I am stuck between these two schools and i just cannot decide. One minute i’m leaning towards San Francisco the next i’m leaning towards Santa Cruz etc. I like San Francisco because well i’ve always wanted to live there and i love the colder weather and it’s only like an hour from home, but so is Santa Cruz so. I like Santa Cruz mainly because my friends are going there and to be honest that’s sort of a big deal for me because i get nervous extremely easily. I know both schools are good for film majors and are usually ranked near each other so i don’t really know which one to go with. Some people have told me SF is better because it’s closer to film companies and it will provide more in terms of networking but then others say SC is better because it’s a UC and they have more labs i believe and i just can’t decide between the two! Also Santa Cruz offers a Ph.D for film I believe and SF doesn’t but how good is the Ph.D program? How hard would it be to just transfer there from SF or transfer to Santa Barbara from SF? (I got into Santa Barbara as well but it is 5 hours away from home and i just can’t do that, would it be difficult to get in as a transfer later because they have a doctorate program for film studies i believe.)
I don’t l know much about the film program at each campus. I will say, it is difficult to transfer from a CSU to a UC. .The classes aren’t mapped well and their primary source is CCs.
Also - CSUs don’t issue PHDs - it isn’t in their charter. If you want a PHD from a CA public, UCs are the only place to go.
Given no budget constraints, i’d take another look at UCSB. If you live on campus, you’ll only come home a couple of times each semester - so the 5 hour trek won’t be a big deal. Santa Cruz would be my next choice. SF State is a pretty big step down from those two schools - again, ignoring cost.
For film, I am sure UCLA and USC are the top school. UCI is close to Disney so, how bad could it be? Long Beach also has alumni like Spielberg - suggesting they have a good program. While i have heard SF has a good program, it seems LA is the place to study film. Unfortunately, none of them are on your list.