<p>To start off, I'm from California, and I've been having a very hard time making my college decision and it's coming pretty close to the deadline so I could really use some opinions.</p>
<p>Here are my pros and cons--</p>
<p>UC Davis
Pros: In state tuition! (biggest one), biochemical engineering major (anything bio related at davis is ranked fairly high),I know many people at this school, close to home/convenient, I get to keep my car which I love very much...
Cons: Small crappy farm town with not much to do, not a very big change in lifestyle</p>
<p>UW
Pros: DA to Bioengineering major (#11 on USNews), I LOVE SEATTLE AND UW CAMPUS I would love to live there, I spent my childhood living in Pullman and Richland, WA up until I was 9 years old and visiting Seattle was so amazing each time and I know I would still love the place
Cons: OOS Tuition with no financial aid!!, Don't really know anyone there</p>
<p>UIllinois - UC
Pros: Materials Science Engineering major (Ranked #2 just under MIT in USNews!), Tons of companys come directly to UIUC to hire graduates due to their high ranking, decent campus
Cons: OOS Tuition even worse than UW!, It's 2300 miles away from home in a small college town 3 hours from the nearest big city (Chicago), crappy weather</p>
<p>This has been driving me nuts for the past few weeks and I've already eliminated some other tough choices so its down to these three and theyre all at a complete stalemate.</p>
<p>Another factor I have to consider is that my parents want me to attend UIUC over UW because the oos tuition is close and uiuc provides a better opportunity for me.. but personally I don't know if i can spend 4 years holed up in that place! help me!!</p>
<p>I mean, not to sound too cocky or anything, I have a pretty good shot at the Ivies. But, I'm pulling myself back one step and choosing a university that best fits all of my requirements. I am afraid that I wont like the milieu in the East Coast, especially since its drastically different from the West Coast,- more over the environment just at the Ivies themselves is rather different. A lot of the times you have to let go of the prestige to get what you really want. There's tons of opportunties if you're planning on BioEngineering, regardless of where you go to college. If you don't enjoy where you are, you're grades are going to suffer, and the impact will trickle down to basically all aspects of your college life. Personally, I definitely would not want that.</p>
<p>I'd rather choose a university with a little less prestige and walk out happy, with no regrets, during graduation..than Harvard and walk out saying that..the last 4 years of my life completely sucked.</p>
<p>i) The Pacific Northwest, by all means, is not UGLY! It's like one of the most beautiful places ever! Shoot, It's Greeeeeeeen EVERYWHERE!</p>
<p>ii) The B.S. in Bioengineering, if done properly, does not take more than 4 years. In fact, it's possible to complete that in 3 years depending on how many credits you walk with into UW. In fact, I'm considering a 3 year Bioengineerning degree at the moment. </p>
<p>iii) There's a large disparity in tuition in terms of in-state and out-of-state. But, hey you're only gonna get a UW experience once :)</p>
<p>GO TO UW! The northwest is the most beautiful place on earth! You'll also get a campus with a lot of pride, everyone loves the huskies...which is something you won't get at Davis. I'd say it's worth the out of state.</p>
<p>Ok, you really need to listen to me when it comes to location. I was born in Yakima Washington, about 2 hours from Seattle. I love Seattle more than anywhere I can think of. I'm having to tackle the fact that I would pick UW over any other school (except maybe for Stanford) no matter what just because of the location. It is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Anyone who says otherwise (opie, im talking to you) needs to be tied to a fence post and flogged. Flogged and have their gonads remove... Wow I'm seriously ****ed right now. Opie, be happy I dont know you... Anyway, when I was 7 I was forced to move to Rock Island, Illinois. I ABSOLUTELY HATE IT HERE. If I didn't have some great friends, I would have killed myself a couple years ago. If Seattle is your kind of city, then you don't want to go to Champaign-Urbana. I went there for a WYSE (Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering) competiton. The place is the pits. Also, the land is flat. Our only source of water is the Mississippi, which may just posion you if you drink it and it's nothing to look at. The humidity is the WORST thing about the area. Anything felt west coast is nothing. the majority of the summer is at 90-100% humidity, and the temperature anywhere from high 80s to 100. No where else have i stepped outside for 2 minutes and felt so unclean. There's no excuse for it either. Illinois doesnt get near the rain Seattle does. Oh, which reminds me, you know how pretty (yes i mean that) it is in Seattle when its raining? how great it feels? even how it can smell floral sometimes? Not here. There are days where it rains and it smells like dog food here. And if you have allergies, especiallay to corn, grass, other types of pollen, and mold, you are coming to the WORST place in the country for those allergins. Just... my god please... don't TRAP youself in Illinois. Nothing good can come of the area (unless its the Chicago area)... UW UW UW UW!</p>