<p>help me choose! i am an out of stater, so the price difference between ucla and usc isn't that great. (i am getting no money from either college). i am majoring in biological sciences, and therefore was initially leaning toward ucla. along with academics, ucla is in a better location. the only thing that is holding me back is the fact that the professors at ucla aren't accessible, the teacher-student interaction isn't great, and that small class sizes are hard to come by.</p>
<p>if you're OOS, then it'd be more worth it to go to USC, since you pay the same, but you get smaller classes at USC and more personal attention.</p>
<p>
[quote]
the only thing that is holding me back is the fact that the professors at ucla aren't accessible, the teacher-student interaction isn't great, and that small class sizes are hard to come by.
[/quote]
If those are factors that are important to you, then go to USC. I'd do some research into exactly <em>how much</em> their classes are smaller though.</p>
<p>but i think intro classes at any U will be big right?</p>
<p>UCLA:
% classes under 20: 54
% classes over 50: 20</p>
<p>USC:
% classes under 20: 62
% classes over 50: 12</p>
<p>So USC's classes are "smaller," but not by a large margin. You'd think that since USC = private, it'd offer a smaller environment, but the reality is that USC is a huge private school--almost as large as UCLA. And remember, UCLA supplements its large classes with small subsections.</p>
<p>
[quote]
the professors at ucla aren't accessible
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</p>
<p>I wouldn't say they aren't accessible. Many of them are. At the lower-div level, you're going to have large classes in which the prof isn't accessible. But as your classes get smaller, you'll be able to access the professor more, going to office hours, etc. UCLA has thousands of faculty, not to mention grad students, who can be very helpful.</p>
<p>In addition, faculty attention isn't exactly easy at USC, either.</p>
<p>Go with the one that you feel fits you, so visit both and decide.</p>
<p>UCLA's name goes a longer way when it comes to post-graduate opportunities. So if that is a consideration, then you might want to think about that. As far as the availability of faculty is concerned, UCLA is sink or swim. If you are assertive you can talk to anyone, if you are shy or quiet or don't feel comfortable asking for what you want than UCLA is not the place for you.</p>
<p>if you're going to pay the same price for ucla that you would for usc, there is no reason to choose ucla. the USC network alone is the added bonus that outweighs UCLA's name.</p>
<p>Paying OOS tuition for any of the UCs (even UCB) is ridiculous. UCLA is a top tier state school, but why would you want to pay private school sticker price to go to a public school where everyone (~95%) of students will be in-state and paying a fraction of what your cost is.</p>
<p>USC would offer more accessible professors and a less cut-throat environment. Furthermore, in terms of graduate school admissions, your GPA and test scores will carry far more weight than any other factor.</p>
<p>Regardless, good luck with your choice, both are excellent schools.</p>
<p>My experience with 2 private schools and 2 public schools. I learned a lot at the public schools. I worked my tutu off to get good grades. I still think I gain a great deal of knowledge in my field with public schools. With private schools they nudge you a bit and the grading were much easier. Eventhough, the rankings of the private colleges are a lot higher than the public colleges. So definitely pick private college over public school if you can afford it. Like D's counselor said, private colleges help you.</p>
<p>very very true with "private colleges help you"</p>
<p>Why do you all default to private > public? Really, USC is not an amazing private school. It's pretty equal with UCLA. Hell, even US News--in ranking undergrad--thinks they're about the same, and US News is known for splitting hairs (in other words, attempting to rank x school as better than y school, rather than putting them in tiers).</p>
<p>UCLA over USC. USC is in a terrible neighborhood.</p>