the location might also be nicer for your major, because, as you said, Sacramento is right there.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input.</p>
<p>It was tough, but I’ve decided to go to UC Berkeley.</p>
<p>I reviewed my official scholarship offer today and it was more than half of the total cost of attendance, it would only cost me about 10k total to attend Berkeley. Although Davis would be free for me, a degree from Berkeley is well worth 10k. Plus, it being my dream school, I just couldn’t let the opportunity pass.</p>
<p>Jess, I don’t know your exact situation but I’m assuming since you’re in the same boat as I am, you’re a highly motivated individual and should have no problem succeeding at Cal. Plus, I read the specifics on the Regents Scholarship and priority registration only kicks in your 2nd quarter at Davis, and you’ll have priority your senior year anyways so its not as compelling as if we were freshman. In terms of money, I think the opportunities we’ll have as Cal students will far outweigh the difference in funds. I think the best thing about Regents at Davis is a guaranteed spot in their integrated studies-honors program but since we’re transfers, we can’t participate anyways.</p>
<p>For me, I found that I would seriously regret going to UC Davis and declining Berkeley, but I wouldn’t feel much regret accepting Berkeley and declining Davis.</p>
<p>But of course its your decision to make, take your time with it and if you find that Davis is a better fit for you then definitely go to Davis. This is only my opinion. Since I just went through what you went through, I know its an extremely tough decision. Good luck, and let me know how it goes.</p>
<p>UPDATE: I received the regents’ and chancellor’s scholarship at Berkeley the other day. Definitely glad that I made the right decision.</p>