UCLA vs. USC

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Los Angeles
41

<p>I just graduated from UCLA and am currently at William and Mary Law School (VA)... More students apply to UCLA than to any other school in the nation (Harvard and other Ivies included)... for class of 2005 (me) admits, 56,000 students applied... Now the number is closer to 75,000 or 100,000... This is an incredibly large amount of students... That is why the school's admissions are so tough (or "random" as someone eloquently put it)... Had I applied just one year later I most probably would have been denied admission (my SAT was 1350 [old scale] and my GPA from one of Cali's best private HS' was 3.95)... Residents definitely have a better shot, but nothing is assured... </p>

<p>To give perspective on USC (albeit only from the perspective of someone familiar with post graduate Law School aspirations): I was accepted into eleven of 25 Law Schools I applied to as a senior at UCLA ('04-'05): One of these Law Schools was USC Law (#18) and one was University of Chicago (#6) [I decided on W&M because they too are public, and I tend to think public institutions are more well regarded by potential grad school admit staff and employers- if simply because publics graduate more students, and hence those who sit on grad school admit boards and hire you are more likely to have graduated from a public university]... the admit staff at both of these private Law Schools personally told me and others from UCLA that they look with special reverence on a UCLA degree (similar to the way they look at a Harvard or Yale degree)... I didnt believe this, but was told this personally...</p>

<p>As a UCLA grad, I am biased. However I say hands down goto UCLA if you can get in... its sort of like a golden ticket...lol</p>

42

<p>to comment on chghio83's post...</p>

<p>UCLA actually doesnt get THAT many applicants. it hovers around 45,000 a year.. still an impressive number and still the biggest number applicants i think, and definitely bigger than many of the ivies. and also definitely harder to get into every year, although that can be said for many top colleges. </p>

<p>as for randomness, the reason why people complain is because they think they can get into UCLA since it's a public school. but it's also a top school, so it's just as random as the ivy league colleges. </p>

<p>as for UCLA being held with a "special reverence"... well, ill try to put it in a way from what i understand. out in the west coast, we know a lot more about USC in comparison to UCLA. but that's not the same in other parts of the country. some people still think we're talking about university of south carolina. also, UCLA's science and liberal arts graduate programs are very well respected. i think that's where most of the country outside of california draws its respect and name-recognition of UCLA. UCLAri had mentioned that the people in DC told him the same thing about UCLA.</p>

43

<p>lol USC = university of southern carolina :)</p>

44

<p>
[quote]
UCLA admitted 11,338 prospective freshmen for fall 2005 from among 42,207 applicants, making UCLA once again the most popular university in the country.

[/quote]
</p>

<p><a href="http://www.uclanews.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6057%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.uclanews.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=6057&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>UCLA gets more applicants each year than any other in the country.</p>

45

<p>USC = University of South Carolina
U$C = University of Southern California</p>

46

<p>Did you just say Southern Carolina, Westow?</p>

47

<p>LOL come on now, carolina is one state. it's not north carolina panthers or south carolina panthers, it's The Carolina Panthers! (NFL) ;)</p>

48

<p>hahaha, ok points for creativity.</p>

49

<p>GO BRUINS!!!! I love UCLA! That's all I have to say!</p>

50

<p>Hail to the hills of Westwood,
To the mighty sea below...</p>

<p>...</p>

<p>I forgot the rest of it. :rolleyes:</p>

51

<p>hey i forgot the UCLA fight song. guess im in the same boat.</p>

52

<p>I like this one...</p>

<p>We are the mighty Bruins
The best team in the West
We're marching on to victory to conquer all the rest
We are the mighty Bruins
Triumphant evermore
And you can hear
From far and near
The might Bruin roar
(8 clap)
U...C...L....A
UCLA, fight, fight, fight!</p>

53

<p>USC> UCLA
Just my opinion but what is the reason we go to college. To enlighten ourselves, gain a unique perspective about our environment, become valuable citizens, comon thats a bunch of bs and you know it. We go to college to get a job and thats about it, and gain some life experience while were there, but not to become some brilliant person who respects all disciplines and fields. Using this basis I beleive USC is a better school simply on the fact it provides better connections and a better opportunity to cash in on your college investment. Im an entering freshman for the class of 2009 at UCLA, and i believe UCLA does not offer the same opportunities USC does. There is no broad bruin alumni network, no Bruin bias on the same field as the Trojan ego, and most importantly UCLA lacks the inflated GPA standards that their crosstown rivals employ. And what does an employer look at when hiring beyond personality and qualification, he/she looks at alma mater and GPA, both of which have stronger numbers and fervor at USC. In all honesty im going to UCLA but i sure as hell wish i had applied to USC because college is an investment in your future and USC seems to have a much greater financial turnout than UCLA.<br>
PS for all the people who are going to say well UCLA is better ranked and has better programs who truly follows that crap year to year, do you really think the difference between the 25th and 30th ranked institution is going to make a differnece in an interview, no its all about connections and who you know.</p>

54

<p>Well obviously, all you care about your future is making money. Don't worry it's not like you WON'T get a job after graduating from UCLA. Beside many students go on to grad school and perhaps you should consider USC as your grad school. It's a win-win situation for you. So just lighten up or you'll be a self-loathing person for the next four years.</p>

55

<p>yeah what do you care about making a difference in the world, saving the environment, curing hunger, give me a break westow quite being so damn sentimental. Im not all about money but i feel if im going to pay thousands of dollars over four years i would want the best investment.</p>

56

<p>

If that's your outlook to have about the endless possibilities and opportunities that the college years can provide, I think you'd be even less of a match for USC, whose adherents emphasize being "well-rounded" and enjoying the "complete college experience". No matter which school you go to... it's up to you to form lifelong connections, and do networking at the face-to-face level to get your foot in the door, whether it's a job or grad school. College is what you make of it!</p>

57

<p>sorry ucla_fresh if u think u can get a job with ur pessimistic attitude then go ahead. and anyways ur job can certainly make a difference about changing the world, whether u are a politician or scientist. sure not EVERYONE who has a job contributes to helping make a difference but a selected few does and others in indirect ways. </p>

<p>hey man u know some jobs are all about dedicated to making the next discovery. im sorry u think jobs are not connected to the real life but it is.</p>

58

<p>ucla_fresh,</p>

<p>
[quote]
And what does an employer look at when hiring beyond personality and qualification, he/she looks at alma mater and GPA, both of which have stronger numbers and fervor at USC.

[/quote]

[quote]
do you really think the difference between the 25th and 30th ranked institution is going to make a differnece in an interview

[/quote]
</p>

<p>to be blunt, none of this matters. at the end of the day, (most) employers aren't dumb. they're going to pick the best person a.k.a. the person who can bring in the most money, and even that trumps connections. yes, connections do play a big role, but personal qualities and characteristics are bigger. when you go work or find an internship, you may be surprised by the alma mater of your fellow interns and co-workers, and your boss' alma mater too.
as for rankings, it's the USC people who always bring up how they're at #30, and UCLA people just defend that they're ranked higher, but (this is my opinion) i don't think UCLA people initially say "oh we're ranked higher than you!" since reputation takes a long time to build, a lot of people out there still think UCLA is a really good school and thus its students must be top-notch, and some still think USC is a bad school (think of the nicknames), although this is decreasing as USC improves. but i also contend that the rankings distort the gap between UCLA and USC, which should be a little wider than presented.
but again at the end of the day, none of this matters. </p>

<p>
[quote]
We go to college to get a job and thats about it, and gain some life experience while were there

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Some of us also go to college to prepare ourselves for grad school, and UCLA's numbers to grad school are almost always better than USC's across many fields. As for life experience, I hope many people who attend UCLA take away the concept that they must take the initiative to do things and to find things in this sink-or-swim environment. A smaller college may baby you and you might think that it's great everything is given to you, but you'll be in shock when you enter the real world and realize it's not like that. </p>

<p>
[quote]
I beleive USC is a better school simply on the fact it provides better connections

[/quote]
</p>

<p>hey, i won't deny that. but you know what, making connections means you pursuing them. in comparison to many of the top colleges out there, UCLA's connections are already really good, though not one of the best. think of UCLA's connections as "ivy" and USC's connections as "HYPSM." trust me, there's a lot of other colleges out there where connections dont exist at all. my point is, you have to make an effort to build up your network. UCLA's a great place to do this, but if you don't try, then no one's going to come to you. </p>

<p>
[quote]
and most importantly UCLA lacks the inflated GPA standards that their crosstown rivals employ.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>for entering into most jobs, GPA means little if anything at all. yup. and once you get hired, GPA means nothing. of course, this complaint is valid regarding grad schools, because they're the ones that actually care about GPA. but earning a good GPA at UCLA is respected by grad schools, and that's why UCLA outperforms USC when it comes to grad school placement.</p>

59

<p>on another note, not all UCLA students are out there to make money. some actually want to ... make a difference! GASP! </p>

<p>yes, Los Angeles Unified School District's favorite hiring spot is UCLA, and they even have a partnered teaching credential program with UCLA. seriously, it's not that these kids can't find a job, but it's because many of them came from not so fortunate backgrounds, and they want to give back by becoming teachers in schools of less fortunate backgrounds. i commend them for doing so. you can make fun of them for being poor all you want, but personal wealth is also sometimes a personal choice.
for you it may be different. you're the investment type. nothing wrong with that. but just because a higher concentration of USC students decide to pursue that than UCLA students by all means doesn't equate to you not getting a great return on your investment by going to UCLA. and many people know a top state school is a great investment.
but again, it's not about where you go to school. it's about YOU. research has shown that a student who can get into a top school but decides to go to a lesser-ranked school ends up being just as successful as his/her peers from that top school. it's really about you.</p>

<p>by the way, i think Texas A&M is better than Berkeley, since it has so much better connections!! who cares that A&M is ranked #60 and Berkeley is like #20 or whatever, it offers better connections and thus a better job!! by going to A&M, my GPA will be better, i get the inflated ego, a great alumni network... who cares about all that BS from berkeley saying we should be brilliant people who respect academic disciplines?! ;)</p>

60

<p>KFC4You,</p>

<p>I admire you a true bruin loving the place where you are, but the analogy with CAL/TAMU make little sense:)</p>

<p>Now get back to what I really disagree with you at.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Undergraduate ranking wise, the gap between USC and UCLA should be narrower (actually the gap is only 2 spots right now, can hardly be narrower), or USC may surpass UCLA, if you discounted the old stereotype (so-called reputation), long-established research reputation in UCLA's science displines, which have nothing (or little) to do with how good an undergraduae eduation is.</p></li>
<li><p>Grad school placement number should be examined. As far as I've known, not many USC students wanted, or had to do grad school to find a good job, or build a career. It is waste of time frankly I know it since I had been wasting a lot:( But if you do want to get into research, or academics, it is the only way. And in this category USC is catching up with UCLA (not up to par yet).</p></li>
<li><p>GPA matters, but not in every situation. No matter how smart a student you are (except for some professional majors), You will not contribute much to your future employer right away. You are just a damn rookie! Employers will look at a lot of things for your potential, and GPA is one of them.</p></li>
</ol>