I’m a 1-year transfer student from cc, and I was accepted to UC Berkeley and UMich (applied to both for polisci, junior-level transfer). I’m still waiting on the UCLA decision, so I know it’s technically not an option just yet, but I wanted to be optimistic and start thinking about it anyways. Will update once UCLA decisions are out! But I’m really conflicted over which to choose. Any opinions, pros/cons, and advice would be greatly appreciated.
Context:
Born & raised in Los Angeles
Asian/Caucasian female
PoliSci major (considering a double major or minor in something business/ or prelaw related)
My goal is to attend a T10 law school
Will be entering for class of ‘24, but was considering taking time and graduating with my actual class of ‘25
considering Greek life, but idk how easily that would work as a transfer
Berkeley
Pros:
in state tuition
amazing academics
extremely strong polisci department & activities
longstanding name-value
top law schools attended by Berkeley graduates are Berkeley and Stanford
close to SF for internship opportunities
beautiful campus with luscious trees & greenery
It’s literally Berkeley!!!.. I was rejected last year as a freshman applicant and I couldn’t believe I was accepted this year
far enough away from home, but still nice CA weather (+ Bay Area “coldness” and fog)
one of my best friends attends
higher starting salary right out of undergrad
Cons:
Spring 2023 start (so 1 semester behind if graduating with class 2024, or 1 semester ahead of 2025); does anyone know if there is any way to get switched to fall start?
potentially less time to become close w/ professors and/or pursue internship or research opportunities for law school applications
cutthroat academics/ hard to get an outstanding gpa due to grade inflation and bell curve grading (from what I’ve heard)
everyone seems to be depressed?
sports aren’t the strongest
Idk much about the party scene. IK it exists, but it seems like it’s Greek-life oriented
sketchy-ish area in Oakland? I visited campus and it didn’t seem sketchy until I went a few miles off campus, but ik that’s true of any school in an urban environment
UMich
Pros:
Amazing school
Pretty campus and cute town
School spirit and sports!! (I didn’t have much of a social life in Hs so I was really excited to attend an amazing school that also has a great party-scene)
Cons:
OOS tuition & literally $0 in FA from school, so the price for 1 semester at UMich = 1 year at a UC
Weather (I have a history of depression and am a little nervous that a “real winter” + lack of greenery is going to affect me negatively)
closest major city is Detroit, but still a ways away and may not be realistic for internships during school year?
not as much name recognition as Berkeley?
UCLA (if accepted)
Pros:
in state tuition
not as cutthroat with academics as Cal, but still amazing
a lot of my friends attend UCLA
good dining hall food (idk if that will matter though since I probably won’t live in dorms)
school spirit & sports are strong (for social life)
gorgeous campus
Cons:
too close to home? I live literally driving distance away and I’m worried it won’t be that much of a new experience
more students than Cal
campus seems very crowded since a lot of people in the LA area just hangout there or visit
name-value prestige is newer than Cal’s
Right now, I’m leaning towards Berkeley over UMich, but as for Berkeley vs. UCLA, I’m torn. I’m obviously so grateful to even have Cal and UMich as options, but still, any insight would be greatly appreciated! Thank you
Given how expensive law school is, this is a significant negative for Michigan, unless your parents consider the cost of college and law school to be pocket change.
I lean toward Cal since you’re so excited about it, the academics are excellent, with a great political science department, plus you’ll get a new experience living in the bay area. The drawbacks might be that you’ll likely live off campus and that’s expensive, and i do think the culture is a little more competitive than UCLA’s – but i think this is more of an issue in the STEM fields. Congrats!
This seems like an easy decision. For a California resident, the only reason to go to Michigan is if you don’t get into Cal or UCLA. The reverse would also be true - if a Michigan resident got into their state flagship it would be nuts to pay OOS tuition. If you get into UCLA, then you have a decision to make; otherwise it’s Berkeley all the way.
as a michigan student myself, please don’t go to michigan for full OOS price unless you’re loaded. Michigan is pretty good for pre-law - a little bit more grade-inflated, has got a great prelaw community (esp if you rush the pre-law frats), and has slightly less worn down facilities compared to cal - but ~$70k is too much.
btw im a 1 year transfer to cal as well. if you’re in at l&s, you can only petition to extend your time at cal if you have less than 130 units, so you might wanna do a little math and see where you stand. read more about it here: https://lsadvising.berkeley.edu/policies/unit-minimum-maximum-semester
Nope, not the only reason. D18 got into one of those two UC schools and will be graduating from Michigan this weekend.
But not for two minors, instead of finishing a semester early, she would have finished in 3 years. Generous AP credit and testing out of requirements. Michigan has given her no class registration issues, no housing issues, smaller classes, and relatively easy access to her multiple advisors.
And it’s cheaper to live in A2 than LA or Berkeley.
Oh and then there’s the 110,000-ish spectators that attend each football game, whereas UCLA and Cal football are awful and have been awful. Always voted one of the best college towns in the US.
Best 4 years of her life, according to D18, and the best moment was Thanksgiving weekend, when Michigan beat Ohio State and “storming” the field. She also drove with friends to Indianapolis for the B1G championship and to Miami for the Orange Bowl.
Big price difference though. We put a kid through UCLA (tuition + dorms) for less than 2 years of OOS tuition at Michigan. Granted we didn’t have housing expenses for 1+ year due to Covid, but it still would be a huge difference. I see all 3 choices as fairly equivalent academically, so I couldn’t justify near double the cost.
We made a similar decision–my D22 was admitted to Michigan and UCLA, also for Political Science. We visited Michigan and we liked it a lot but couldn’t get past the 66k OOS price tag (we are full pay and can pay). I’m sure D would have had a great time there but she isn’t too into sports (our whole family isn’t “sporty”), so for her, UCLA was the right choice between the two.
The other thing that I’d mention to the OP is that within LSA, it’s very easy to switch between majors and add minors. That includes CS in LSA. Also, transfer to the CoE is relatively easy process too, as long as you meet low GPA requirements.
You can add a business minor from Ross too, if desired. Transfering to Ross as your major though is more difficult, about a 20-25% acceptance rate as a cross school transfer.
@youcee We saved about a semester and 1/2 in tuition. Housing, utlities, food, gas, etc. are all cheaper in A2 too.
Also, D18 wanted the B1G football, hockey and basketball experience, which she got in spades big time. For a sports fan, which D is a BIG sports fan, there’s nothing similar here in CA. Wear any Michigan gear, as I occasionally do, and you’ll get a “Go Blue!” a lot.
We were obviously fine with the additional cost, although there are OOS merit scholarships and OOS financial aid available at Michigan. The UC’s offer very little or none to OOS students.
FWIW, my D21 attends Cal Poly SLO, which is $25,000/year (less I think) all in. Now that’s a “steal of a deal!”
My main point was that not getting into Cal or UCLA was NOT the ONLY reason a CA student would go to Michigan. That wasn’t the case for our family. Michigan is actually a “popular” (lots and lots still go to UCLA and Cal for sure) option in our neighborhood.
OP: law schools mostly only care about GPA+LSAT, so choice of school (and major for that matter) won’t make one bit of difference between these 3. They are all highly regarded programs.
Love Michigan, but unless you have family money, not a fan of paying OOS rates to attend a public.
Since you are from SoCal, go north to experience a new place.
btw: There is little difference between grading at Cal or UCLA; both are equally competitive. But no, the chance of switching spring start to fall is highly unlikely. But that’s ok, as that gives you another semester of (hopefully) all A’s to boost that cum GPA for law school.
