For mechanical engineering. I’m from the bay area and have visited SJSU many times before but just haven’t really gotten the right vibes from there (then again I haven’t visited while school is in session) BUT I do know that there are so many advantages for going to a school located in the heart of Silicon Valley. And it’s close to home which is an advantage and disadvantage for me.
As for Santa Cruz, it’s fairly close to home, and I’ve been to Santa Cruz a bunch of times but haven’t visited the campus yet. I’ve heard it’s good for engineering (correct me if I’m wrong…)? And for Santa Cruz I applied for robotics engineering and I haven’t heard anything about that specific major.
Should I consider Riverside? I haven’t heard anything about its school of engineering. All I know is it’s considered to be one of the lower tier UCs.
Assuming you have been admitted to all 3, you owe it to yourself to spend a little time on each campus. They are very different. I am sure one will resonate more with you. All 3 offer a very good engineering education.
Look into the career placement center and see which school has more students getting jobs after graduation. Both UCSC and SJSU are in the Silicon Valley area and there are probably good job opportunities. Personally, I always have a preference for UC’s, including UCR, over the CSU’s (except for Cal Poly SLO), including SJSU.
I’m in the same boat I’ve been admitted to all 3 for EE I’m visiting all 3 campuses in the next few weeks. I also was invited to interview for SJSUs Engineering Leadership Pathways Scholarship and could really use that money to pay for school.
Santa Cruz is a pretty good trek from San Jose and the Silicon Valley.
@NCalRent I just visited UC Riverside, and the campus is gorgeous. I’ll be visiting UCSC soon.
@futureeechick Nice!! I forgot to mention before- Riverside offered me a scholarship (Highlander Excellence Scholarship).