<p>I am a high school senior, and I am choosing between UCD and UCI. I will be majoring in biological sciences and I am Pre-Med. Does anyone have any advice about which school is better in biology programs? Which school has more/less Pre-Med competition? Which school has higher med school acceptance rates?
The most important thing to me is not having too much competition because I don't do too well.
I have applied to be in the Honors programs at both schools, but I do not know if I will get into them. Any advice on if these will help?</p>
<p>General advice for this choice I need to make?</p>
<p>The locations are very different, the feel of the campuses are very different. If possible I would try to visit both before making a decision, and make a decision based on that, more than anything else. You may decide, as many students do, after the rigors of college chemistry, that you want to major in something else, not pre-med. </p>
<p>My guess would be that UCD would be a less competitive atmosphere than UCI. It is probably a more laid back place in a laid back town. There are cows on campus, after all.</p>
<p>i've got news for you...ucd or uci may not be cutthrost like ucla or harvard premed but it will still be a LOT of competition....in terms of their acceptance into med school from some old stats i believe davis might have a slighty higher acceptaacne rate but i recommend you go with where you ultimtely feel you will feel more comfortable and also be able to get internships, etc as these are crucial for med school admission...good luck!</p>
<p>The schools, stats-wise, are too close to call...some people will split hairs and say Davis is ranked higher, but honestly, it's nothing significant. The major difference comes from the atmosphere of the two schools, and no matter how people describe it here, you won't understand it until you go and visit the schools. Don't listen to people's generalizations until you go with an open mind and experience the schools for yourself and see how you like them. My advice would be to take the time to visit each school for more than a day and to make sure you go when school is in session so you understand what a day in the life of a uci or ucd student is like.</p>
<p>My personal choice was Davis though (i was choosing between the two schools myself)</p>
<p>I made the same choice last year and ended up choosing UCD. Then again, I grew up in Irvine, so I was wanting to leave :)</p>
<p>What really helped me to decide was visiting the campus. I definitely recommend going to the accepted student day. Keep in mind that Spring Break starts tomorrow, so for the next week both campuses will be kind of dead.</p>
<p>I would pick Davis just because I heard they got a pretty good bio stuff over there. My friend also went there and said a lot of good things about the school.</p>
<p>UC Irvine has grown from a commuter campus into a campus in the middle of a major metropolitan area. However, it still has a mix of the LA/Orange County laid-back attitude and the downtown LA succeed-at-all-costs (similar to NY) approach. Mostly, it's fairly laid-back though--as those who go there and refer to it as University of California, Newport Beach can attest.</p>
<p>UC Davis, however, is still in the middle of cow fields--but has a nice mall and is only a short drive from either the Napa Valley (going west) or state capitol of Sacramento (going east). </p>
<p>The fact is that UC Davis is more about what can be done on campus, though--while UC Irvine is more about what can be done off-campus. So do you want a limited choice, but close-knit group--or do you want an unlimited choice, but not as close-knit, more independent minded place.</p>
<p>Hope this helps--and good luck with your choice.</p>