@avc118 lol that was just a curious question, thanks.
Im actually looking at the Nutrition Science major and liking it. I have all the prereqs done for it and it looks interesting. Now I am wondering if I should just do a regular admission for it and also have an alt major.
@megantwin nutrition science is actually a really good one. yea. you should definitely do regular admission. if I were you, i’d apply to the major im really interested in doing even though it’s impacted and have an alt major that is really easy to get into…
Hmm, @megantwin what was your original major?
@boxandwhiskers I am still applying to UCB (Haas), but I wouldn’t say I am holding out for them. Over the past 6 months, Davis has nudged Berkeley out of the #1 spot for me. The more I learn about the Man Econ program and Davis, the more I like. I just visited Davis and people (students and administration) were just so happy and friendly compared to the people at Haas.
My ultimate goal is to open a restaurant with a farm and the only way I see Berkeley helping me with that is I (maybe) could get a higher paying job with the Berkeley name to save money faster. At least at Davis I could get a neutral-sounding degree while really studying agriculture on the low.
I’ve thought about creating a Davis vs. Berkeley thread for people who are interested in Ag and Food Systems, but they usually just devolve into UCB people shouting rankings at the OP.
@Wadadli I see what you mean. I’m kind of in the same boat. I know Berkeley is the #1 best public school in the country, maybe the world idk, but it’s put on such a high pedestal. Both of my parents went there and think it’s the best. Everyone I talk to says its the best. But every time i’ve been on campus at Berkeley, it’s just not as friendly and warm as my experiences with Davis. I’ve also lived in Berkeley before for many years, and i’m used to the area. While it’s a cool college town, Telegraph Ave has turned into a depressing craphole and the vibe of the town has worn off.
I’m also looking for more of a suburban, small town kind of environment, and I think Davis has that. If you went with Berkeley, would you be looking into student housing or off-campus? If you’re considering off-campus housing, be prepared for insanely high rents. The housing situation in the bay area (not just SF, but now also Oakland and Berkeley) is at an all time high and it’s in a total crisis. Davis is much cheaper to live in.
If you’re looking to do something with food and agriculture, I would say Davis would be perfect for that.
@boxandwhiskers I live in San Francisco now and have rent control so I would try to stay here as long as possible. That I wouldn’t have to move is another plus for Berkeley, tbh. I do really want a smaller town feel, though. The Berkeley vibe is not what I thought it would be. I moved to SF from NYC and thought it would be so chill and hippie. I can always come back to SF (my bf would keep the apartment) if I felt I needed to have a party weekend.
What you said about your parents is so true. My mom keeps saying “but everyone knows Berkeley” but that does not mean as much to me. I think the only reason I am still feeling conflicted is because of Berkeley’s rep, not because it would be a better choice for me.
@Wadadli Oh wow, I live in San Francisco too. We have an insanely cheap apartment that’s hard to give up. We were actually just talking about the housing situation. We are agreeing that I would go up to Davis by myself and live in transfer student housing and he’s going to stay in San Francisco to keep our apartment and rent out the other bedroom. That way he can stay here and keep our apt, actually pay less rent, I wouldn’t have to give up my elderly cat to a shelter or give him away 
, and I can be in Davis and concentrate on school and working and then just come down and visit on the weekends and in the summer. It’s a little unconventional but we have really bad credit and finding a new apartment would be really tricky, and family housing doesn’t allow pets. I love my cat, he’s my buddy and he’s been with me for so long so it’s hard to have to imagine giving him to a shelter or a stranger. This way everyone’s lives doesn’t get disrupted too much.
When I lived in New York, it was way more chill and even safer than how Berkeley is now. It used to be a really unique place and now it’s kind of run down and sad. The school is really beautiful, but I just don’t feel all that welcome or relaxed there. I would probably feel like I would need to live up to insanely high standards or start having imposter syndrome. I know Berkeley has this great rep and is such an amazing school, but it doesn’t feel like a right fit for me and Davis really does.
@musicallyweird my original is physics.
@boxandwhiskers Awwww, no you can’t give up your cat!
Even if you had great credit it would be incredibly hard to find another place in this market, so your plan sounds like a good one. One of our good friends got into HBS so she moved to Cambridge for two years while her husband kept their SF apartment. I think of them and how they pulled it off when I start to think Davis is too far.
I didn’t visit SF before moving (I wanted the adventure, haha) but I was really surprised by the crime and how many homeless people there are when I moved out here. SF and Berkeley are no where near as laid back as I thought they would be. I am visiting Davis again in a week to see their Man Econ building, the campus farm, and the Mondavi center. Can’t wait. 
@Wadadli Seriously. I think it’s kind of dumb that family housing won’t at least allow cats - especially when mine is kind of old, doesn’t go outside, and just kind of sits there and sleeps all day. I know UC Irvine allows pets, but still. I mean if I had to give him to a shelter they would most likely euthanize him since he’s so old.
The long distance thing can work. Plus, Davis is only a little over an hour and a half away from San Francisco so the distance wouldn’t be that great between us. I would also feel really bad for having to drag my husband away from his job, his home, and all of his family to relocate him in a different city just so I can go to college. Plus, army wives deal with distance and i’ve heard of married couples who live countries apart and it works.
SF and Berkeley used to be cool I promise, you just came at a pretty bad time 
Davis’ campus is so nice, at least it won’t be 100-something degrees when you go. I want to go up there to check out student housing apartments and try to go in to the library. The tour I was on didn’t let us really go inside any where and I didn’t get to see the Sociology building. The Mondavi center looks awesome!
@boxandwhiskers @Wadadli
Do you know how student housing works? Are transfer students allowed to live on dorms and request certain roommates? My friend and I are both transferring to Davis and want to room together for a quarter on campus (to get the experience of it and meet new people) and then (maybe) live in apartments after as it is cheaper. Do you guys know if Davis allows that?
And I totally feel you about Davis and Berkeley! At first I really really wanted to go to Berkeley because of its rankings but after visiting Davis, I found the environment there much more suitable for me.
@musicallyweird I don’t think they allow you to choose a specific person with housing. I know that you can either get a random roommate assignment or fill out a form with your preferences of the kind of person you want. Transfer students don’t live in traditional dorms with freshman and sophs, there’s transfer student housing in Student Housing Apartments (SHA) and transfer students get guaranteed housing when they submit their SIR.
http://housing.ucdavis.edu/housing/sha/
My issues is that it seems kind of expensive 
but I calculated how much a single occupancy costs per month (they charge you a lump sum per quarter) and it’s about $1250 a month just for yourself w/o a meal plan - that can be a lot but there’s grants that can cover housing costs and out of pocket may not be that much in the end. I’m also considering just renting out a room off campus but that seems to be about in the range of $600-800 a month.
I’m aware of the Blue and Gold UC plan which covers tuition but what about housing (looking at off campus)? I don’t want to pull out any loans and I’m not sure I could put a great deal of time towards what I want to study while also working a considerable amount when I transfer.
@boxandwhiskers
Oh I see 
Yeah, my friend and I wanted to live on campus for one quarter and then get one off campus during Winter and Spring.
Oh, and do you guys plan on bringing your car down to Davis or just bring a bike?
Bike to get some exercise in on my downtime.
@napapapa Same here. The Blue and Gold Plan covers tuition and other “fees” (?) but not housing. But I know with blue and gold it isn’t like it just pays for your tuition and you pay nothing. I don’t quite understand it, but you still have to pay something and they expect it through working.
You can also use this UC Davis aid calculator: http://financialaid.ucdavis.edu/aidEstimator/
I’ll be working, but I don’t think I can work 40 hours a week plus my school load. I am going to be avoiding student loan debt as much as a I possibly can. I know there’s plenty of grants out there and I made sure to take advantage of that scholarship section in the UC application.
I’m thinking of trying to drive for Lyft when I transfer lol :D/
@musicallyweird i’m thinking of bringing my car to maybe drive for Uber or Lyft to make money, but I don’t really want to have to deal where to park it. Plus, Davis and Sacramento have great public transportation. I might skateboard from class to class though.
@boxandwhiskers Thank you for the links. I’m currently a work-study student so I’ll make sure to look into that as well when I transfer. Driving for Lyft sounds good man I hope that works out for you.
@musicallyweird Hey, I just looked at the FAQ and I guess you can choose your friend as a roommate they just have to be the same gender. It says:
Can friends room together? How?
Yes, friends can room together. The limitation to this is they need to be of the same gender. There are no mixed-gender SHA apartments.
But it doesn’t explain how lol
@boxandwhiskers
Oh! Thanks! Lyft sounds really cool; hopefully it works out for you!
How do hours work for Lyft? Can you just drive anytime you want?