Hello, I am currently a senior trying to decide what college to attend.
I was accepted and would be going in as a Biology major at both schools, not planning on med school I’m more interested in an ecology/ environmental focus.
I was wondering which school is better in terms of the major I am thinking about. I was also wondering the difference in academic environment between the two. (For example, does the school size actually make a big difference? is the quarter system more difficult? are either of the two more competitive?)
You may want to look at catalogs and schedules to see what upper level courses in your areas of interest are offered.
My older son is a Environmental Science graduate from UC Davis, but UC Merced and Riverside were also on his list of schools under considerations.
Both Merced and Riverside were options he was considering before selecting UCD.
UCM has a great location for Environmental/Ecology majors due to the proximity to Yosemite and Sequoia National parks. The small campus is new, surrounded by farmland and the City of Merced is not that exciting of a city but it really depends upon what you are hoping to get out of the college experience.
If you are leaning toward the Ecology/Environmental science, you might want to see about changing majors into the Environmental systems major or if you are able to take courses in that department if they are of interest.
https://admissions.ucmerced.edu/academics/majors-minors/earth-systems-science
UC Riverside has the more urban location, very nice campus with access to LA and Orange County cities. My son found they had some good research opportunities for undergrad students especially in hydrology and toxicology study areas. Again, I would also check out the upper division Environmental classes that may be an option as a biology major.
https://cnasstudent.ucr.edu/sites/g/files/rcwecm2691/files/2020-02/biol_upperdiv_offerings_20w.pdf
https://envisci.ucr.edu/undergrad
Quarter system requires you need to hit the ground running to keep up with the fast pace. You will have more classes with the quarter system than the semester system so it really depends upon what kind of study habits you have developed.
My older son loved the quarter system, once he got use to the pace while my younger son was more content with semester system.
Best of luck with your decision.
I wanted to ask another question, thank you so much for the advice it was extremely helpful by the way! I am a pretty shy person, do you think going to a smaller school would be helpful or would it not make a big difference?
My older son is an introvert and he did find UCD a bit overwhelming at first. Once he established a few friendships, then things were better. Both schools will be smaller in comparison to the other UC’s but you will have more commuters at UCR vs. UCM. You might be able to find your tribe at UCM easier since most students would be living on-campus. You just need to get out of your comfort zone and take some chances. That is what college is all about, take some risks.
Also take advantage of your professors office hours (once on campus), the career center and fellow students to make connections for research and internship opportunities.
Best of luck.