Hi all,
I’m looking to transfer in fall 2017, with my top choices being UC Davis or CSU Sacramento. I’m trying to make a decision on which I’ll go to (assuming I get in to both) given that I’d be taking different classes in the spring. I’m applying to both as a psych major, and at UCD I would double major in psych/communications, whereas at Sac State I’d be majoring in psych and if I can fit my courses all in, minoring in communication. Either way I’d be commuting from Sacramento, unless something big changes with my family’s finances and I could live on campus at UCD.
My end goal is to do a master’s in career counseling, most likely at Sac State, and become a college counselor.
UCD Pros:
- More prestigious university
- Could double major
- Quarter system (I know this is a con for some, but I think it works better for the way I learn things)
CSUS Pros:
- Significantly less expensive
- Shorter commute
- Likely would be easier to get better grades (important for grad school)
If I were going to UCD, I’d take classes in the spring to knock out lower division courses for both communication and psych. If I decided I wanted to do Sac State, I’d finish the rest of the courses I need for GE. I will have my IGETC done at the end of this semester, but will be missing a couple of the GE courses I’d need at Sac State.
Any feedback would be super helpful, so thanks!
Well, you will not know if you get into UCD until late April which is probably well into your Spring semester at your CCC. Are the lower division courses for UCD required or just recommended? since you may not know the admission decisions prior to signing up for Spring.
They’re just recommended and would make my time at UCD easier. However, I’m looking at this hypothetically with which I’d go to if I got in to both. I feel like my chances at UCD are pretty good, as I have a 4.0 GPA, so it’s not a far off possibility.
A comment here…
While an admirable and useful field, I wonder just how many jobs are available in this field? There are at best a few hundred colleges in Calif if you include CC’s. Extend that nationwide and we’re still talking about 5,000 colleges or so. Each employs a handful of counselors, and I would guess most years a given school does not have any openings.
My suggestion is to spend a bit of time exploring the job prospects in the field. Perhaps with the help of the career counselor at your CC 
Like I said, that’s the end goal. I’d be happy to work in another field for a while until something opened up. I do hear what you’re saying though.
I think you should pick Davis - it’s a research university (I don’t think CSUS is one?), so there are plenty of research opportunities there, which will definitely help for applying to graduate school.