I was admitted for Cal Poly’s Ethnic studies bc Early Childhood Studies was not available for undergrad applicants. I am not allowed to switch until (i believe) sophomore year, and I already spoke to someone and they said it’s an easy switch because they are in the same department. UCR, I got accepted to the Liberal Arts program. For a career I want to be a Child Life Specialist/ Psychologist and open my own CDC. Please help, I’m so conflicted!
Your question got me curious and I started looking at these two majors online. If you are talking about the elementary education program at UCR, it is called Liberal Studies and it helps students move toward credentials to teach in elementary schools. UCR is a great university that will give you a solid all-around education. The program at Cal Poly, according to the website, is new and that is why they are not taking first-year students.They are offering themajor at first only to those who are ready to do upper-division courses (in the major). But it does sound like you should be able to move into it if you keep your grades up. That program looks to be more focused on very early education (pre-school through age 8) A lot of the courses listed focus on learning about early childhood. So if you really want to work in early childhood, that program will be more relevant to your interests. If you’re not sure, then give serious consideration to UC Riverside, which is an excellent university – although with the cost difference, make sure you can afford it without taking out a lot more loans. Hope this helps.