<p>i dunno i've been deliberating this for a couple days........lemme give you a little background im interested in political science and i know i want to major in that and go to grad school (law or intl. relations....)........I've been thinking would it really made a difference if I went to a prestigious UC (UC Berkeley or UCLA i am a CA resident) rather than going to a prestigious east coast school (UPenn, Columbia, UChicago if i I get accepted next year, which is highly questionable)......for me the only reason to go to one of those schools would be the networking availability at these schools and maybe a calmer environment but like UC berk. and UCLA are awesome campuses and awesome environments but is that networking really worth another 30,000 a year? Input and opinions would be awesome</p>
<p>You might want to go East for school, then go to law school in CA. You'd get a different experience, and be able to attend your in-state grad school.</p>
<p>It really depends on what you want from your udergraduate experience. I'm more of a smaller college type...so, even though I got into bigger schools, the LACs and small universities are a better fit. The idea is that if you concern yourself with what is a best fit, you'll do better and stay more involved...great when it comes time to apply to grad school.</p>
<p>If money is an issue, then UCLA or Berkeley are great options.</p>
<p>IB</p>
<p>i think ucla or ucb would be the best choice. it's really not worth it, if you plan to go to grad school attend the private ones for those.</p>
<p>isn't ucsd political science rated higher than ucla's?</p>
<p>liek0806: yea it is but i love ucla the ambiant and atmosphere there over ucsd (although san diego weather is heaven)</p>
<p>then go to ucberkeley or la. even though the networking might be stronger at the privates(i'm not sure), i don't think it's worth the extra cost. If you're a social person, you can network anywhere whether its at UCLA or UCB. Just because you attend a private school doesn't mean network will automatically come to you.</p>
<p>Either way once you go to grad school, the most important networks will come from there.</p>
<p>UCB and UCLA already have pretty strong alumni networks... :rolleyes:</p>
<p>In terms of grad school, it is more important to distinguish yourself academically and know your profs. Whether you go to prestegious Eastern U., U.C.'s, or "no name state," weak rec's will keep you out of grad/prof school. Admissions committees will take top candidates from no name state than less-than-stellar credentials from top college applicants.</p>
<p>The networking was good at Cal, it helped me a lot in my career, especially overseas. Not so much the alumni assoc. as much as teh people I've met and friends I've made while in school. If you have an interest in poli sci and IR, Cal is superior to the other schools (except maybe Columbia) in terms of international perspective and interactions. In terms of cultural access to Asia, Cal is tops in the country. That's something that's really valuable giving the huge economic and political role of Asia in our lifetime.</p>
<p>Slightly off topic, but if you are interested in PoliSci, consider Claremont McKenna as an alternative to the East Coast Ivies.</p>