Should I choose Chapman University or UCLA for Pre-Med?

[exon111]

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I'm a high school senior and I'm trying to decide between a biology W/ emphasis on physiology major at Chapman University or an MIMG major at UCLA. Chapman offered an 18K annual scholarship, so there isn't too much of a price difference.

Which school should I choose? Obviously UCLA has a better name and ranking, but the quarter system and grading curve will probably result in some GPA deflation. It seems like it's easier to earn a higher GPA at Chapman, but I don't know for sure. Will medical school admissions committees care that UCLA is a tougher school, or would I be better off with a higher GPA fro Chapman? What would you do?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Tots]

Personally I think you would have better access to opportunities such as research at UCLA but I really don't have any idea of how Chapman's Biology programs are; I mainly hear about its film, business and law programs.
I really don't have any input on your actual question about the GPA so I'm pretty useless 😎

 

[JaggerPlate]

Go to Chapman. PM me for details if you want.

 

[PlatinumPenny]

choose whichever school you feel like you will excel at academically. Look at your learning style..are you comfortable being in a classroom with 200+students, where you really have to be self-motivated, where other pre-meds will be super competitive (UCLA) or a small classroom size, where people are more likely to be less competitive and you could probably get more personalized time with professors (chapman) just my $0.02...keep in mind i I'm making HUGE generalizations about each school

 

[redlight]

choose whichever school you feel like you will excel at academically. Look at your learning style..are you comfortable being in a classroom with 200+students, where you really have to be self-motivated, where other pre-meds will be super competitive (UCLA) or a small classroom size, where people are more likely to be less competitive and you could probably get more personalized time with professors (chapman) just my $0.02...keep in mind i I'm making HUGE generalizations about each school

small class size =/= noncompetitive or lower competitiveness.

what kind of logic are you using? (as in explain please)

 

[Pedsbro]

Personally I think you would have better access to opportunities such as research at UCLA but I really don't have any idea of how Chapman's Biology programs are; I mainly hear about its film, business and law programs.
I really don't have any input on your actual question about the GPA so I'm pretty useless 😎

Agreed...everyone I knew in high school that went to Chapman went for a non-science degree. They are not known for their life sciences at all. UCLA of course is a huge institution with extensive research, a much better academic reputation and faculty, and a great medical school attached to it! You'll get a much better education at UCLA. Don't let quarter systems scare you...I went to UC Irvine which also has quarters and didn't feel at a disadvantage at all.
No way to tell what adcoms will think, but in my opinion, a slightly lower GPA from UCLA in a life science degree will go WAY farther than higher GPA from Chapman University....and yes, they do look at where you went to school (as to how much weight they actually put on that probably varies drastically from med school to med school). Still, if you were accepted to both those programs, that's a pretty nice choice to have...good luck

 

[funkydrmonkey]

As a current MIMG major at UCLA, I say come here. IMO, it is not the upper div classes which are hard, but the lower div, because of curves and the psycho premeds that you are competing with. The major is very interesting, you are taught by leading researchers in the field, and you can also pursue cutting edge research here at UCLA. Yes it is hard, but you have to remember, college is supposed to be hard. I personally like the quarter system, because generally after 8th week, I get bored by a class, so when we take a new set of classes, it re-motivates me.

Plus, how do you know it will be easier to get a higher GPA at Chapman? I initially went to UC Irvine instead of UCLA, because I got a full scholarship at UC Irvine. I thought, oh since I got into UCLA, but I am going to UCI, I can get a 4.0 at UCI... Yeah right. I looked at my GPA at UCLA and UCI, and I noticed that I have gotten higher GPA's at UCLA than I did at UCI. Every school is tough, and there are going to be people who study a lot. Plus, you can also use this as a motivation factor to study harder. If you study hard, you can do well at UCLA, and that will look the best for medical school. Also, where you go for undergrad does matter when it comes to medical school. This topic has been beaten to death in these forums, and a quick search will show you the thousands of threads that have been posted.


Good luck on your decision, and I hope you decide to become a Bruin!

 

[pazan]

I graduated UCLA and my gf graduated Chapman (non-science). I would really recommend going to UCLA for undergrad. The opportunities at UCLA in terms of research, extracurriculars, interactions with noted faculty, etc. are much greater than at Chapman; at the end of the day, that's what will make your app (not just GPA). My gf didn't have any pre-med friends at Chapman... the emphasis really is on film and humanities. You are risking tanking your GPA at UCLA, but Chapman won't necessarily be easier; doing well depends on you more than it does a grading curve. Good luck and live it up in college.

 

[exon111]

As a current MIMG major at UCLA, I say come here. IMO, it is not the upper div classes which are hard, but the lower div, because of curves and the psycho premeds that you are competing with. The major is very interesting, you are taught by leading researchers in the field, and you can also pursue cutting edge research here at UCLA. Yes it is hard, but you have to remember, college is supposed to be hard. I personally like the quarter system, because generally after 8th week, I get bored by a class, so when we take a new set of classes, it re-motivates me.

If the most intense competition is in lower div classes, would it be a better idea to transfer from Chapman to UCLA after 2 years? Could this be the best of both worlds?

Plus, how do you know it will be easier to get a higher GPA at Chapman? I initially went to UC Irvine instead of UCLA, because I got a full scholarship at UC Irvine. I thought, oh since I got into UCLA, but I am going to UCI, I can get a 4.0 at UCI... Yeah right. I looked at my GPA at UCLA and UCI, and I noticed that I have gotten higher GPA's at UCLA than I did at UCI. Every school is tough, and there are going to be people who study a lot. Plus, you can also use this as a motivation factor to study harder. If you study hard, you can do well at UCLA, and that will look the best for medical school. Also, where you go for undergrad does matter when it comes to medical school. This topic has been beaten to death in these forums, and a quick search will show you the thousands of threads that have been posted.


Good luck on your decision, and I hope you decide to become a Bruin!

I don't know for sure it it's easier to get a higher GPA at Chapman, but there seem to be less studyaholic super geniuses who might be impossible to outstudy. This is just a generalization / my opinion though.

You're right, college is supposed to be hard and I want to get the best education possible, but at the same time med school is priority #1 and I don't want to risk my GPA unnecessarily.

As a MIMG major, would you recommend it to other pre-med students instead of physiological science? Some say that it lowers your GPA and doesn't teach you info that's applicable in med school, while others says it's easier to get a high GPA if you find the subject matter interesting. I do like microbiology, but physiological science is also fascinating IMO. Would you recommend one over the other?

 

[sarahg]

I think UCLA might be a better premed education, because of the research opportunities as well as the fact that based on the attitudes of nearly everyone I've met associated with the UC system, I wouldn't be surprised if they greatly favor their own (I'm assuming as a CA resident that you'll be applying to all the UCs).

But, I left the UC system (UCI) after two years due to a couple or years due to a couple of things -- mainly the social atmosphere and competitiveness of actually getting the great opportunities. I was in the honors program so I was supposedly promised funding for research, but I was never given any guidance on how to actually do it, I wouldn't have known how to write a proposal to actually get my funding. To get actual research experience if you're not in the honors program and can do your own (at least as a psych and social behavior major) you have to compete with a bunch of other undergrads to be some grad student's bitch. And socially, I couldn't really identify with most of the people on campus. My experience with UCI as well as people from UCSD (I live in SD so I get to know them) is that there's a disgusting amount of intellectual snobbery and competitiveness. I could mostly escape it hanging out with people from my own major (psychology and social behavior) but it's at its worst in premed students. I had a study group in a cafe once and a girl came up to us, asked what major we were, and said it's really nice how we can study together and she wished she could do something like that but she's a bio major and they're all too competitive to get along.

In fact, I'm not sure that if I were to get into a UC med school, I'd even go, even though I'm a CA resident so they're definitely my cheapest option. When I think about being completely surrounded by UC premeds...I think I'd rather pay more to go to a lower rank school just to be around more laid back people.

So, there's definitely something to be said for private school. I transferred to one, despite being on full scholarship at UCI. You won't have the opportunity to do assist with cutting edge research, but they'll create opportunities for anyone who wants to do their own. You don't have to compete, you just have to ask. Because there aren't limited resources, everyone can get along and want each other to succeed. You'll have more intensive advising to help you along. There are no grad students that we have to suck up to or compete with for professors' attention. The school is really invested in getting everyone into grad, law, or med school. And despite the fact that this is the best school in its state and UCI definitely isn't, there's way less intellectual snobbery. It was definitely the right decision for me, ESPECIALLY since, as a senior, I've decided I want to use the premed resources. The fine print is that I don't actually know anything about Chapman so I can't promise any of this would hold true there. But I bet it would at most decent private schools, especially liberal arts colleges without grad programs.

The bottom line I guess is that it's a matter of personality. Many people love the UC system and I'm grateful as a Californian that it provides us with a world-class education at a very low cost, not many states have that. But if you're not a competitive type or an overachiever type it might not be for you.

 

[funkydrmonkey]

I think UCLA might be a better premed education, because of the research opportunities as well as the fact that based on the attitudes of nearly everyone I've met associated with the UC system, I wouldn't be surprised if they greatly favor their own (I'm assuming as a CA resident that you'll be applying to all the UCs).

But, I left the UC system (UCI) after two years due to a couple or years due to a couple of things -- mainly the social atmosphere and competitiveness of actually getting the great opportunities. I was in the honors program so I was supposedly promised funding for research, but I was never given any guidance on how to actually do it, I wouldn't have known how to write a proposal to actually get my funding. To get actual research experience if you're not in the honors program and can do your own (at least as a psych and social behavior major) you have to compete with a bunch of other undergrads to be some grad student's bitch. And socially, I couldn't really identify with most of the people on campus. My experience with UCI as well as people from UCSD (I live in SD so I get to know them) is that there's a disgusting amount of intellectual snobbery and competitiveness. I could mostly escape it hanging out with people from my own major (psychology and social behavior) but it's at its worst in premed students. I had a study group in a cafe once and a girl came up to us, asked what major we were, and said it's really nice how we can study together and she wished she could do something like that but she's a bio major and they're all too competitive to get along.

In fact, I'm not sure that if I were to get into a UC med school, I'd even go, even though I'm a CA resident so they're definitely my cheapest option. When I think about being completely surrounded by UC premeds...I think I'd rather pay more to go to a lower rank school just to be around more laid back people.

So, there's definitely something to be said for private school. I transferred to one, despite being on full scholarship at UCI. You won't have the opportunity to do assist with cutting edge research, but they'll create opportunities for anyone who wants to do their own. You don't have to compete, you just have to ask. Because there aren't limited resources, everyone can get along and want each other to succeed. You'll have more intensive advising to help you along. There are no grad students that we have to suck up to or compete with for professors' attention. The school is really invested in getting everyone into grad, law, or med school. And despite the fact that this is the best school in its state and UCI definitely isn't, there's way less intellectual snobbery. It was definitely the right decision for me, ESPECIALLY since, as a senior, I've decided I want to use the premed resources. The fine print is that I don't actually know anything about Chapman so I can't promise any of this would hold true there. But I bet it would at most decent private schools, especially liberal arts colleges without grad programs.

The bottom line I guess is that it's a matter of personality. Many people love the UC system and I'm grateful as a Californian that it provides us with a world-class education at a very low cost, not many states have that. But if you're not a competitive type or an overachiever type it might not be for you.

Haha, I know you... we had class together😀

 

[Bacchus]

Take the post above me with serious consideration. This amount of competition is not conducive to your education, ability to do well, or secure what you need to get into medical school (LORs, good grades, leadership opportunities, etc). If you're determined, you'll do well at UCLA. However, for me, the competition would drive me crazy.

 

[funkydrmonkey]

If the most intense competition is in lower div classes, would it be a better idea to transfer from Chapman to UCLA after 2 years? Could this be the best of both worlds?

I dunno... Granted I have a slightly higher GPA than some of my peers, I actually wish I went to UCLA for all 4 years. Plus transferring screws you over from enrolling in classes, and I just found out that I will most likely be ineligible to receive PBK since I am a transfer student.

I don't know for sure it it's easier to get a higher GPA at Chapman, but there seem to be less studyaholic super geniuses who might be impossible to outstudy. This is just a generalization / my opinion though.

You're right, college is supposed to be hard and I want to get the best education possible, but at the same time med school is priority #1 and I don't want to risk my GPA unnecessarily.

As a MIMG major, would you recommend it to other pre-med students instead of physiological science? Some say that it lowers your GPA and doesn't teach you info that's applicable in med school, while others says it's easier to get a high GPA if you find the subject matter interesting. I do like microbiology, but physiological science is also fascinating IMO. Would you recommend one over the other?

MIMG vs. PhySci... do whatever you are interested in. I really love Microbio, so I was able to spend hours studying for my classes. I felt if I were in a major that I did not enjoy, then I would be bored to death, and I would not be able to study as much. I actually think I would get a lower GPA in PhySci since I am not particularly interested in the subject. Do not go into a major just because it is supposedly easy. You need to remember that the classes are usually curved, and that means that there are also the people who fail those classes, so it is not necessarily easier. If you end up coming to UCLA, then after taking the LS series, decide what major you want to be. If you like LS1 (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology), LS2 (Physiological Sciences), LS3 (Molecular Biology), and LS4 (Genetics). If you like LS2 better than LS3/4, then go do the PhySci Route, but if you like LS3/4 better, then, go to the MIMG or perhaps, the MCDB route.

 

[Tots]

And socially, I couldn't really identify with most of the people on campus. My experience with UCI as well as people from UCSD (I live in SD so I get to know them) is that there's a disgusting amount of intellectual snobbery and competitiveness. I could mostly escape it hanging out with people from my own major (psychology and social behavior) but it's at its worst in premed students. I had a study group in a cafe once and a girl came up to us, asked what major we were, and said it's really nice how we can study together and she wished she could do something like that but she's a bio major and they're all too competitive to get along.

This is why I am not a Bio major at UCI. Though I know some decent pre-med Bio majors, I try to stay at least 10 feet away from the general majority. O_O they be crazy!

 

[BlueElmo]

UCLA. You will have more fun.

 

[Lukkie]

chapman

 

[gonj]

studyaholic super geniuses who might be impossible to outstudy.

this pretty much sums up who you will be competing with for grades at UCLA

 

[drizzt3117]

I think you should go to UCLA. You'll have better opportunities there, and although it will be competitive, so will med school, so getting used to it will help you.

 

[exon111]

chapman

If you're for Chapman please state the reasons why you think it's a better choice. It's really helpful.

The more opinions represented here the better, so feel free to chime in. Thanks to everyone who posted so far!

 

[JokerMD]

sdfsdfsd

 

[ChubbyChaser]

Chapman...go with the money, you wont regret it later.

 

[qmcat]

I think UCLA might be a better premed education, because of the research opportunities as well as the fact that based on the attitudes of nearly everyone I've met associated with the UC system, I wouldn't be surprised if they greatly favor their own (I'm assuming as a CA resident that you'll be applying to all the UCs).

But, I left the UC system (UCI) after two years due to a couple or years due to a couple of things -- mainly the social atmosphere and competitiveness of actually getting the great opportunities. I was in the honors program so I was supposedly promised funding for research, but I was never given any guidance on how to actually do it, I wouldn't have known how to write a proposal to actually get my funding. To get actual research experience if you're not in the honors program and can do your own (at least as a psych and social behavior major) you have to compete with a bunch of other undergrads to be some grad student's bitch. And socially, I couldn't really identify with most of the people on campus. My experience with UCI as well as people from UCSD (I live in SD so I get to know them) is that there's a disgusting amount of intellectual snobbery and competitiveness. I could mostly escape it hanging out with people from my own major (psychology and social behavior) but it's at its worst in premed students. I had a study group in a cafe once and a girl came up to us, asked what major we were, and said it's really nice how we can study together and she wished she could do something like that but she's a bio major and they're all too competitive to get along.

In fact, I'm not sure that if I were to get into a UC med school, I'd even go, even though I'm a CA resident so they're definitely my cheapest option. When I think about being completely surrounded by UC premeds...I think I'd rather pay more to go to a lower rank school just to be around more laid back people.

So, there's definitely something to be said for private school. I transferred to one, despite being on full scholarship at UCI. You won't have the opportunity to do assist with cutting edge research, but they'll create opportunities for anyone who wants to do their own. You don't have to compete, you just have to ask. Because there aren't limited resources, everyone can get along and want each other to succeed. You'll have more intensive advising to help you along. There are no grad students that we have to suck up to or compete with for professors' attention. The school is really invested in getting everyone into grad, law, or med school. And despite the fact that this is the best school in its state and UCI definitely isn't, there's way less intellectual snobbery. It was definitely the right decision for me, ESPECIALLY since, as a senior, I've decided I want to use the premed resources. The fine print is that I don't actually know anything about Chapman so I can't promise any of this would hold true there. But I bet it would at most decent private schools, especially liberal arts colleges without grad programs.

The bottom line I guess is that it's a matter of personality. Many people love the UC system and I'm grateful as a Californian that it provides us with a world-class education at a very low cost, not many states have that. But if you're not a competitive type or an overachiever type it might not be for you.

I agree 100%. The decision will depend largely on your personality, but I would say go with where you will be the happiest and where you think you can succeed the most.

When I was deciding on college, I was deciding between UC Berkeley and my small private liberal arts college. The situation was different for me at the time, since I had a really big scholarship at the priv college and nothing at Berkeley.

However, leaving money aside, my decision to go to the priv college was mostly because I felt that the school and faculty cared more about me at the smaller priv college vs. at Berkeley. When I was touring Berkeley and shadowing one of my friends who went there, I felt like the school/faculty didn't really care who went to their classes and who succeeded or failed. Student-faculty interaction seemed to be pretty low. Sometimes, there were classes so large that there would be multiple lecture halls with TV screens showing the professor talking and writing on the board. Sometimes classes were taught by TA's rather than the profs. In research, it seemed like the undergrads got more of the "scut" work (sorry for using a med term here haha) compared to the grad students.

At my private school, the largest class in the university was with 50 students (gen-chem), and smallest class I've ever been in was 6 students (p-chem and advanced classical latin). The professors here aren't all that famous, but they really care about teaching more than doing research. Most everyone gets along here (except for the gunners who sit in the first row of every class... jokes 😉). In my research experience, the lab was 2 students and 1 prof, so he split us up where each student had his/her own project and we had a 3rd project where we work together. It's been really amazing since I got the chance to first-author several abstracts and design/implement my own research projects. The only downside I saw going to a small private school was sometimes you only have 1 or 2 teachers teaching a subject, and you're stuck with them even if you hate them.

So yea, I hope that gives you another perspective on schools. Ultimately, just go to the place where you think you can succeed the most.

 

[drizzt3117]

Chapman...go with the money, you wont regret it later.

I think UCLA is still cheaper even with the scholarship, Chapman is an expensive private school in Orange County.

 

[exon111]

I think UCLA is still cheaper even with the scholarship, Chapman is an expensive private school in Orange County.

UCLA ends up being 26K per year according to the financial aid paper, or 15K per year at Chapman W/ scholarship. I live close to Chapman which = no dorm cost.

 

[drizzt3117]

I end up having to pay 26K a year at UCLA according to the financial aid paper, or 15K a year at Chapman W/ scholarship.

Hm, not bad. I would still go to UCLA though. While Chapman has more research and clinical resources than a lot of people who aren't familiar with Orange County realize (it's ~3 miles from UCI med center) I still think you'd have a better college experience in UCLA. Chapman is kind of a commuter school and I wouldn't want to attend it, personally.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

I think UCLA is still cheaper even with the scholarship, Chapman is an expensive private school in Orange County.

o...well idk.. 44K is a pretty big difference to me. He may have more opportunities at UCLA, but I am sure Chapman will have some research opportunities as well and he wont have to compete with anybody to get those positions. The one big thing he would be missing out on is probably the parties, but pretty much every school parties...even Liberty has people who party. though im sure UCLA parties>>> chapman lol

I choose my school over UNC because it was roughly 40K cheaper for me, and I dont regret it one bit. Ive gotten into medical school where I want and had fun a long the way.

 

[drizzt3117]

o...well idk.. 44K is a pretty big difference to me. He may have more opportunities at UCLA, but I am sure Chapman will have some research opportunities as well and he wont have to compete with anybody to get those positions. The one big thing he would be missing out on is probably the parties, but pretty much every school parties...even Liberty has people who party. though im sure UCLA parties>>> chapman lol

Eh, I'd just get a job or something if you're that worried about student loans. The four years you'll have in undergrad are experiences you won't have again, I think it's worth spending $11k more a year but that's just me (then again I'm also really familiar with the two schools in question so that affects my thoughts about it)

I'm not even sure they do scientific research at Chapman haha (although you may be able to do it @ UCI). Chapman isn't in real Orange County anyways.

 

[exon111]

o...well idk.. 44K is a pretty big difference to me. He may have more opportunities at UCLA, but I am sure Chapman will have some research opportunities as well and he wont have to compete with anybody to get those positions. The one big thing he would be missing out on is probably the parties, but pretty much every school parties...even Liberty has people who party. though im sure UCLA parties>>> chapman lol

Ehh, I'm not really a party person. Not a nerd, but not a super social party person either.

Come to think of it, it's more of a price difference that I thought, but that's not the most important factor in my decision (although it's certainly something I'll take into consideration).

 

[MDtoBe1Day]

here's my peice of advice - check out each school's pre-med page on their respective websites. this might be able to give you a good idea of exactly how seriously the schools are about equpping their premed students sufficently. Also, if you can, see if you can talk to some upperclassmn premeds to get their take 👍

 

[drizzt3117]

here's my peice of advice - check out each school's pre-med page on their respective websites. this might be able to give you a good idea of exactly how seriously the schools are about equpping their premed students sufficently. Also, if you can, see if you can talk to some upperclassmn premeds to get their take 👍

One other thing to keep in mind is that AMCAS said there were 773 applicants to med school from UCLA last year, Chapman didn't make the list of schools so we can't tell how many there were from there.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

I think it's worth spending $11k more a year but that's just me (then again I'm also really familiar with the two schools in question so that affects my thoughts about it)
.

Ill admit...i have no idea about Chapman, but im one to believe college is what you make out of it...it would be really hard to convince me to spend 45thousand dollars to go to one school over another.

 

[pazan]

I think UCLA might be a better premed education, because of the research opportunities as well as the fact that based on the attitudes of nearly everyone I've met associated with the UC system, I wouldn't be surprised if they greatly favor their own (I'm assuming as a CA resident that you'll be applying to all the UCs).

But, I left the UC system (UCI) after two years due to a couple or years due to a couple of things -- mainly the social atmosphere and competitiveness of actually getting the great opportunities. I was in the honors program so I was supposedly promised funding for research, but I was never given any guidance on how to actually do it, I wouldn't have known how to write a proposal to actually get my funding. To get actual research experience if you're not in the honors program and can do your own (at least as a psych and social behavior major) you have to compete with a bunch of other undergrads to be some grad student's bitch. And socially, I couldn't really identify with most of the people on campus. My experience with UCI as well as people from UCSD (I live in SD so I get to know them) is that there's a disgusting amount of intellectual snobbery and competitiveness. I could mostly escape it hanging out with people from my own major (psychology and social behavior) but it's at its worst in premed students. I had a study group in a cafe once and a girl came up to us, asked what major we were, and said it's really nice how we can study together and she wished she could do something like that but she's a bio major and they're all too competitive to get along.

In fact, I'm not sure that if I were to get into a UC med school, I'd even go, even though I'm a CA resident so they're definitely my cheapest option. When I think about being completely surrounded by UC premeds...I think I'd rather pay more to go to a lower rank school just to be around more laid back people.

So, there's definitely something to be said for private school. I transferred to one, despite being on full scholarship at UCI. You won't have the opportunity to do assist with cutting edge research, but they'll create opportunities for anyone who wants to do their own. You don't have to compete, you just have to ask. Because there aren't limited resources, everyone can get along and want each other to succeed. You'll have more intensive advising to help you along. There are no grad students that we have to suck up to or compete with for professors' attention. The school is really invested in getting everyone into grad, law, or med school. And despite the fact that this is the best school in its state and UCI definitely isn't, there's way less intellectual snobbery. It was definitely the right decision for me, ESPECIALLY since, as a senior, I've decided I want to use the premed resources. The fine print is that I don't actually know anything about Chapman so I can't promise any of this would hold true there. But I bet it would at most decent private schools, especially liberal arts colleges without grad programs.

The bottom line I guess is that it's a matter of personality. Many people love the UC system and I'm grateful as a Californian that it provides us with a world-class education at a very low cost, not many states have that. But if you're not a competitive type or an overachiever type it might not be for you.

Welcome to life. I guess this is a personality issue, but actually looking for and taking part in those opportunities prepared me much better for the semi-real world work I'm doing now and, I'm assuming, for medical school. I worked on a failed research project with a post-doc who was fired, did terribly in O-chem, etc, but it's knowing how to deal with those mistakes that prevents me from making them again. I also had a lot of laid-back friends at UCLA who weren't competitive; we all studied and shared notes with each other without being afraid someone might contribute to a higher curve because of our help. I can make many more disparaging comments about Chapman, from what I saw of my gf's classwork and friends. Chapman is NOT pomona college, claremont mckenna, amherst, etc... the science departments are weak and intellectualism amongst science majors is lacking. My gf had plenty of smart friends, but also a lot who were failing classes (despite what you may think, the advising is not that good). You can definitely be happy and successful at either school, but I think passing on UCLA would be a mistake... especially because the price tags are identical.

 

[drizzt3117]

Welcome to life. I guess this is a personality issue, but actually looking for and taking part in those opportunities prepared me much better for the semi-real world work I'm doing now and, I'm assuming, for medical school. I worked on a failed research project with a post-doc who was fired, did terribly in O-chem, etc, but it's knowing how to deal with those mistakes that prevents me from making them again. I also had a lot of laid-back friends at UCLA who weren't competitive; we all studied and shared notes with each other without being afraid someone might contribute to a higher curve because of our help. I can make many more disparaging comments about Chapman, from what I saw of my gf's classwork and friends. Chapman is NOT pomona college, claremont mckenna, amherst, etc... the science departments are weak and intellectualism amongst science majors is lacking. My gf had plenty of smart friends, but also a lot who were failing classes (despite what you may think, the advising is not that good). You can definitely be happy and successful at either school, but I think passing on UCLA would be a mistake... especially because the price tags are identical.

but... the USNWR says they're one of the most prestigious private schools in Southern California!!

 

[pazan]

but... the USNWR says they're one of the most prestigious private schools in Southern California!!

I checked the us news rankings and they're ranked 10th in the West region for master's level universities... tied with cal poly slo. Chapman's a good school with great opportunities (I have friends who graduated from Chapman and are doing very well... though no pre-med friends from there). Other private schools in so cal: usc, pepperdine, lmu, redlands, occidental, etc.. seems safe to say Chapman is up there with those schools, so I'll agree w/you. I don't think I ever said it was a bad school; I just said that UCLA is a much better choice for pre-meds, imo, and that I had a better perspective than most people because of my experiences with both schools.

 

[flip26]

I'm a high school senior and I'm trying to decide between a biology W/ emphasis on physiology major at Chapman University or an MIMG major at UCLA. Chapman offered an 18K annual scholarship, so there isn't too much of a price difference.

Which school should I choose? Obviously UCLA has a better name and ranking, but the quarter system and grading curve will probably result in some GPA deflation. It seems like it's easier to earn a higher GPA at Chapman, but I don't know for sure. Will medical school admissions committees care that UCLA is a tougher school, or would I be better off with a higher GPA fro Chapman? What would you do?

Thanks in advance!

Spend some time on Pick-A-Prof and ratemyprofessor and look at the actual grades reported for classes. It won't necessarily tell you how you would do at either school, but I would rather take my chances at the school that is more generous with As...

I remember looking at UCLA pre-reqs once on one of these sites, and I was stunned at how many people earn As there compared to my state school...

 

[gonj]

but... the USNWR says they're one of the most prestigious private schools in Southern California!!

rly? i knew a girl who was a student there. biggest ***** ever. bc of that, i assumed it was a vocational school or something until i happened to google it one day.

 

[gonj]

Spend some time on Pick-A-Prof and ratemyprofessor and look at the actual grades reported for classes. It won't necessarily tell you how you would do at either school, but I would rather take my chances at the school that is more generous with As...

I remember looking at UCLA pre-reqs once on one of these sites, and I was stunned at how many people earn As there compared to my state school...

might be coincidence that theyre the ones who rated profs. then again it may be lies. the norm when i was there was only a certain # of students get As. thats bull**** if they've changed that.

 

[flip26]

might be coincidence that theyre the ones who rated profs. then again it may be lies. the norm when i was there was only a certain # of students get As. thats bull**** if they've changed that.

They claim to get the actual grades - it is not students providing the grades. I have found the grades they report to be extremely accurate.

The students rate the professors, etc.

When you say only a "certain number" get As, give examples. At my state school, I have classes where only about 10 percent of students earn A. I saw examples at UCLA in the same classes where 50+ percent reportedly got As...

I got no dog in this fight, just trying to give the OP something else to consider since he brought up the grades issue.

 

[drizzt3117]

They claim to get the actual grades - it is not students providing the grades. I have found the grades they report to be extremely accurate.

The students rate the professors, etc.

When you say only a "certain number" get As, give examples. At my state school, I have classes where only about 10 percent of students earn A. I saw examples at UCLA in the same classes where 50+ percent reportedly got As...

I got no dog in this fight, just trying to give the OP something else to consider since he brought up the grades issue.

UCLA has about 5500 students in each class (IIRC) and 773 of them applied to medical school... my guess is that there's a decent amount of competition there.

 

[gonj]

it's my understanding that at the CSUs if you get 90%+, or whatever cutoff, you get an A regardless of the how the rest of the class performs.

when i say "certain number," i literally mean there's a cap on the percentage of students who are allowed to get As. similarly, the majority of students have to get Bs. think standard deviations.

on ratemyprofessor.com, you self-report your grades. and though it is the same course (eg, econ 11) not everyone is necessarily in the same class. i've reported on profs that i've taken years ago. something to think about.

 

[flip26]

it's my understanding that at the CSUs if you get 90%+, or whatever cutoff, you get an A regardless of the how the rest of the class performs.

when i say "certain number," i literally mean there's a cap on the percentage of students who are allowed to get As. similarly, the majority of students have to get Bs. think standard deviations.

on ratemyprofessor.com, you self-report your grades. and though it is the same course (eg, econ 11) not everyone is necessarily in the same class. i've reported on profs that i've taken years ago. something to think about.

Then it is PickAProf that gets the grades from the school.

Whatever. Just trying to offer the OP (and others) something else to consider. Not here to argue the grading scales at UCLA or anywhere else...

 

[gonj]

ok whatever. its amazing that every class would report grade distributions to that website.

 

[JokerMD]

ok whatever. its amazing that every class would report grade distributions to that website.

dude, bruinwalk even does this now for some classes. except it's not self-reported; the professors PROVIDE the ACTUAL distributions 😱

 

[Disinence2]

Chapman hands down!