Hi!
I was just wondering why the reasons for this common belief are. I know there are several majors and areas where they are weak, and they are always compared to the UC’s. But in areas where they could be equally strong or they have similar standards, like in a STEM field (Supposing the school is a stronger CSU particularly for that area) why do students feel the need to go to a UC even if it has a worse program? Specially if their goal is to go directly into the workforce. I guess this is all about prestige, but from what I have been researching on some CSUs like CPSLO, CPP, and SDSU among others deserve a good reputation too.
What are you talking about? They do have a good reputation. CPSLO acceptance rate 29%, SDSU 34%, CPP 39%. These numbers are in line with mid-tier UC’s (UCSD 35%, UCSB 35%, UCD 42%).
It is only people who don’t know what they are talking about look down their nose at the whole CSU system, There are millions of successful CSU grads in the workforce today proving the position as wrong. In fact, i bet there are millions more successful CSU grads than there are successful UC grads. It is a prejudice born of ignorance, plain and simple.
@1andonly I know they are great schools, that is why I am wondering why others have that misconception. @NCalRent is there are a particular reason on why that prejudice was born? Whenever I mention to my friends I consider one of those schools they think I am settling. I am also from SD and from what I have seen, and also this comments also come from my family, that SDSU is not as good, which I find really odd.
I wonder if it’s mostly due to the college experience vs commuter experience. Living in a dorm at UCLA is going to be more appealing to almost everyone while driving to CSULA and trudging home feels more like work.
Based on my observations as well as my own situation, I would bet my own money there’s a dramatic split in alumni giving/engagement between commuter and traditional colleges (I did a quick google to see if there’s any research on this…didn’t see anything applicable).
Part of it might also be geography as the CSUs are explicitly provincial while the UCs (almost uniformly; see CPSLO and Merced for the relevant exceptions) have a national draw.
as i state above, people with that perception are ignorant, plain and simple. (note, that is different than dumb) They don’t have the life experience and context (and choose not to spend the time to research objectively) to effectively evaluate the educational opportunity available at most CSUs. Go to SDSU, talk to some students about what it is like to attend. Walk into their career center - or perhaps visit on a day where there is a career fair. Every major employer will be there wooing students… seriously, I’d hazard to guess all 30 Dow components and most of the Fortune 500 is on campus for at least one recruiting event a year. The companies you want to work for in 5 years think a CSU (especially SDSU) is a great place to recruit bright, talented, motivated employees, I suggest their opinions are more valuable than your friends because they have the context and life experience to more accurately assess how well qualified the Alumni is. Don’t just take my word for it - log into LinkedIn and see where Aztec alums work and what kind of jobs they have.
Now, not every CSU is as heavily monitored by national employers as SDSU but, graduates of CSUMB and CI (the newest CSUs) are still well received by employers - especially if they graduate with relevant work experience.
Not sure where you have been admitted but, you certainly aren’t settling if it is the ‘best’ school you get into. Best is in quotes because that is highly personal. Maybe you got into Cal but hated it on your tour. Maybe you can’t justify or afford the $14k (vs $7k at a CSU) for tuition Perhaps moving away would be too expensive or a family obligation prevents it… that isn’t settling - that is life. As an adult, you’ll need to make all kinds of concessions to every day realities. I would submit that, attending a UC you hate because of it’s reputation is settling - especially if you have other options.
Another thing few people think about… the CSUs are not research institutions. Your professor is generally giving 100% of the lectures and they like to teach - or they would be doing something else. Class sizes (especially lower division) are much smaller at CSUs, making faculty more available and the environment less competitive - that’s not to say the students are less smart but, they are less up-tight. (I have had several of my son’s friends - current students at UCSD, UCI and UCLA - make unsolicited remarks about how stressed out the average student is on their campuses) For a self motivated, hard charging student from a large public high school - a big UC feels like home… but, not everyone thrives in an environment like that.
I don’t know enough about you to advise you beyond keeping an open mind until you receive all your admissions/denials and making a decision that works for you and your family.
Good luck.
@NCalRent has given you a lot of good information and I agree that the individuals that state the CSU’s are not as good as the UC’s probably have never attended or ever visited a CSU campus. My attitude is forget what other people say. You are the one that will be attending and you will be one that needs to find their “fit”.
My younger son once told me that several of his friends questioned why he accepted SDSU over a UC and he could never figure out what the saw was so special about attending 800+ student lectures presented by a professor on video?
Pick the school that fits you financially, academically and socially. As the expression goes: “Bloom where planted”.
Good Luck and Best of Luck from a proud Cal State graduate (CPP).
Here is my own experience with CSU/UC. My D was excepted to both mid-tier UC’s and CSU’s, but her preferred major led her to opt for a CSU. Her freshman GE engl comp (under 30 students) and freshman math-calc (under 20 students) have left me feeling that CSUs may be underestimated for their educational value. Her professors offered standard office hrs and privately scheduled one on one help for anyone interested (wondering if this would happen at a UC) In addition, she has not had any issues getting classes (as long as she is willing to do mornings, evenings, and Fridays), however, this is probably dependent on how impacted a majors is (but is true everywhere).
@NCalRent @Gumbymom @1andonly Wow! That really changes my perspective. They really made me reflect a lot on what I want and I will definitely keep them in mind when I make my decision in a couple of months, thank you!
@VeniceQueen, My husband works for a huge Engineering firm. He’s often asked to interview new candidates who may work for him. Recently, a colleague, who hires software candidates said that she preferred to hire CSU grads. She told him that these grads tended to have more “practical experience” and knew how to problem solve. According to her, the graduates, she had been hiring from the UCs were great on paper: good grades, good courses, but seemed to require more training, hand-holding and prestige-grabbing (“when do I move up?”) such that they immediately switched jobs after being hired. She continues to hire UC grads but likes the CSU students from the local university.
So my husband started looking more in depth into CSU grads. He has made an effort to hire VETs because he likes their discipline, punctuality, and dedication to the workload. (Remember, that he is hiring for his team.) That’s not to say he doesn’t look at other candidates, because he does. He hires UC grads and private school students left and right. He does give CSU grads(maybe B students), that have interviewed well, a chance to prove themselves. A lot of these men and women are VETs.
My husband’s company also prefers CSU grads vs UC grads exactly for the same reasons stated above^^^ for their Engineering positions.
Trust @NCalRent and @Gumbymom, they have been active members on here for a while and surely do advocate for California colleges, particularly CSUs…I agree with everything of what they said
I just want to point out that Fresno, Fullerton, San Diego, and San Francisco are all research-intensive institutions. However, the argument still stands…you will get a better teaching experience from all CSUs than UCs excluding Merced. But Merced is transitioning quick (already a research university lol) so I would not go there, and it’s relatively new.
Just ignore the noise and go on your own path if it does not negatively impact anyone. Unfortunately, there is a significant amount of naive high school students who are “yes” people. The staff at some high schools say UCs are better for your undergraduate studies but they are not…they just want their high school ranking to go up and get more $$$. Unless if you are top of the class and/or unique, it’ll be a tough time at UCs, very. This is not a conspiracy or anything, I got this from research and my sister who is at UCSD (luckily she is unique, so she doesn’t really have any problems).
I am not saying that UCs are bad schools, but it’s just not the brightest idea to go at any of them for your undergraduate studies. UCs overall dominate most CSUs if you look at the whole picture. I think the problem is that some high school students think they will get the experience like graduate and professional students at UCs, but that is not really the case.
Big Squad of cheerleaders for CSUs on here. Depending upon your corse of study, your budget, your tolerance for political posturing, your ability to conform to “herd mentality” CSUs can be an excellent fit. I chose a CSU for grad school because of the price and because it was close to my home for commuting. As an unexpected bonus, it actually provided a top notch program in my area of study. I bit my tongue and quietly moved with herd past frequent challenges with over enrollment, one or two nut-job profs, complete lack of cohesive communication, and political infighting (and sometimes outright fighting) between administrators. Nothing to see here–mooo’ve along.
Knowing that, I forced my kids to add two CSUs to their application lists. I actually hauled them around the state from Humbolt to SDSU. I assured them no shame in attending a CSU (especially with instate tuition), but given better choices (aka schools without impacted majors, overenrolled campuses and crapy four year grad rates and dorms that smelt like wet dog) they chose OOS privates.
The take away, CSUs, bad rep comes not from the individual programs (some are top tier) but association with CSu bureaucracy.
I really appreciate everyone’s comments! It has helped me a lot to clear up my mind! I have been thinking a lot about this. My local CSU is San Diego State, and if I attend there I’d graduate without any debt, which makes attending the school very appealing. I really like the hands on experience aspect of the CSUs, would SDSU give me the good education that I am looking for? I’ve never actually heard how reputable their engineering department is. This thread has made me reconsider a lot of schools that people told me were not “good enough” thank you so much!
@NcalRent @“aunt bea” @Gumbymom would anyone care to give me advice about what I wrote about in post #13?
As long as the SDSU’s Engineering Department is ABET accredited for your specific major, you be taught similar material at all the ABET accredited schools. My younger son is a CS major at SDSU and has many friends pursuing Engineering majors at SDSU whom are very happy with the program. Graduating without Undergrad debt is definitely worth it as long as you feel SDSU will meet your needs.
http://main.abet.org/aps/Accreditedprogramsearch.aspx
Here is a link to My Map which will give you 4 year plan based on your major. 2017 maps are not available yet, so select 2016 on the drop down along with major: https://sunspot.sdsu.edu/pubred/!mymap.disp
My husband hires a lot of EE and CS grads from SDSU. Just make sure your GPA is strong.
@Gumbymom I would like to develop my career here in San Diego, and I honestly don’t know if SDSU has a reputable program although with the ABET accreditation I do feel confident about it. From what I’ve discussed with my parents going to a UC or CSU with the exception of San Diego would leave me with a ~40k debt, as they can only contribute ~20k per year. There is also the issue that if I stay here I will be able to have my own car but will rely on public transportation if I go somewhere else throughout the whole 4 years, which I don’t see as convenient for me because I want to have as much internships as I am able to. I know SDSU is probably the best decision, but for some reason I am having a hard time admitting that.
@“aunt bea” do you have any idea about the job prospects from the ME department?
You need to ask the ME department at SDSU.
There are some ME’s at my husband’s work site
There are lots of big corps in Rancho Bernardo. You can look for listings online. You shouldn’t have a problem finding work in SD, LA or Riverside counties.