<p>So, I've narrowed my college search down to these two schools, and I am having an extremely hard time deciding which to attend. I'm trying to make a pro-con list, and I'm visiting UC Davis tomorrow (I was there once four year ago, but I barely remember it.) If you have any comments or would like to reinforce/dispel anything below, that would be greatly appreciated. </p>
<p>UC Davis:</p>
<p>Pros:
Closer to home (plus, I'm used to NorCal weather)
Very green campus (from what I can see in pictures, lots of trees, lawns, etc.)
Tight knit community between campus and town
More sober activities than UCSB
Reminds me a lot of my home town (this could be considered a con; I haven't decided yet)
Possibly more school spirit and better sports
From what I can tell, less and more flexible GEs</p>
<p>Cons:
Can get colder/rainier than UCSB (although I do enjoy the occasional rain, it might be a bit much at Davis)
More people go home on weekends than at UCSB (I eliminated UCSD because the campus is completely dead on weekends)
Stayed in the suites for a summer camp about four years ago and hated them; I would much rather be in a res hall</p>
<p>UCSB:</p>
<p>Pros:
Amazing weather year round
Right by the beach (although I'm more of a forest person, so being by the beach for four years might not suit me)
Honors (priority registration; very big perk)
Very upbeat and lively campus
First college I ever toured, and I immediately wanted to go there (could have been the initial excitement of preparing for college)
More variety and choice of dorms</p>
<p>Cons:
Party school (I don't drink, and I prefer having friends who also don't or at least rarely do)
Possibly less sober activities to do off campus
More of a "popular" crowd drawn to this school; I don't know how well I'll fit in (I'm picturing bros, which is basically the opposite of me)
Probably do not want to live in Isla Vista (but I know there are other areas to live off-campus)
Possibly less of an accepting/welcoming campus, since everyone seems like the smart but popular people from high school</p>
<p>Again, my Pro and Con list is based off of very uneducated assumptions I have made. Please feel free to correct (or build upon) anything I've said above. This is a huge decision for me. Thank you!</p>
<p>When I was in spring insight for SB people told me it’s pretty windy daily rather than just sunshine. People go home more in Davis because in SB everyone lives in IV. So if you think of it that way, SB student’s aren’t living on campus they’re commuting. Majority of the nightlife is located in IV and during some point you’ll find yourself going to IV. As for the honors program I guess that’s a perk for first year, but have in mind that anyone can sign up for the honors program after their freshmen year and sophomore year if they maintain a 3.5+. So is it worth going to a school for first choice classes? Not really because you can be in the honors program after freshmen year. </p>
<p>Davis has 23 Division 1 sports and that’s kind of amazing along with it’s biggest student run school spirit in the nation - Aggie Pack. </p>
<p>You will find floormates who doesn’t drink just like you, but it’s kind of intimidating knowing that everyone will be in IV partying. Everyone in SB seemed pretty fit and it kind of seemed like I wouldn’t fit it either… </p>
<p>The Greek life is strong in both, but from first hand experience I noticed the greek life in SB is more party focused and hazing while Davis’ partook in community service activites. Davis frats and soro’s were selling food and drinks helping students during open house while SB had 1 or 2 soro’s handing out flyers. </p>
<p>Davis is the bike central so you should invest in a bike. This goes to SB as well, so both schools you’ll need a bike. Which is a good thing because freshmen 15 is haunting haha. </p>
<p>I’ve told SB dorm food is “okay” and students’ prefer going to IV for Freebirds, etc. Davis food is known to be very good and everything is cooked in front of you.</p>
<p>Maybe SB’s party scene is over-hyped… I don’t know but there are many sites related to the party scene and it’s intimidating…</p>
<p>I was actually going through the same choice and decided to go with SB but that was mainly because I’m an engineering major and SB is ranked 2nd in UC’s for their engineering dept. so my best advice would be to see what resources they can give you for your major.
I’m not a partier at all and I’ve spent a lot of time in SB (sister went, two cousins go) and really, unless your looking for a party it’s not something that affects you. if you live in IV it can but SB has plenty of apartments that arent in IV and are really nice, apts in IV tend to be small so my sister chose to get housing with the university and I liked them. they actaully finished making more last year, I believe.
Your trip to Davis will probably tell you more than what anyone can on this page so just get a feel for it. And as for sports this was SBs second time in a row going to march madness :)</p>
<p>SB’s engineering program is really good though. If it had environmental engineering, I would have picked SB but it only has Mechanical engineering and apparently it’s the hardest thing in SB… So I got intimidated & I found out the environmental program in SB isn’t nearly strong as Davis’. So yeah, looking at the academics may help your decision like me. & SB throws tortillas in sport games.</p>
<p>Just an update: I visited Davis today and absolutely loved it, and it is basically making my decision even more difficult. </p>
<p>Simply put, I feel like Davis is more of a picturesque college town experience, whereas UCSB is more of an exciting and beautiful place to go to college. I really like the town of Davis; the buildings are all so quaint and the town is so friendly. I really like the palm trees and laid-back (even more so than Davis, in my opinion) atmosphere at UCSB. If anyone has anything else to add, it would be greatly appreciated. I’ve read through the archives and nothing has really helped sway my opinion. I only have 5 days to decide!! This is such a hard decision.</p>
<p>@Lemon: I actually just read your thread a little while ago haha. I feel like at this point I’m decided less about where I’ll like more, and more about where I’m more willing to give up. Either way, it’s going to be tough giving up the other school. There are aspects of both schools that I absolutely love that the other does not have. Thanks for the input :)</p>
<p>Im in the situation. We only have till sunday. Difference here is I live in texas and I am trying to go to a school that is the opposite of texas. I want liberal and accepting. Im a black lesbian and tho I was “popular”(basing this off the fact I was the senior class pres. which is a popularity contest) I was constantly fighting my school, community, and peers on civil rights. </p>
<p>My question, is UCSB filled with like “valley girls” and “jersey shore” type people? Thats the image I get when reading about it. </p>
<p>Also Davis seems to be very close in geographical makeup to Texas A&M (small town, agg school) but I wonder does that parallel necessarily mean that UC Davis is a racist conservative school like A&M? </p>
<p>Please dont take offense to anything in this post, Im just being blunt as I dont have much more time to decide and I am so eager to escape the unjust ideals that are prevalent in the south.</p>
<p>@decten: I’m glad I ruled out Davis based on its location (It’s super far from where I live, like an 8 hour drive) or else I would be in your exact same position. Good luck! :)</p>
<p>@taylor: Yes there are “valley girls” in SB but they are everywhere. I had the exact same concerns as to the type of people attending SB but after visiting first hand I saw that “valley girls” really only composed a portion of the population. The majority of the people are down to earth and laid back. As to your concerns of being accepted, I find that most people of our generation in California are accepting of gay people. Either Davis or SB is a good choice. Also, I know there is gay-friendly housing at SB! Not sure about Davis.</p>
<p>I noticed UCSB is very big on racial and gender equality, along with awareness for gays, bisexual, and lesbians. There are many queer events on campus to promote acceptance and in all honesty, the majority of the people are very accepting and even support such. Please do not be discourage to come here because of that reason.</p>
<p>For OP, your pros and cons list looks great, you should weigh it now and decide. Good luck</p>
<p>@taylor: I agree with confused. I would say a vast majority of Californians under 30 are liberal and accepting. Once you get to a higher tier University like Davis or UCSB, I would say homophobes are pretty hard to come by.</p>
<p>And as far as UCSB having “Jersey Shore” type people, I wouldn’t say so. When I toured, I definitely saw some bros and valley girls, but I saw just as many casual beachy type people as well. But I will say that Davis seemed less conformational to me; there seemed to be a wider variety of people, outfits, attitudes, etc.</p>
<p>Awesome thank you so much for the insight. Im extremely worried about homophobia and just close minded racist. I grew up in a small town in Texas where it is so common and it really made highschool tough for me. I think im going to accept my admission at UCSB! Im so excited!</p>