UCSB Or UCD for TAG?

Transfer Students UC Transfers
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I am a CC transfer student and I am planning to tag either davis or SB. I have met all the requirements for both schools etc. classes, units,gpa. Now I will briefly describe my scenario. I am actually currently undecided/ unsure of which one I would chose at the moment but I am somewhat leaning for Davis. I am an economics major (applying for SB as financial math & switching into econ when I get there) and for davis I am applying for man. econ with TAG and reg econ w/ out tag planning to switch into man eon when I get there. I like Davis for the following reasons: -close yet far from home (2 hr drive) - Friendly people - Better for my major and academics - better location believe it or not etc. near silicon valley, SF, and SAC - Looks better than SB ( better REP for jobs) -More prestige - Friendly & nice people -Great school spirit -Man. Econ is well geared for my major
Here’s what I don’t like about Davis. There’s nothing to really do outside of campus unless you can get transportation (ex. farm and freeway) - Not as good of a social life as UCSB - the campus is okay, (UCSB is better) -I cant really dorm there ( I wanna dorm)

Here’s what I like about UCSB: Beautiful campus, great social life, better dorms and (intramural) sports, better environment , and overall ill be more happier there - Good academics too (underrated) - Location is amazing as theres a beach right next to it -works probably easier there - probably better food -Everyone seems to love it there no joke & theyre always happy

Heres what I dont like about UCSB: -Party school ( or at least it has that rep) -there are more distractions - the people there are not that friendly as they are at UCD and less sincere about their work -There are no big firms around that area & its honestly a little far from LA aha ( its just a beach town)

Additional Factors: - I don’t think it will really matter where I do my undergrad in the LR(unless maybe if its UCLA or CAL) because I will probably pursue an MBA in grad school. However, getting that first job will be crucial. But as I said earlier, UCSB is also a good school & i am pursuing an MBA

I had a very crappy HS experience, CC experience, and so on. I never really had a lot of fun in my life and I just want to be happy for once.With that being said, I think Ill be happiest at UCSB (I can also be happy at Davis). I think its really important for me to make friends in college, I think CC really limited me to do that so I think the Social aspect for me is crucial as well.

Now as the TAG goes, UCD requires me to be full time in order to tag. However, part time is ok as long as I have a reason to be a part time student. Now, I called DAVIS and I talked to one of the head guys in the office of admissions and he said my reason was fine.
As for UCSB, I dont have to be full time.
If I tag DAVIS (or attempt to tag). There may be risk in getting approved, Although he said I was okay, there still can be risk
Also note: I believe UCSB is harder to get into than davis is via regular admissions. However, UCSB does not admit by major while davis does. And Econ is an impacted major.

Any comments, suggestions, or advice would be greatly appreciated. I dont have much time to submit my TAG.

Thanks

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Forgot to add. I need to get a B or better in one of the classes at UCSB to switch into the econ or Econ/ACCT major. For UCD Im a direct admit and its very easy to switch majors

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Hi! Two great options! I went to UCSB, and was a transfer as well, so I can really only speak from an SB perspective. The comment about “the people (at SB) are not that friendly as they are at UCD and less sincere about their work”. I found the student body at UCSB to be incredibly friendly (and certainly with the stats required for admittance, you’ll be surrounding need by people that take their work seriously as well). I made friends easily after transferring, and having a transfer dorm can really help facilitate that. Also, during my time at UCSB I was one of the internship coordinators, and SB students were well sought after for internships. I wouldn’t say that USD students have an edge in terms of job placement. I would say that both programs are well regarded and well visited by employers. UCSB is a very social campus, with a ton of school spirit (they have the record for the last 9 years for men’s soccer attendance…the students go all out for men’s soccer and men’s basketball games). It sounds like time is limited, but if possible, you might want to visit UCSB/Isla Vista and UCD again and try and get a sense about where you see yourself. Both are very comparable in terms of their Econ programs, job prospects, etc. Congrats on two great options, and best of luck!

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@BayAreaRecruiter - Yup, I mean I dont really know how the people are in SB and Davis. I would have to really experience it to actually know. But knowing a few people from UCSB and UCD, it kind of seems that way and I would like to imagine UCSB students like to party more than UCD students. But this is all from assumptions and roomers. I have visited both campuses also. And UCSB does not have a football team, does it?

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UCSB doesn’t have a football team. I transferred from USC, so I was initially hesitant to leave the USC “Trojan Spirit” behind. UCSB’s school spirit is really pretty amazing and one of the biggest surprises I found after transferring. Their sporting events are very well attended and fun. I would say that UCSB tends to attract “social” students, so ther partying is there if you’re interested. There are also plenty of students that just enjoy “hanging out” with their friends and going to music in the park, or the sporting events, or having picnics on the beach. I think it would be really helpful to visit both campuses/communities so you can get a feel for both. UCSB is ranked “top 10” again this year for happiest students, and I’m not surprised

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Also take note, I come to school for an education not to party. My main goals for college is to really find who I am and what I want to do with my life. I want to get a job and I want to enjoy what I do & learn. With that being said, I think its very important that I can make good connections after leaving. In other words, I want a balanced school and Social life and I think I could do this at both places

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just wanted to give you a heads up on this:
you say UCSB is a little far from LA yet Davis is further away from Sillicon Valley and SF than UCSB and LA.

it is a long drive from davis to SF and silicon valley. sacramento is fairly close. but dont get your hopes up on SF and SV being an easy drive away for internships and stuff. a lot of SV companies (facebook, apple) require proof of residency for internships. they want to hire people who already live in the valley. so it’s really hard to get an internship or job there if you dont plan on actually relocating. and since you’ll be in school at the time, i doubt that’s possible unless you drop out. my cousin lived just 10 minutes north of davis and she wanted to do several job training education workshop programs in SV, and work/intern at facebook or apple but they required residency in the valley so she couldn’t do it. she would have been qualified but it’s that residency requirement that kills the deal.

and thank you for making this thread, im also debating whether to apply to davis or ucsb for tag! and i plan on double majoring in economics (first major physics)

im surprised you said davis is seen as more prestigious, because from my experience i always thought ucsb was a bit more prestigious (though that’s probably because it’s ranked 11 for physics, but you’re not at all interested in that i think lol)

i think UCSB is good at economics though. when i visited, there were some chemistry majors who had actually gotten to do research in economics. and there was a federal reserve event nearby that gave students free admission. (tickets were like $200 to outsiders)

im glad to know davis is considered prestigious and good at economics though, since that’s something i was unsure of when considering it.

people at UCSB didn’t really seem as nice… even the students who were meant to help attendees navigate the school looked like they were bored and forced to be there. no excitement (this was for an event for prospective students) everyone seemed to stick to themselves. there were groups of students at some points but it seemed more cliquey. even among themselves they seemed a bit bored.

i got to visit davis but didnt get to tour the actual school (it was a summer weekend and i dont think classes were in session), we just drove around campus and then around the little city outside of it. there were a lot of white people in the little town, seemed kind of hipsterish but not that pretentious or hip/technology. tbh since im not white, i didnt really feel that comfortable. i didnt get any of that davis kindness that people always talk about lol but perhaps that’s cuz i didnt actually tour the campus while it was alive. perhaps i just overestimated how kind it was, since people always say people at davis are super nice and willing to start a conversation with anyone and smile.

it seemed like a nicer college town than ucsb overall though. just because ucsb has literally nothing to do outside of it… everything in davis was within walking distance. a lot of trees! the city seems to be covered in a canopy of trees. it’s really beautiful and peaceful. the school buildings look new. but it reminded me a bit of a high school with the way it was integrated with the town. but it’s a bit similar to berkeley in that way, with how the stadium or soccer field is just within the city. the tree canopy thing almost felt a bit claustrophobic though lol.

i didnt get any of that cow smell people talk about.

the weather was good.

ucsb weather was more humid. it was cloudy and and raining in the morning, then it got really humid and hot later on in the day, then it started raining again in the afternoon, still very humid though.

personally i didnt find the campus as beautiful at is hyped up to be, but that’s probably because i come from a city with very beautiful beaches lol. and it was cloudy and rainy that day. the lagoon looks green/brown, sort of boring… i dont know, i just didnt find it that beautiful as it was hyped up to be. but if you dont come from a place that has beaches, im sure you’ll find it pretty.

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@otoribashi I live in the silicon Valley and not to far from Davis. And yeah Its much closer to Sac so thats good, and there are so much job opp. here in the silicon valley. in other words, you can say davis is closer to the silicon valley than UCSB (yet its still pretty far away). Im sure there are a lot of Davis grads who work in the silicon valley and SF. BTW DAVIS is 1 hr away from SF 2 hr From the valley and 20 min away from SAC. UCSB is I believe 2 hrs away from LA. And Ill make frequent trips to my home.

  • When I say Davis is more prestigious, by that I think its ranked higher and it has a better rep. Like IK for econ/Business they are ranked higher than UCSB. But as for the sciences(chem bio physics), UCSB is probably a better school for that. It really depends on the major tho. But UCSB has a party school rep.
    Yeah both ucsb and UCD are good for econ. Honestly, all UCs are good for econ as they are all research schools.
    I toured both DAVIS and SB. They were all really nice! However, the people from Davis were even more friendlier haha but the people from ucsb were pretty friendly also.
    I like UCSB vibe but yeah Davis has that good college feel
    UCSB has a beach right next to it btw
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it’s more like 2 hours away from SF with all the traffic but yeah both schools are pretty far away from major cities except for sacramento

do you happen to know what the weather in davis is like during the winter/summer? is it super hot/super cold ? humid? crisp?

one thing i do love about davis is how many farms and just plain land there is. so much less smog, so much nature (even if it’s just farms).

are there any national parks or places to hike nearby?

one thing i didnt like about UCSB is how boring the campus was… it’s just this flat block of land. yes i know it has a beach, but it doesnt compare to my hometown beaches so i dont really get excited about them. no hills or anything. i know davis is pretty flat too but the architecture and trees give it a different vibe.

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@otoribashi Well when I visited (in April) the weather for Davis and SB were on point. Davis was humid and sunny while SB was sunny, windy, and kind of cold.I’m sure Davis has great weather all year round but im not really sure. Pretty sure its always sunny and warm.

and im not sure if there any parks nearby. Probably not because its in the farm and near the freeway

I wouldnt say UCSB is “borring” IMO. I mean yeah theirs a beach nearby and the campus and there is a lot to do on campus. Its great there! The Davis campus is bigger haha. I like smaller campuses just so you get to know everyone

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Weather for Davis: http://www.usclimatedata.com/climate/davis/california/united-states/usca0284
Similar to Southern California Inland Valleys but more rain in the Winter.

Weather in Santa Barbara: http://www.usclimatedata.com/climate.php?location=USCA1017
Typical beach type weather with overcast days and fog along with sunshine and cooling ocean breezes.