So far, I’ve been admitted for SLO and UCD, but waitlisted by UCSD and UCI. Under the hypothetical situation (praying this happens) that I get off the waitlist for UCI and or UCSD, is there going to be large difference in the quality of education that I would be getting compared to SLO or Davis? I understand that SLO is more for engineering or architecture, but is their biology program just as good? How would going to SLO affect my chances of getting internships or going to grad school in comparison to UCSD or UCI? And is there a large difference between the 3 UC’s I listed in terms of biology programs and internships for grad school? I’m just lost and unsure on my decision. I also understand that I should visit the campuses, but in terms of opportunity, how do they compare to each other?
Biology is a pretty standard curriculum at all these schools. Are you interested in any specific emphasis such as Ecology or Cell Biology since there may be a differences based on your emphasis?
I would compare the curriculums of each schools program, differences in costs if Grad school is being considered and the social aspects of each. All will contribute to your success so it is up to you to find your “fit”. All are great options and you cannot go wrong academically by selecting any of these options.
If you get off the waitlist for UCSD, you are likely to get in as undeclared, rather than with direct admission to biology, which is a capacity-limited major. Then you would have to face another admission process to get into the biology major: https://biology.ucsd.edu/education/undergrad/admission/capped-major.html#Non-Biology-Majors
If you get off the waitlist for UCI, you may also need to fulfill some requirements to get into the biology major after enrolling: http://changeofmajor.uci.edu/francisco-j-ayala-school-of-biological-sciences/
I am interested in cell biology right now, but I’m not sure yet so I would probably prefer going a more broad route for now in terms of bio.
How is the program compared to other colleges like UCSD and UCI? Because of the smaller town for SLO, would I have even more difficulty finding experience in the Biology field via internships compared to UCI and UCSD? Or would lab work also be difficult to find at SLO? I am not sure if I would be trying to get work right after finishing undergrad due to the little opportunity without grad school, so would grad schools look at SLO as “lower” than a UC like Irvine or San Diego?
During the school year students are more likely to have a job working in a lab on campus then one out in the community. For summer jobs in the sciences students try and find a gig at places like the NIH although of course these are not going to be easy to come by. You might want to see if you can find any current students and ask them about how hard it is to get jobs and will have some campus.
As far as that grad degree goes, spend a few minutes looking up PhD glut online. The applications are in mixed bag for you. It means many colleges are going to have professors that attended top schools as they try and find a job anywhere they can. A key to getting into grad school is strong recs from your professors so if you do the aforementioned well I have work as well as get to know some profs during office hours then you will be a strong candidate no matter where your undergraduate degree is from.