<p>I'm looking for any anecdotal or other information about UOP. Anyone whose kid or nephew or whatever went there? UOP doesn't have it's own thread that I could find.
For a variety of reasons, it is currently my HS daughter's first choice. It is in many ways a safety academically for her....I'm not interested in posts about how she could do better..just information on Stockton, the school itself, the social life, etc.
thanks!</p>
<p>Have you toured the campus? It's really quite nice. Stockton itself isn't much, but it's not far to SF and the Sierras for weekend getaways.</p>
<p>S1 and I were favorably impressed. The admissions staff is top-notch. S1 is interested in EE, and liked the idea of their internship program, plus the 4-year graduation guarantee. They also give merit aid based on an easy-to-understand formula. One thing that might not be mentioned on their website is that they look at unweighted GPA for admissions. Greek life seemed fairly active on campus, which is either a plus or a minus depending on what you're looking for.</p>
<p>S1 is going to apply EA to UoP if he doesn't hear quickly from his #1 choice college.</p>
<p>I'd be interested in hearing from current students/parents as well.</p>
<p>I know the campus is lovely and they offer some quality programs. But Stockton is ranked as one of the 5 worst cities in America according to (I think) Money Magazine.</p>
<p>"Stockton is ranked as one of the 5 worst cities in America according to (I think) Money Magazine."</p>
<p>But the student isn't buying a house and rearing a family there. Stockton isn't perfect, but it's fine for UoP students who, like students on most college campuses, tend to live in their school's bubble anyway.</p>
<p>vballmom, can you share information about the merit aid formula? I haven't seen that.<br>
Agree with above post re: area. Stockton is rated that way in part because it has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country. That said, of course I am concerned about the area and about safety.</p>
<p>Regents
Annual Award: $10,000
This scholarship is awarded to exceptional high school seniors who apply to University of the Pacific. No special application is required for consideration.</p>
<p>Typical academic profile of students who are considered:
GPA: 3.87, SAT: 1337 (based on the Reading and Math scores only), or ACT composite: 30 </p>
<p>Presidents Scholarships
Annual Award: $6,500
This scholarship is awarded to outstanding high school seniors who apply to University of the Pacific. Although each student is considered individually, usually the scholarship is awarded to students with a grade point average above 3.50. No special application is required. All admitted students will automatically be considered.</p>
<p>Typical academic profile of students who are considered:
GPA: 3.61, SAT: 1208 (based on the Reading and Math scores only), or ACT composite: 27</p>
<p>Scholarships</a> - University of the Pacific</p>
<p>In reading the fine print, it might be that these are freshman-only scholarships, not necessarily renewable for all 4 years.</p>
<p>It's true that the Central Valley is ground zero for the California foreclosure disaster. However, U o P is in a nice area of Stockton, and the tour guide pointed out the campus safety services. They also publish weekly incident logs on their website.</p>
<p>The scholarships are renewable if you keep a 3.0. We also found that the criteria for the scholarships are flexible. My son receive a merit scholarship between the two amounts stated above. His GPA was below a 3.5 and his reading score was low but he had a great math score.
He has never felt unsafe on campus or in Stockton. He is not involved in greek life but does not find that limiting. He does have friends who are in fraternities. He has not found it a defining factor.
It was not near my first choice for him but he has been very happy. I wasn't the one going to the school.</p>
<p>Stockton may not be fancy, but I wouldn't even put in the the worst five cities/areas in California (such as East Oakland surrounding Mills College). Campus is lovely, complete with some ivy-covered walls, and rose gardens. We have friends who have kids there and they absolutely love it. Attentive faculty. Uncompetitive student body. With D-1 basketabll, they have decent school spirit. Excellent PharmD & music programs.</p>
<p>UoP also has a personal app (Disticntive?) which is no fee, no extra essays and quick decision.</p>
<p>If she doesn't have a car, inquire about transportation into the shopping/dining area. When we asked, they pointed at the very busy street and said the local bus picks up in front of campus and drops you across the street. I'd be very uncomfortable if I had a daughter returning from dinner or a movie, and walking along and crossing a busy street at night. </p>
<p>I also recall a very snippy receptionist in the admin office, which wouldn't really matter after the kid had enrolled there. But, it did turn us off before the tour even began.</p>
<p>Thanks All. She received an email with the distinctive application based, I think, on her ACT and SAT scores. She does have a car so transportation is not an issue and she will definitely be told that if she goes there and goes out at night, she should load up some friends for the movie, etc. No going somewhere alone.</p>
<p>I think it depends on your kid. My son has only gone shopping once in 2 yrs. He needed cleats for flag football. I think they went off campus for a movie once. (I don't think my son used more then 250 dollars all year for off campus activities) That included eating out. I can't say that about my other kids.
They do go off campus for food. He has a skateboard and I know he uses that to get around. UOP attracts many students from Ca. Many have cars. I don't think it is very costly to buy a parking permit. My son does not and doesn't feel he needs one. He also has had no trouble getting rides to the Sacramento airport.
My son both years has ended up with roommates who are rarely home. I think this yr the roommate has not slept once in the room. He is local and has a girlfriend off campus. In some ways that is nice but my son said it would be nice to have a friend as a roommate. His roommate last yr was from out of state but had a gf at another Ca college and he went to see her every weekend. Otherwise my son said the campus does NOT clear out on weekends.</p>
<p>mom60 thanks for that information too. DD would be 5 hours away by car and not coming home on weekends. I do not want her at a commuter school...she can be a little reserved and I would hate to see her alone all weekend every weekend.</p>
<p>Bringing this thread back up.
Just returned from a quick one night visit with my soph child. Arrived on campus around 6 pm monday night. Lots of students walking around. Walked over and visited the new student center. The building was built in a similar style as the rest of the campus and blends in nicely. The food choices looked good including roasting chickens. One nice idea was a rack for skateboards.
Did not see many students on bikes, walking, skateboards and scooters seemed to be the preferred mode of transportation. The evening was balmy and many students were eating outside on beautiful wood outdoor tables. A nice reflecting pond fronts the new building.
Son's dorm room was a mess! I held back from at least cleaning a few things.
The student body seemed very friendly.
We went out to dinner not far from campus. They have a nice new shopping center not that far from campus that even had a brand new REI. The shopping center did appear deserted. I was surprised at how nice it was considering this is Stockton.
This was only my 2nd time to the campus. I was again impressed with how beautiful the campus is. The rose gardens, beautiful old trees and green lawns and brick buildings. A real oasis in the middle of an unatractive city.
My son has 5 classes this term. 4 of them have numbers of under 15 students. One larger lecture class that has a smaller lab on another day.
Son has made many friends and is happy with his choice.</p>
<p>Thanks for the update mom60! Anyone else have a kid considering UOP?</p>
<p>I noticed last week on the Pacific Admissions website that there's an early notification option for applying. It's different from the Common App, and frankly a little confusing because it's not clear whether it replaces the Common App completely or is just an intermediate step. At any rate, it's easy to fill out online, and requires a page to be printed out and given to the student's GC for submission as well.</p>
<p>vballmom,
Thanks DD has completed that app and sent it off. It is an early option which substitutes for the common app. It isn't binding and other than the GC information doesn't even require a teacher rec.<br>
We are hoping that we hear back from them soon so she can tailor her other apps accordingly.</p>
<p>Just adding a note here that DD just got a lengthy email from the Dean of the Department she is interested in. Obviously they send these to multiple applicants but the email was very lengthy and indicated that another representative for the department would also be in touch.
My son had similar contacts with his school before enrolling and has found that they are continuing to be supportive and that he has a lot of personal contact with professors/deans/department heads, etc.</p>
<p>I know a few people who went there for the pharmacy program. They seem pretty happy with their experience.</p>
<p>S1 hit the submit button on the early app last night, and used the link to remind his counselor to do her part. He'd already printed off and given her the counselor form so I hope she's not feeling too harrassed by this extra email. I understand that as soon as the counselor form & transcript go in, S1 will get an answer. He'd already asked teachers for all his Common App teacher evaluations, including Univ of Pacific, so those will probably get sent anyway.</p>
<p>ebeee can you let us know when your D hears back?</p>
<p>I've known about a half a dozen kids who had a good experience there. Only one bad and that was related to athletics.</p>