<p>Is anyone else doing a comparison on these 2 schools - if so, I'd like to hear back about how you're going about making the decision. Especially if you're considering stuff like the social aspects and the academics and less about the sports program comparison and the actual look of the campus. Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>I had the same question a few weeks ago. I decided to go to ucf because of the location and the amount of money i would save not having to worry about housing and food (living at home). I noticed that the ucf campus was not as populated on weekends and holidays as fsu though.</p>
<p>Yeah i got accepted to both .. and i pretty sure ima go to UCF rather than FSU. I live in a small country town called Fort White FL which is about 30miles from gainesville.. I am originally from New York though, so when i moved down here it was a big culture shock. There is like nothing to do.. even in Gainesville..I'm so used to living in bigger cities and i heard Tallahassee is like Gainesville (a college town/football/party) with the two universities there..So i wanna go down to the bigger city Orlando and see how i like it.. if i dont i can always transfer in two years.. But UCF also offered me some sort of pegasus bronze scholarship too. Can any1 tell me what that is?</p>
<p>I'm also trying to decide between the two. Will probably attend FSU if they accept me, since it's much better academically and harder to get into. UCF has a nice campus but still feels too much like a commuter school. That's why the campus doesnt seem populated during the weekends.</p>
<p>FSU gives you a true college experience. College town, better academics, football, parties, etc..
Also, Tallahassee and Gainesville are nothing alike. Gainesville has UF and nothing else. Tallahassee is the state capital which happens to have 2 major universities.</p>
<p>well FSU is a much older school, that's why it has your traditional college experience but I wouldn't necessarily say it's better. Everyone is different and you have to consider what's best for you. Because of money, distance from home (I'm from Miami btw) and other factors, I chose UCF over UF. FSU is a great school academically but its not miles ahead of UCF. UCF is actually breathing down FSU's neck when it comes to SAT scores and other academics. That says a lot considering that FSU is about 110 years older than UCF. </p>
<p>Don't look too much into the sports and parties, I didn't or else UF was the clear choice. Consider the campus itself, any activities they offer, what major you want to study, money, and other things. good luck in making your choice!</p>
<p>Actually, FSU is miles ahead of UCF, academically. All you have to do is look at the rankings and stats. FSU is ranked as a Tier 1 school. UCF is a bottom tier 3 school, almost Tier 4. I also wouldn't say that UCF is "breathing down FSU's neck". The gap is pretty considerable, especially when you compare grad programs. I would like for UCF to at least catch up to USF one day. </p>
<p>I like UCF a lot, and I think it's a great school. That's why it's one of my top choices. UCF has a lot to offer that some other schools can't. But let's not get carried away about it's academics. FSU is a top 50 public university, UCF is not even ranked.
Also,
FSU= National University
UCF= Regional University</p>
<p>Of course they are not on the same page just yet. But considering UCF is 110 years younger than FSU, it is catching up. FSU has been around for about 150 years so obviously it has more history and time to become a nationally ranked university. It would be amazing if UCF got ranked in the same level in the short time it's been around, near impossible really lol. </p>
<p>You have to aslo consider what area you want to study. For instance, I'm going into industrial engineering. UCF's engineering program is considered one of the best in the state, probably behind only UF's. I, however, turned down UF because they did not offer me any money to help pay for dorms. SO there are many things you have to consider.</p>
<p>I was going to attend UCF starting summer semester even though I initially hadn't applied for summer session. Now I got accepted to FSU for the fall semester and I'm really confused about what to do. Both schools have the program I'm interested in now but I know I may want to explore some other areas. </p>
<p>I like that UCF is in Orlando. But I've heard that it's hard to get the classes you need at UCF and that they tend to be very large, especially in first few years. I'm not going to be in
Honors so I won't get those smaller classes. ANy thoughts?</p>
<p>i think u should probably just weigh all the pros and cons that u can think of. however, even though class size is always something important, there really isn't much of a difference here. UCF is the 5th largest college in the country, but FSU is pretty big as well. You can still expect large class sizes for your first few years of basic classes. The only way to get smaller classes would be through the honors college for each of them or by going to a small liberal arts college instead of a big state university. I would try to ignore this aspect for now and just look at all the other factors of each college like location, what they offer you in terms of majors, scholarships, student activities, etc.</p>
<p>I urge you to revisit both those schools during spring break. FSU and UCF are not on spring break so you will be able to see both campuses in action. It is all about what is right for YOU. I would not base your decision on starting Fall or summer though, that really, in the grand scheme of your life is not going to matter. My daughter, a UCF freshman, was between UCF and FSU last year and choose UCF but for very individual reasons (closeness to home, she liked the modern/newness of the campus, distance to her sister at UF....among other reasons). I went with her to visit both school and was very impressed with both of them. FSU has a more traditional college feel to it. The campus is beautiful and sprawling. The academics are top notch, the weather and area feels more like...Georgia than where we live in South Florida. I loved the gothic-looking buildings at FSU and the school spirit that pervades the campus. My child is VERY VERY happy at UCF and made the right choice for her but FSU is also a great choice. It has more academic and athletic recognition on a national level. My child didn't care about that, she picked UCF because she felt more at home on the campus...it had more of her "type" of people (I am thinking that she felt it had more South Floridians and city types and FSU had a greater percentage of "small town" types but I am not sure really what she meant by that). I have many friends whose kids LOVE FSU, you will be happy whereever you chose if you chose the school for the right reasons. </p>
<p>GO REVISIT BOTH!</p>
<p>I just reread the OP's post about concerns over class sizes. YES, UCF had many freshman classes that are huge. Not all are huge though. English classes tend to be small at about 27 students each, History classes average about 52 but my daughter's Chemistry class has about 450 kids in the lecture and her Biology class is about the same. We looked at her potential classes for next Fall and saw that her nutrition class is 100 kids but her public communications class (SPC1608 is required of most majors) can be 50- 250 depending on which section she gets into. Yes, there is big variation and she happens to have had quite a few massive lectures (esp. the sciences). When you revisit FSU, ask about their class sizes.</p>
<p>UCF is now tier 1 (two tiers up from last year) and is ranked about 70 spaces away from fsu. however, ucf is also much younger and is now just becoming well established. I have heard a lot of great things about both schools and am also trying to decide where to go. </p>
<p>UCF pros:
I have been accepted
Closer to home (3 hrs)
Amazing campus
Good pre med/bio (my major)
Nice Dorms
Budding sports teams (football and basketball have both been awesome this year)
Cons:
Not as well established
may or may not have as good of a rep as fsu, only time will tell</p>
<p>FSU Pros:
Nice Campus
well established
traditional college experience</p>
<p>Cons:
long haul away (6 hrs)
old campus/facilities
tally.
not sure i will get accepted, but i think i will based on ppl who i know got in last month</p>
<p>Old campus does not mean old facilities. Have you visited the new Biological Science building? The new Chemistry building? The new Psychology building? Have you seen the dorms that are historic on the outside but gutted on the inside and redone from the ground up? </p>
<p>And UCF did not exactly jump from tier 3 to tier one, rather USNWR redid their ranking criteria. </p>
<p>Visit and make a decision based on fit.</p>
I got accepted into both UCF and FSU and my older sister went to FSU so I thought it was necessary that I also go there. She was in Greek Life, so I joined also. Yes, FSU is a great school, the campus is beautiful and the professors (so far, but I’m only a freshman) have been great. But soon after getting here (from Orlando) I quickly found that this wasn’t the place for me. Greek Life is NOTHING like what people say it is I promise, and although I know being in a sorority doesn’t define your college experience, I looked into going back home and enrolling in UCF and I’m excited about it. FSU may be great but that whole “college experience” was all too much at once and I began to hate it here. My advice to anyone choosing between the two schools would be to never let other people decide for you. Just do what you think is right in your gut cause odds are that’ll be the best choice. Take if from someone that’s stubbled for a year here, being closer to home is not as bad as people make it out to be.
struggled*
We’re wrestling with this decision for our son who has been accepted to both and is waiting to hear from UF.
He’s a smart kid but kind of lazy and disorganized, (much like his Dad was until he got to college). He’s a really good kid and never gets into trouble, but my wife and I almost have to micro-manage him (which I know now has been a mistake) and he’s immature for an 18 year old. My wife is grudgingly OK with letting him go to FSU (or UF) which are 4 and 6 hrs away from where we live. If I had my way I’d have him live at home and go to FAU for a year but my wife is worried he’ll just coast through that and not grow up at all.
He plans on being pre-Pharm and my doctor friends tell me that it’s his grades and PCAT score that will determine whether or not he gets into Pharm school, not whether he goes to UCF or FSU.
Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Florida Dad61
@FloridaDad61 That’s a tough question…putting aside any merit (UCF is more likely to offer merit scholarships)…
He’s likely going to major in Biology? Both schools would be fine (unlike engineering, for example, where UCF is much stronger). It really comes down to FSU having a much lower student to faculty ratio, and being a bit better funded.
If all else is equal, go with FSU.
He’s challenge will be his work ethic (I know that was mine the first 2 or 3 years of college!). He’ll need to keep his GPA high, or he’ll not make it into a Pharm program. Make sure he takes advantage of tutoring, on day one. Both schools have Study Edge (last year, my daughter used them at UF to good effect), so you may want to take a look into using them. He should also have a back-up plan, incase his grades do suffer a bit. Perhaps majoring in something other than Biology.
If he gets accepted into UF? UF is even more competitive (it sometimes feels like every freshman is a pre-med/engineering student, though that changes by the 2nd year…), but it has more resources and would be a better fall back plan if he doesn’t get into Pharm school.