UCLA vs. UCSD for pre-pharm

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

I got accepted for Biology at UCLA and Human Biology at UCSD and right now I’m planning on going down the pre-pharm track. UCLA has been my dream school for years now, but UCSD unexpectedly offered me a $20k ($5k/yr) Chancellor’s Scholarship with priority enrollment and other perks. Now, I’m currently torn on which school to attend.

Both schools have amazing bio programs from what I’ve gathered, and both similarly have intense competition. I’ve heard horror stories of the bio department at UCLA, from curves to insane competition from pre-med students. I’m an average student at best but I don’t want to have to sacrifice my social life to study 50 hours a week in order to keep up with the pre-med kids. So, how is the competition really at these schools? How hard is it to maintain a > 3.4 GPA if I study consistently around 3-4 hours per day and take initiatives? Is there any specific course that I should be wary of? I’ve also heard that it’s hard to get the classes you want at UCLA. This is where the priority enrollment perk at UCSD sounds appealing. But I have no clue if it’s actually true or not.

In terms of the school, I love Los Angeles and UCLA’s campus infinitely more than UCSD. I’ve heard far too many people say that UCSD is socially dead since everyone there is always so invested in studying and there’s no D1 sports which contributes to a lack of school spirit. But from someone who is familiar with these two schools, how is the social environment in both UCLA and UCSD? Is UCSD really socially dead or is it just another stereotype?

To me, I want to have a balance between a good GPA to get me into USC’s pharmacy school and a social life, but I’m also slightly wary of the inevitable debt I’m going to be in from grad school, so the scholarship money would be nice to help alleviate that obstacle. In almost all academic aspects, UCSD seems to be the logical choice, but I don’t know if I’ll truly be happy by throwing aside my dream school. Do you see the struggle I’m going through right now?

Can someone (preferably people who have experience with the bio department at UCLA or UCSD) please assist me with my decision? How are the people, classes, housing, location, social environment, and biology/research programs at these two schools? Pros and cons? Is the Chancellor’s Scholarship worth me passing up UCLA? What would you pick if you were in my position?

2

I don’t think that $20K should be the deciding factor when you choose a school. However “priority enrollment” is hard to pass on in big schools like these 2. The difference between the 2 schools in bio is negligible. UCSD may have slight edge over UCLA, due to the massive bio-tech industries in the surrounding area, (which means much better intern / job placement if you are in bio / pharma). If you think you can get a better GPA in one school over another, I’d say, forget about that. it’s like saying you can get a better GPA in Yale v.s Harvard for law school… each school has different measures when they admit you. It is true thou that UCSD does have much higher acceptance, as they accept you into School first --> College second --> Major last, that could’ve created a facade to many. This is not true in UCLA’s case (Major first!). But if you look at your specific major, the people surrounding you will be if not more or at least as competitive as the kids in UCLA for biology. And the undeclared majored ones are likely choosing other schools where they are admitted to their intended majors. That’s why you see UCSD’s yield rate is lower than UCLA’s. (IMO, it’s silly to choose paying for UC’s if you don’t know what you want to major in. CC is a much better choice.)

social environment is about what you want to involve or who you want to hang out. In any new environment, no one will knock on your door and drag you out, if you don’t want to. it’s true everywhere. for college, everyone parties.hopefully this gives you some insights.

3

Then your competition that wants to get into a Pharm program will be the ones admitted. But you’ll have those memories of the good times back in college to look back on. It’s all about deciding what really matters to you.

4

You’re NOT an average student at best. Lol.

You’re like top 1% of your class!

<<<
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 670 CR 700 W 740 M
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 670 Math II, 670 U.S History, 800 Chinese w/ Listening
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92
UC GPA: 4.23
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/437
ELC?: Yes
AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5), Calc AB (4), U.S History (5), Chemistry (2), English Lang. (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Lit, AP U.S Gov, AP Studio Art 2D, AP Art History, AP Psych
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Honor

Subjective:
Extracurriculars: Art, Link Crew, clubs, honestly nothing special
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: I volunteer as a math tutor (3 years), volunteered at a library, community service in clubs
Personal Statement: Decent. Wrote about family and personal struggles.

Other:
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major : Biology
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Chinese-American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: < 30k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): First-gen, low-income


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OK…you’re low income. I would suggest that you take that $5k per year because it may either mean less loans needed, or less pressure on your parents to pay for things that they can’t afford.

$5k per year may not seem like much to some here on CC, but for a low income family, it’s a lot.

5

After doing some research and gaining some insight from people on CC, I’m leaning towards UCSD, solely for the priority enrollment and research opportunities. Just still having doubts about whether or not I’m going to be happy there, though. Hoping Triton Day will help me make my decision.

Of course, I’m still up for more insight from any of you helpful people!

6

whichever college you decide to go, I would definitely go spending a day on each campus and talk to the students… both schools will have some of the brightest kids you’ve ever imagined, afterall how many people want to leave SoCal?

7

I think UCSD is a very good choice if you’re getting $5k more per year in “free money”. For a low income family, that is significant.

8

Hi! So I’m a Biochemistry & Cell Biology major (also pre-pharmacy!) at UCSD, and I can try and give you some perspective.

In regards to being pre-pharmacy, UCSD has a pre-pharmacy society that provides meetings with pharm schools, information about jobs/volunteer/research opportunities, etc. I’m sure UCLA has something similar, but it’s really helpful that UCSD has a professional pharmacy school on campus. I’ve talked to some of the students and admissions counselors there, and that’s helped a lot.

When it comes to registering for classes, priority enrollment will SAVE YOUR LIFE. Usually, class registration is based on how many units you’ve accumulated; I came to UCSD with sophomore status from AP credit and I still have trouble getting all the classes I need. I can’t imagine UCLA is any different, so having priority enrollment at UCSD will help you exponentially. Also, both schools are pretty competitive academically so no matter which school you go to, you’ll need to study a lot, especially since both schools are on the quarter system.

As far as the socially dead reputation goes, I don’t think it’s true. Obviously UCSD doesn’t have a football team or D1 sports (although there was a vote last year to fund UCSD’s athletic programs to become D1 in the next couple years), but there are a lot of organizations on campus you can get involved with and meet tons of new people! I think UCSD is unique in that it’s just a lot more chill than other college campuses, but if you want a social life, you can find your people.

If you’re interested in hearing about housing or food, it really depends on what college you’re in since every college has different housing and its own dining hall. I’m in Warren and the food sucks and dorms are smaller than most other colleges. That shouldn’t be the deciding factor in which school you choose, though. And there’s definitely better food around UCSD, you just have to walk for it. Side note, one thing I noticed when coming to UCSD is how big it is. Don’t underestimate how long it will take you to get to class. Warren to Revelle is about a mile, and all my classes are in Revelle as a Bio major, so that’s a bit of a con.

When it comes down to it, it’s all about what feels right for you. Both are fantastic options, and I know you seem more drawn to UCLA, but I just want to share with you that UCSD is really great too! No matter where you end up, you can make your school your home and be happy :slight_smile: Good luck with your decision!

9

If you want to take it easy then avoid UCLA Pre-med environment (though I don’t believe UCSD is far off). If you desire to succeed and go for medicine/pharmacy in future, you need to compete and keep up a very high GPA (3.8+) which would not be feasible without a hard work in either school. I am not exaggerating at all. My daughter is a pre-med student in UCLA with a Regents scholarship and if you think that means she has an easy life, then you are completely wrong (though I agree that registration priority makes it more tolerable).

10

After hearing from many of you and gaining more insight on both schools, I’ve submitted my SIR for UCSD! Thank you to everyone who assisted me with my decision!

11

Great decision! Congrats and best wishes to you from a UCSD Bio/UCSF Medicine alumnus.