I was planning to go UCSB for pre-econ&actg major. However, when I returned from the trip to Santa Barbara(to find an apartment to rent), I got the admission letter from UW. I am giving the offer under Pre- social science major. I called the admission office to ask what does that major mean. They said that I am admitted to UW, but not to a specific majors, they are all pre-majors to me. I can make pre-econ or pre business as my pre-major. After that, I will need to take certain pre-req courses and meet the requirement, and after that I still need to submit an application with personal statement in order to get the chance to get into the major. I saw on the website that the acceptance rate is quite high, but the average admitted GPA is above 3.53. My UCSB pre-major also need to declare. I need to take one course and get a B to enroll to the major, but automatically if meet the requirement. I don’t know how hard is it to get into econ or business in UW. I think I am not so confident to get into UW. Please give me some suggestion.
Your decision might be easier if you look at the bigger picture instead of a battle between pre-majors. What is the cost difference? Have you visited U Wash? Which campus/culture do you prefer? Are you ok with accounting?
Hi, @Dunboyne ! Thanks for replying. It will be in-state cost for UCSB. For UW, it will be first year OOS fee, and later on, I think it will take more than 2 years to finish the degree, it will be in-state fee. I did visit both campus, the UW campus is more gorgeous than UCSB’s. It is a larger campus, and it looks nice. I am actually ok with both culture. I attended cc in California for 2 years. Before that, I attended secondary school in Vancouver, and went to Seattle quite often. I am ok with accounting. Actually, I am planning to take MBA and major in marketing/management. I actually think that I should not take the same major in bachelor and master degree, so that I will have a broader sight or more techniques. Before I got UW, I was planning to get an internship and prepare for CPA exam after graduating from UCSB. And once I pass the exam, I will move to Seattle and seek for a job. (That’s what I promise my parents because they want me to live in Seattle with them, and I’d love to do so.) Weather, culture, and tuition are not the major concern for me. All I am struggling now is what is the chance that I can get into UW biz school. And if it is worthwhile for me to take the risk, because if I don’t get into Business/Econ, I might end up studying other unrelated majors, like global studies, which have low requirement. Do you have any thoughts? Thank you!
So UCSB will be 2 years and U Wash 3 years?
Hi @Dunboyne
yes, correct
I’m getting a cost savings of ~$48,000+ for UCSB. Is that correct? If so, U Wash is not worth that much more over UCSB, especially with an expensive MBA hanging over your head and a higher risk of an unintended major. What advantages with U Wash are you seeing to justify that extra expense over UCSB?
Hi @Dunboyne , Thanks for the reply. The cost for UCSB will be around $32,000 (book fee and service see included) U Wash will be around $57,000. For U Wash, I think the brand name and the business school is the most attractive to me. If I am confident that I can get into the business school, I think the extra expense is worthwhile, but I am not so confident. I have a 3.81 GPA in my cc, which I don’t think it is competitive enough, since it is only community college work. I agree with you that it is an unintended major and high risk. I think for now I need to consider whether or not it is worthwhile to take the risk.