<p>Although I sent in my SIR to UCLA two weeks ago, I just got accepted to Columbia University from the waitlist and now I have up until this Friday to send in my SIR for them, which costs $500. x_X</p>
<p>Even though I am fortunate to be accepted there, I still do not know whether I should go to Columbia or stay with UCLA.</p>
<p>Reasons why I am reluctant to go to Columbia:
- I've never visited the campus before; I've never went to NYC before in my life.
- If I make the wrong decision and withdraw from the school after submitting my SIR, I will lose $500.
- I have no idea how the people are there or if I am comfortable with the campus or not. </p>
<p>Reasons why I want to go to Columbia:
- Better opportunities for internships in NYC; more chances to go abroad
- Smaller student body and smaller faculty-to-student ratio
- Guaranteed 4-year dorming as either single or double
- Connections with study abroad programs at Oxford and Cambridge University</p>
<p>Reasons why I do not want to go to UCLA:
- Very difficult to get classes, especially with the waiting lists and priorities and the 30,000+ student body who also need to take the same classes
- Not guaranteed 4-year dorming; many triples </p>
<p>Reasons why I would stay with UCLA:
- My friends are there
- I know the campus pretty well and have visited several times before and am completely in love with it
- Close by to home so my parent will not worry as much
- I am pretty sure that I feel comfortable in the UCLA setting</p>
<p>I got into Columbia and wasn't able to go due to some financial reasons & parental units. Columbia is a damn amazing school, but there's red-tape and bureaucracy there as well. I love both schools - although I don't know that much about Columbia- the food in the dorms is terrible, but there's so many other places to go in the city. </p>
<p>Pros:</p>
<p>Live in the city
East Coast Culture
Ivy League (better if you plan on staying on the East Coast)
Living situation- John Jay and Carmen are both nice, and comparable to living situations here (you'll get more space there though)
Internships (for certain fields)
Distance (Get away, challenge yourself in a foreign environment)</p>
<p>Cons: </p>
<p>Sports teams (If you loved cheering at high school football/basketball games, and think you'll miss it, come here, since Columbia sports aren't all too great)
Price
Weather (Snow vs Sun)
Distance (for me at least, I would've only been able to come home twice a year)</p>
<p>You should think about what field you want to pursue as well - great people have come from both schools, it's just a matter of preference. At the end of the day though, it's just a matter of what YOU make of things and how you create your own college experience.</p>
<p>Thanks Deuces. Columbia would be better for my major (International Relations) but then this is just undergraduate education so I'm not sure if I should care so much where I should go now.</p>
<p>you're right about the difficulty of getting classes, especially with an interdepartmental major. when you need to take classes in various departments, but priority is given to students actually in those departments, things get a bit annoying. but just because there are 30k people here does not mean you are competing with ALL of them for the same classes!</p>
<p>also, about housing. trust me, you won't want dorms all four years. and if you do, there are ways to get a 4th year (RA, work for housing, etc). and while most first-years are in triples, it's really not as bad as it seems, except for the usual horror stories which occur at any school. most students triple for one year, double for another, and then move out to the apartments.</p>
<p>it would be pretty damn scary to SIR to a school sight unseen, IMO. just because it's columbia doesn't mean you should pick it. and going across the country is really far, and not everyone is cut out for it. if you're comfortable here at UCLA, then don't ignore that. :)</p>
<p>My S's graduating from Columbia and has loved it, and my daughter went to UCLA. They both have their advantages. In terms of going abroad, I think that the UCs offer the best opportunities in the country. Education Abroad is in about 28 countries and it's a wonderful program. My daughter spent a year in Italy, at the same cost as going to a UC. </p>
<p>That said, you might look at the class sizes at Columbia vs UCLA. You can look at the Columbia bulletin online and see the actual enrollments. In terms of International Relations, Columbia's location in NYC means that a ton of world leaders appear on campus and that there are internships to be had in the city. My son has had more contact with professors than my daughter had at UCLA. I'm not saying that such contact is not possible at UCLA, but it may take more initiative on your part.</p>
<p>My S has fallen in love with NYC. He also really enjoyed the core curriculum. The core insures that first and second year students get some small discussion based classes. It's also a bonding experience, in that everyone is reading the same books at the same time. I think he's gotten an excellent education because of the core. </p>
<p>Because of the cost differential, we were fine with our daughter taking more than four years to graduate. We told our son that we'd only pay for four years at Columbia. His friends who went to UCLA are taking more time to explore and more than four years to graduate.</p>
<p>The campuses and the social life are different, as you know. My S has enjoyed the small size of the Columbia campus, where almost everyone lives in university housing for four years. It allows students to explore the city but have an oasis when they don't want to deal with the city. He is five minutes from all his classes and runs into people he knows all the time. My daughter lived in apartments off campus after freshman year. She liked that, enjoyed cooking, and lived in buildings that had a lot of students. Different strokes for different folks.</p>
<p>If finances are not an issue, then it is about where you can see yourself taking advantage of the opportunities each presents. Hope that helps.</p>
<p>Thanks sac, your words have been very helpful to me; for me, I am not sure about finances because I do not get my aid packet until tomorrow from Columbia. With UCLA, it is affordable; but with Columbia I do not know. I qualify for financial aid so I will see how much I get. But the way you present both schools make it much more difficult to choose between them but makes the decision worthwhile because of the unique environments and opportunities they offer. I know I cannot go wrong with either school but which one to choose is still something I need to ponder....and hopefully make up my mind by Friday.</p>
<p>There's a huge difference in the people too, btw. The people on the west coast truly are much more laid-back than those on the EC (and this is from someone who has traveled at-length on the EC). The people on the EC tend to be more abrupt, business-minded, etc. The WC is more relaxation-oriented. Doesn't mean there's a right or wrong to either one, it just depends on whether you like the busy feeling, or the more laid-back one. I have a friend who grew up in SoCal and is now at Columbia, and she loves it; however, to this day she maintains that UCLA was the hardest school to turn down--she says she misses the athletic atmosphere and school spirit. But, if that's not important to you, either one is a great choice. You obviously can't go wrong.</p>
<p>I'm inclined to suggest you go to Columbia, but one thing I'll say is that it's probably EASIER to go abroad from a UC. EAP (Education Abroad Program) is one of the best things about the UC system.</p>
<p>Except for weather and perhaps fit. Honestly, outside of our little circle here, it's unlikely that Columbia will matter much in the long-run to the OP. I just think it offers a great experience and great resources. But being a fool to choose UCLA? Nah. Only based on this site's metrics of what a school should offer.</p>
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one thing I'll say is that it's probably EASIER to go abroad from a UC. EAP (Education Abroad Program) is one of the best things about the UC system.
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<p>I agree with this. Not only does EAP offer many more countries, but it's easier to spend a whole year abroad from a UC than from Columbia with it's heavy core curriculum requirements.</p>
<p>As for the rest, while I think you're likelier to get a more personal experience at Columbia, I think there is also a great education to be had at UCLA. If all things are equal financially, choose the one that feels most like your learning style. (But don't pick on the basis of where your friends are. You'll make friends either place. Yes, the social style and pace are different on the East Coast. My California kid now talks so fast on the phone I can barely understand him. But he chose to go to NYC as a kind of challenge to himself and now hates to tear himself away.)</p>