<p>I have twins and I suspect one will go to one of those schools and one to the other (although Berkeley decisions and a couple of others are still technically pending.) Both have great college towns. You need to visit both, to be honest. </p>
<p>I attended UCSB long ago and didn’t expect to like Davis as much as I did when I visited, but the first thing it reminded me of was Isla Vista (UCSB’s college town) with a little less salt worn area (and without the ocean.) If I were attending today, I’d go back and look at both again because my memories of UCSB are largely a generation old, however, they have been reinforced through my niece’s more recent attendance there. (She was pre med as well, and is graduating med school this year. She just got her residency match to surgery, but wasn’t able to get back to Santa Barbara as she tried, she will be back east at a hospital associated with an Ivy.) My niece loved it there and thought there were a ton of opportunities for pre med students, particularly since there weren’t as many graduate students to get ‘first dibs’ on the opportunities. Another student was on here earlier this year posting that he was shadowing doctors and that that was rare for undergraduates at most schools to be able to do.</p>
<p>However, Davis is an excellent school and has great programs, as well. I think you really just have to check both out for yourself. Honestly, between the two, unless you pick an area you don’t like long term, I don’t see where you could go wrong.</p>
<p>Both have Greek life. I was in a sorority at UCSB and loved it. I note my sorority has since bought a house on Del Playa for Seniors, which makes me slightly jealous… My niece wasn’t in a house, (and my brother wasn’t, in my own generation, although he was very active in Associated Students at UCSB.) You don’t need to be in one, and you should calculate in your own ability to turn down social opportunities when you decide whether to be in one, but I really enjoyed it. I tell my sons this might also be different if you are a guy, since some of the houses are better, some worse, at having quiet times around exams, etc (although I remember all having ‘old exam files’ and prior year’s class notes.) My memory of this is that sororities were better about this than fraternities, generally, but that amongst fraternities some few put very little emphasis on studying. No idea what that would be like now, but I’m sure you could find out. My dad had similar issues back in his day with his fraternity at a different university, so that is just something you have to find out about anywhere. The house I was a little sister for at UCSB had people in it who were serious students, but to be honest, I didn’t pay too much attention to exactly how they balanced that.</p>
<p>Good luck on whatever you decide!</p>