UCR Vs. UCMerced

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I know there are previous threads around this site about this topic, but I just wanted to ask again.</p>

<p>I got accepted to both of these and I'm going to be majoring in Biology. I want to go to medical school afterwards.</p>

<p>Which school has a better biology program (so far, I'm assuming UC Riverside)?
Which school has better teachers? Campus life? Location? Housing? Etc. </p>

<p>Thank you (:</p>

2

<p>Which school has better biology program?

  • I would say UC Riverside. UC Merced is pretty new for their bio program.</p>

<p>Which school has better teachers?

  • They are both UC schools. nuff said…</p>

<p>Campus life?

  • students at both schools complain that there is NOTHING to do on the weekends, but if you have a car, ucr is a lot closer to LA and where the action is, whereas UCM just has the yosemite nearby. But it really depends on the people surrounding you. The ones you hang out could determine whether you could have a good campus life or not. But dorms are always fun.</p>

<p>Location?

  • They are both in the middle of nowhere actually lol. but UCR is closer to LA and San Diego, whereas UCM is closer to yosemite. If you like to go party in LA on friday nights or just go visit the beach in San Diego or New Port Beach, UCR would be a good fit for you. If you like the nature of yosemite, then UCM would be a good fit for you. But it’s always better to have a car if you want to have fun.</p>

<p>Housing?

  • Housing is pretty new at UCM. So they definitely have new and luxurious dorms and off-campus houses. UCR have some few old dorms but they have some new luxurious dorms as well. But I would personally go visit both schools to compare each dorm.</p>
3

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<p>You do not have to major in biology to do pre-med; you can take the pre-med courses alongside any major (as breadth / free electives if the major does not include those courses). Indeed, it may be better to major in something else, for better job and career possibilities if you do not get into medical school (job and career prospects for biology majors are poor at the bachelor’s level).</p>

4

<p>UC Riverside…is one of the oldest UC. Yet its abysmally ranked so low. </p>

<p>Merced is new. Michelle Obama I think came over to give a speech. It’s an auspicious start for Merced. Maybe it will get better over the years. You never know.</p>

<p>But it gets points for being new. So Merced > Riverside.</p>

5

<p>Merced should actually be better than Riverside for Biology, I think. Most Riverside students are Business majors but many, if not most, Merced students are Bio majors.</p>

<p>Riverside is actually pretty bad in terms of math/science/engineering. Most pre-med students typically pick a CSU alternative such as SDSU or SJSU.</p>