<p>Yeah the kids "from LA" at UCLA are from East LA/OC/Valley/Ventura. I have met very few Westsiders here, and most of them came from public schools. At USC its the opposite.</p>
<p>I forgot the Bay Area.</p>
<p>hmm i definitely feel that in next years rankings usc will finally overcome ucla as it deserves to.</p>
<p>so its all about ranks for you eh?</p>
<p>no not at all, im just predicting that they will.</p>
<p>Hahah.. not the University of Spoiled Children anymore! The average UCLA family income is actually slightly higher than average USC family income, I believe.</p>
<p>It's more like the University of Sexy Chicks :)</p>
<p>What's your potential major? </p>
<p>If Engineering / science/ math related --> UCLA
If Business / communication / etc --> USC</p>
<p>USC will probably top over UCLA rank-wise in a couple of years. Look at how much it has grown in the past 5 years! </p>
<p>I'm an out of state student from Pennsylvania. When I visited UCLA's campus, I thought it was was beautiful yet a little too secluded for me. You have to travel around Westwood and other places by buses. USC is scattered around downtown Los Angeles, easier to walk around and get lost. </p>
<p>Of course, some people prefer to be protected within a campus bubble.</p>
<p>I personally like USC better because the student-faculty ratio is 15:1 I believe, way more personal than UCLA's. Although USC is a bit more expensive, USC's a bit more liberal at offering financial aid than UCLA.</p>
<p>Also,</p>
<p>when I lived among the UCLA Bruins, the animosity towards USC Trojans was very extreme!</p>
<p>Yet when I stayed with the USC Trojans, no one really seemed to give a hoot about UCLA.</p>
<p>UCLA's freshman admit rate is predicted to decrease by ~5.0% this year, on the heels of its record-breaking >50,000 freshman applicants. I wouldn't be surprised if the University of Second Choice mysteriously increases its freshman yield rate by the same amount, though. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>USC is 2x more expensive instate. Aid is only granted to students with amazing GPA and SAT, lets not forget. That is not very many people. USC itself is hard to get into, so unles you're a CC super ivy student, you wont get enough aid to make it cheaper than UCLA.</p>
<p>I also don't get how the student faculty ratio is smaller there. I have several freshmen friends at USC. They are taking courses with 200-300 people too, with discussion sections of 20 w/a TA. No different than me. Also, here at UCLA I took a 20 person english class 1st quarter, this quartger I am taking a 16 person history seminar with a distinguished full professor.</p>
<p>So much for UCLA being impersonal.</p>
<p>flopsy - integrity of UCLA.</p>
<p>namste - know your facts before opening up. Financial aids are need-based. </p>
<p>stressed0ut - I think for Engineering, USC is equal if not better than UCLA.</p>
<p>The only weaker part of USC compareed to UCLA is some of liberal arts and hard science/math majors. But with some scholarship, and great opportunities to work with faculty, it could be a really good choice for you science nerd:)</p>
<p>QW553,</p>
<p>I'm going to go out on a not-so-flimsy limb here and say that UCLA's College of Letters and Science is far stronger than USC's in almost every area. Where UCLA is competing over top 10 ranks in a lot of areas, and top 15 in most others, USC barely breaks top 25 in most things.</p>
<p>But it doesn't really matter from an undergrad perspective. I mean, Pomona isn't top 10 in...anything. And I'd take Pomona over both UCLA and USC as an undergrad almost any day!</p>
<p>UCLAri,</p>
<p>Not going to argue with you for the general strength of UCLA CLS, especially on graduate level. But for undergrads, attention, resource (per student), opportunity mean a lot.</p>
<p>At graduate level, I think some majors at USC are pretty good: Philosophy, Linguistics, MCB, Marine Bio, Psychology, etc. We also have a very good writing program. These are only what I know, not saying others are not good but may not be compete with UCLA.</p>
<p>Sure. No doubt.</p>
<p>But I do think that resource per student can also be wielded as some sort of "IWIN" button. I bet that some LACs have fewer dollars per student than UT-A, but I dunno that that makes UT-A the better choice. </p>
<p>Of course, I'm not arguing that UCLA is necessarily a better choice in every case, either.</p>
<p>It is very difficult to get into some of the UCs if you are not from California. Around 95% of the UCLA students who are accepted are from in state. Which means you are competing for the other 5% of the spots with the rest of the world if you live outside of Cali. And if you do happen to get in, the financial aid is sparse, and you will pay the inflated out of state tuition rates.</p>
<p>On the other hand, USC considers all applicants equally, regardless of where you are from, and they are very generous with financial aid. Private schools can be more generous.</p>
<p>As far as diversity, not everyone at USC is rich and privileged! This is simply not true! I am there on a scholarship - I could not go there otherwise. And although I am white, my friends are Indian, Mexican, Black, Asian, different religions, rich, poor, gay, straight - it is like the United Nations as far as diversity goes.</p>
<p>USC is not the University of Second Choice.</p>
<p>That's almost as out-dated as University of Spoiled Children.</p>
<p>USC satisfies more student from around the U.S. It is able to pick and choose the best ones it sees fit on the same standard.</p>
<p>UCLA satisfies the people of California. In order to be granted loans from the government, it must meet a certain government-based standard. Honest question here: do you think the government cares more about the well-being of California citizens or the prestige of UCLA? </p>
<p>Whether you like USC or not, you cannot deny how fast it has been growing throughout the last 5 years. USC is also <em>predicted</em>to be top 25 within the next 5 years.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Honest question here: do you think the government cares more about the well-being of California citizens or the prestige of UCLA?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I think this is a strawman...</p>
<p>we already have 50K+ wanting to come here...what makes you so special?</p>
<p>Given the number of applicants to UCLA this year, it may be all a mute point..Visit the 2 schools, talk to the students, check out the classes/professors in the area of study you are most interested in pursuing...and then keep your fingers crossed you get an email the end of March that says you have been accepted to at least one of them!</p>
<p>UCLA: good, cheap (in state) school in a nice area with tons of opportunities in almost all academic arenas. </p>
<p>USC: pretty good, expensive school in a bad area with fairly decent opportunites in most academic arenas. However, USC has MUCH better post-graduation alumni networking (i think).</p>
<p>I dont see how aid makes USC more appealing, it is the same as UCLA. scholarships are the only usable</p>