Son SIR’d to UCI for CS, not expecting to get off UCSD waitlist. Just wondering - can you expand on the “better college vibe, better community” at UCSD vs UCI? Just curious. Thanks in advance.
Oh gosh, I don’t want to generalize. But Irvine and San Diego are such different cities. UCI has traditionally been a commuter school. Kids end up living in neighboring Newport Beach. Irvine is also a planned community, conservative, but also very, very safe. San Diego, in general, is more diverse - different neighborhoods, different vibes. If you can, try and visit this weekend! Only about 1-1.5 hours between the two.
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My daughter hasn’t yet matriculated to UCSD (she will be a first year in Sixth College this fall), but all of this that you described contributed to her picking San Diego over Irvine. She’s a kid from a more urban area, and although La Jolla is obviously wealthy and suburban, she felt like she would have better access to a city in SD (on the new trolley line that goes right to campus) than from Irvine. Irvine felt very cookie cutter and almost too safe and sterile. She wanted access to a little more “grit” and variety at times. Both great schools, can’t go wrong.
As someone who is very acquainted with Irvine, I don’t think this is true. A majority of Irvine is comprised of Asian American communities and tbh, it’s not very conservative. There is a lot of diversity especially where I am acquainted with.
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thank you for the replies. I don’t mean to take up too much room on a UCSD thread for UCI talk - but appreciate all the opinions. My son is an Asian Am and has always attended schools where he is a minority - so we think the AA experience at UCI will be great for him! On the other hand, he loved UCSD and their CS program…both are great!
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since ucsd already admitted some in data science, does it mean that they won’t be admitting any more in that major in the next wave?
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adding on to kehehe, i used to live in irvine for 10 years and as an asian american, ive never felt out of place there! and i can say that theres so much good food as well! irvines location also makes it pretty accessible to cities like la, san diego, and anaheim (and its close to knotts and disney!!). for cs theres also a lot of great opportunities to get experience/internships since theres branches of qualcomm and broadcom there + blizzard’s hq. qualcomm’s hq is also in san diego though so sd is also a great option. either way im sure your son would thrive in both places :))
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UCSD’s Jacob’s School of Engineering and Jacob’s Medical Center are both named after Qualcomm founder, Irwin Jacobs.
will there be more biology majors in later waves?
anyone get anything today?
My daughter admitted for the same major off the waitlist also, but committed to Irvine for environmental engineering. She’s already made her roommate choices and has the mindset so I think she may not change her mind. But my older daughter is now a second year at UCSD so I was secretly hoping to have both at the same school.
i have the feeling the next wave wont be for another week ;-;
last year there was 9 days between 2 waves. hopefully sooner… 
first wave felt so small tho… hopefully wave 2 is bigger or there’s more waves this year
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Thank you, both. She’s really having a hard time deciding, so I suggested she sit on the decision through the weekend. For UCSD, the pros are Scripps and the specifics within the major. But the cons are campus life, Revelle GEs, and worries that the curriculum may be too STEM-focused. For pros at UCI, she is much more comfortable with the campus life, still loves her major (which I think may be a better fit), and the academic environment seems less intense (focused, but not cutthroat). The only con for UCI is losing the opportunity to be at Scripps (but I told her that she can still end up there in grad school).
It seems that both schools offer good research opportunities and set the students up for grad school, which is her plan. She rotates between Veterinary Science, Marine Biology, and Atmospheric Science. I think either school could support those long-term educational plans.
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My opinion is that your daughter has to choose the right school that best fits her, not what school is ranked higher. My memories of college that stand out to me the most is not the education and classes I took (even though I did have many great classes and a good education), but the overall college experience - the life long friends I made, atmosphere of the school, and various social and travel experiences I had through study abroad, etc. Also, it’s important to note if the school is better for your major as a grad student vs. an undergrad. Do undergrads get ample research opportunities within the major? My son volunteers at the Birch Aquarium with many UCSD Marine Bio undergrads, and from talking to them, it sounds like most of the research opportunities go to the grad students. He was waitlisted at UCSD as a marine bio major and that was always a concern for him about UCSD. He thinks that for his major, it might be better to go to a school that provides tons of research opportunities for undergrads, and then try to go to UCSD for grad school (if he still wants to continue with marine bio). Either way, I’m sure your daughter will find happiness with whatever she chooses. I know how stressful of a choice it is as my son had a similar situation after getting off a waitlist of another school. In the end, they will go with their gut and will choose the right school for them. Hang in there and best of luck to your daughter!
“Scripps Institution of Oceanography offers a BS in marine biology, a BS in geosciences, a BS in oceanic and atmospheric sciences, a BS in oceanic and atmospheric sciences, minors in geosciences and marine science, and contiguous BS/MS programs in earth sciences, marine biology, and oceanography.”
Look like SIO has all the stuffs that your daughter might be interested in “all under one roof”. It could be an advantage if she just want to take a few class from other majors or changing major later (normally easier if you are in the same academic department/college).
Anyone get anything today? I hope there isn’t just one wave
didnt get anything but i wouldnt lose hope just yet! usually it takes another week for another wave to happen (last yr it took 9 days)
We are in California. Any UCs (not just UCI) have many Asian Americans. You can check UC’s demographic which is a public information.
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