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Excelllent choice.
Should I go to UC Berkeley or UC San Diego?
- Thread starter LandSpeed
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C
cheezer
dude, not everyone surfs there.
if you're looking for leadership exp and/or non-hospital related volunteering, look into Alpha Phi Omega. It's a community service "fraternity." They help out at soup kitchens, homeless shelters, etc..
also, the school has a great onion-like paper called TheMQ that you can look into, if you're into that kind of stuff.
i would look into getting a place close to campus. the closer the better, they have a good public transportation system in and around campus. both ucsd and public buses are all over the place. otherwise you're looking at a possible traffic nightmare.
C
cheezer
she and i could've been great
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Thanks for the advice. I'm spending about 950/month on a nice 1 br in a great area, now... I can only fear how much that will change.
C
cheezer
enough to think twice about your weed habit
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Excellent choice. Trust me, you will have a better social life as well(girls and parties are better, esp if you make stops at SDSU)
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this is what i was trying to say. best of luck to the op, and anyone else having to make this decision.
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Dont make a rash decision just yet. You should Go to Berkeley over ANY other UC.
Why?
- its the #1 public school in the country
- Berkeley ranks 4th in the country in research funds--second only to private schools (ie there are tons of opportunities for you to participate in research at cal)
- we have ~22 nobel laureates associated with the school, and more top ten departments than any other college in the US
- sf is amazing, berkeley is a great college town
- the chem dept is better, and the mcb program is ranked #2 in the country behind stanford. berkeley gives you a better physical/biological science education than any other UC by far.
- UCSF and the Oakland childrens hospital and alta bates are close by.
- your fellow students will be smarter and will inspire you to be a better person and student
- Berkeley is more presitigious by far, which med schools DO take into account (quoting from a UCSF dean of admissions), even i can attest to the fact that on my interview trail (been to 4 top ten schools, among others) i see ivy leaguers, vanderbuilt kids, and Berkeley and Stanford applicants...never any other UCs. anecdotal evidence, but still something to think about.....
- Berkeley wont set fire like SoCal is now.
- For the rest of your life you will have the comfort in knowing that you received one of the best educations in the world from one of the most famous public institutions in the world in one of the top science programs in the world--and if THAT means getting a 3.8 at Cal rather than a 4.0 at UCSD, so what? grow some balls (unless you're a girl i guess) and go for a better education.
ps. one more point about GPAs (quoting from an ochem prof at Cal who used to sit on the med school admin committee at Cornell), med schools DO know the differences in gpa among schools. they know stanford and ivy's are inflated. they know cal is competitive. dont worry about gpa so much. Fact: 75% of Berkeley applicants with a 3.4 or better get into medical school. you can check the website.
Why?
- its the #1 public school in the country
- Berkeley ranks 4th in the country in research funds--second only to private schools (ie there are tons of opportunities for you to participate in research at cal)
- we have ~22 nobel laureates associated with the school, and more top ten departments than any other college in the US
- sf is amazing, berkeley is a great college town
- the chem dept is better, and the mcb program is ranked #2 in the country behind stanford. berkeley gives you a better physical/biological science education than any other UC by far.
- UCSF and the Oakland childrens hospital and alta bates are close by.
- your fellow students will be smarter and will inspire you to be a better person and student
- Berkeley is more presitigious by far, which med schools DO take into account (quoting from a UCSF dean of admissions), even i can attest to the fact that on my interview trail (been to 4 top ten schools, among others) i see ivy leaguers, vanderbuilt kids, and Berkeley and Stanford applicants...never any other UCs. anecdotal evidence, but still something to think about.....
- Berkeley wont set fire like SoCal is now.
- For the rest of your life you will have the comfort in knowing that you received one of the best educations in the world from one of the most famous public institutions in the world in one of the top science programs in the world--and if THAT means getting a 3.8 at Cal rather than a 4.0 at UCSD, so what? grow some balls (unless you're a girl i guess) and go for a better education.
ps. one more point about GPAs (quoting from an ochem prof at Cal who used to sit on the med school admin committee at Cornell), med schools DO know the differences in gpa among schools. they know stanford and ivy's are inflated. they know cal is competitive. dont worry about gpa so much. Fact: 75% of Berkeley applicants with a 3.4 or better get into medical school. you can check the website.
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OOOOOO, remind me again about the value of that? It only makes a difference if you are entering a reputation based profession(Business, law, etc). I probably wouldnt have been able to get a job at investment bank going to UCSD, but for medicine, its really makes no difference, especially compared to UCSD.
Its really hard to get undergrad research unless you start early on in college career, have connection, or great grades. In addition, most of the research is non-clinical focused, which probably doesnt apply to many ppl.
Once again, how does that help me as an undergrad? Most of them dont teach, and the ones that do, are probably ****ty teachers. While there are many great prof out there that teach and make the classes enjoyable, they are outweighed by the many prof that are only there for research and teaching comes second.
No disagreement with SF, but Berkeley is way overrated. Its dirty, and the nostalgia thing dries up fast.
Trust me, you learn the same stuff. I took classes after graduating from Cal at SFSU. They teach the same stuff there(half of the ppl teaching at SFSU also taught at Cal). The only difference is the degree of difficulty. At Cal, there are smarter ppl and thus harder curve. Personally from my experience, I dont think Cals education prepares you any better than UCSD at doing well on the MCATs. I know lots of ppl that scored ****ty on the MCATs from Cal(dont get me wrong, Cal probably has one of the highest school MCAT avgs, but that is mostly due to the academic quality/intelligence of the student body).
Thats a good one. If anything, that school only makes you more cutthroat and cynical. The competition and the depths that ppl are willing to go to to get those grades is ridiculous.
Dont disagree with that prestige factor, buts its really not worth much. If two applicants have identical stats, then it makes a difference. But, you figure if you had a 3.6/34 from Berkeley(ie, me), you probably would have a 3.8-9 at UCSD. Now, a 3.8-9/34 from UCSD looks a lot better than a 3.6/34 from Berkeley. Go to mdapplicants.com to see for yourself.
Look the thing is, and I am willing to bet with most ppl that went to Cal, they probably had to work very hard to get above a 3.4. Furthermore, I am willing to bet that most think that they would have probably got at least .3 points higher on their GPA if they went to a different school. Now, the thing is do you want to work harder to get a 3.4 at Berkeley, when you could probably get a 3.7 or higher at UCSD(difference between a B+ and A- avg). The thing with these committees is that they do take into account school difficulty, but really underestimate it. Furthermore, UCSD is a really good school with a strong reputation and good affiliation with its medical school.
If you want the best view of Cal, look at the numerous number of Cal alum(including myself) that are recommending against going there. Furthermore, compare Cals student satisfaction/happiness/and alumni giving with other schools. Its one of the major reasons why Cals ranking keeps on falling.
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There is also a really good paper called The Koala which gives very fair and unbiased accounts of all sorts of things.
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i went to cal. it was stressful, difficult, and competitive.
but it didn't matter, because i loved cal, it was the perfect fit for me. i made my life-long friends there and fell in love with a great, odd city.
cal has a lot of opportunities, but you must always be actively seeking them. no one is going to help you out, it is all up to you. you must be an independent, hard working student and you HAVE to know what you want.
you either cut it, or you don't. hate it or love it.
go bears. 😉
but it didn't matter, because i loved cal, it was the perfect fit for me. i made my life-long friends there and fell in love with a great, odd city.
cal has a lot of opportunities, but you must always be actively seeking them. no one is going to help you out, it is all up to you. you must be an independent, hard working student and you HAVE to know what you want.
you either cut it, or you don't. hate it or love it.
go bears. 😉
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it matters that you can get a better education in number of different different departments. as i said, more top ten depts than any other school in the country. its about OPPORTUNITY to explore your intellectual interests. maybe you have to be intellectual to value that, i dunno.
[/quote]Its really hard to get undergrad research unless you start early on in college career, have connection, or great grades. In addition, most of the research is non-clinical focused, which probably doesnt apply to many ppl. [/quote]
i dont know where this is coming from. my friends and i had plenty of opportunity to research. working with the psych dept allowed me to do clinical research as well. if you want more clinical, you can hook up with ucsf. dont see your evidence here at all.
[/quote]Once again, how does that help me as an undergrad? Most of them dont teach, and the ones that do, are probably ****ty teachers. While there are many great prof out there that teach and make the classes enjoyable, they are outweighed by the many prof that are only there for research and teaching comes second. [/quote]
its about legacy, tradition. it means that any one of your profs could be the next laureate! (look at smoot (sp?) just won nobel in physics this year and he teaches the 7 series at cal!) not to mention many of our profs WRITE the textbooks that OTHER universities also use. thats got to mean something.
[/quote]No disagreement with SF, but Berkeley is way overrated. Its dirty, and the nostalgia thing dries up fast. [/quote]
i love berkeley. so did my friends. i dont know what your problem is--you must have not gotten out much. i knew a few people like you at Cal, always complaining. were you really this unhappy there or am i confusing you with all the other didnt-make-the-right-choice- Berkeley students ??
[/quote]Trust me, you learn the same stuff. I took classes after graduating from Cal at SFSU. They teach the same stuff there(half of the ppl teaching at SFSU also taught at Cal). The only difference is the degree of difficulty. At Cal, there are smarter ppl and thus harder curve. Personally from my experience, I dont think Cal's education prepares you any better than UCSD at doing well on the MCATs. I know lots of ppl that scored ****ty on the MCATs from Cal(dont get me wrong, Cal probably has one of the highest school MCAT avgs, but that is mostly due to the academic quality/intelligence of the student body). [/quote]
I really am confused on your logic here. At Cal, i studied with other people. its called group work/collaboration. in case you didnt know--thats something that is done a lot of in med school and as a doctor. when you are working with bright individuals, it only serves to enhance your individual studying.
[/quote]
Thats a good one. If anything, that school only makes you more cutthroat and cynical. The competition and the depths that ppl are willing to go to to get those grades is ridiculous. [/quote]
thats your view, and hey, thats fair! i had a different/more pleasurable experience.
[/quote]Dont disagree with that prestige factor, buts its really not worth much. If two applicants have identical stats, then it makes a difference. But, you figure if you had a 3.6/34 from Berkeley(ie, me), you probably would have a 3.8-9 at UCSD. Now, a 3.8-9/34 from UCSD looks a lot better than a 3.6/34 from Berkeley. Go to mdapplicants.com to see for yourself. [/quote]
mdapps is self reporting bs. show me a link to stats of accepted applicants from ucsd, and im sure i will be right. berkeley students do better. period.
[/quote]Look the thing is, and I am willing to bet with most ppl that went to Cal, they probably had to work very hard to get above a 3.4. Furthermore, I am willing to bet that most think that they would have probably got at least .3 points higher on their GPA if they went to a different school. Now, the thing is do you want to work harder to get a 3.4 at Berkeley, when you could probably get a 3.7 or higher at UCSD(difference between a B+ and A- avg). The thing with these committees is that they do take into account school difficulty, but really underestimate it. Furthermore, UCSD is a really good school with a strong reputation and good affiliation with its medical school. [/quote]
if your sole purpose is to get into medical school and thats it---then yes i would agree. "selling out" to a school of lesser calibur may be somewhat of an advantage. but, Berkeley is well respected. and, dude, its really not that hard to do well there.
if you value your education in undergrad and want the best education, go to berkeley. if you want to sell out for four years (while paying 10s of 1000s of bucks) to maximize your chances of going to med school--that makes me sick. same tuition, better education at cal. its that simple.
[/quote]If you want the best view of Cal, look at the numerous number of Cal alum(including myself) that are recommending against going there. Furthermore, compare Cal's student satisfaction/happiness/and alumni giving with other schools. Its one of the major reasons why Cal's ranking keeps on falling.[/quote]
i have theory as to why this is happening, but its too extreme/offensive for sdn. i ll just not say it. but what i will say that of my many friends at cal, overwhelming majority loved it, only a few others didnt.
I wanted to go to Cal but as an out of state students the UC system thought it was cool to charge me as much as a private university and give me considerably less aid ;[. I would have settled for UCLA, but again same problem. I'm not even sure if its worth the bother applying to the UCs for med school. Your state makes it very difficult to break in! Thankfully, Texas has quite a few awesome and very cheap schools so I would be happy to return there if they would accept me.
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Which one?
C
cheezer
lol. right.
S
suwaifo
Is it just me or are there tons of fallacies within these arguments? If they were both trying to be funny, then ok fine, but they weren't really persuasive as arguments.
A good education huh...
A good education huh...
Cal Elitists on SDN FTW.
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K, but 3.4 or better is the around the avg cutoff for medical school acceptance nationally. Imagine what they would be getting at a low tier school. The reason why I am saying not to go to Cal is to address the OP's orignal question about what school to go to for premed path. While there might be other factors that adcom look at, GPA and MCAT are the major considerations. Now, the question is which school will the OP have a better GPA/MCAT at. From my experiences of having gone to Cal and knowing many ppl at UCSD(Im from San Diego), I am recommending UCSD. In terms of reputation(esp in the biological sciences), UCSD isnt that far off from Cal, especially for medical school adcoms.
I think I did fairly decent at Cal(3.6, 2 majors, and great GPA trend over final years) and have what I consider a decent MCAT(34). While my scores are good, they arent speculator due to the avg GPA. Yet, most ppl that went to Cal would know how difficult it is to get a GPA>3.6. Now, I know if I went to a lower tier school or less difficult school(UCSD), I would have had a better GPA. Last year, while working fulltime, I took a semester of additional classes(16 science units/4 biology classes) at SFSU to improve my BCPM GPA. While working 45 hrs/week and volunteering at a hospital for 10 hrs/week, I was able to get a 4.0 at SFSU. Now, I know I wouldnt have been able to have done that at Cal. Thus, what Im saying is that if I had gone to another school, like UCSD, I probably would have had a 3.8-3.9 GPA with a 34 MCAT vs a 3.6 GPA with a 34 MCAT, and probably even had more time to spend on other premed related ECs. Now, which looks better to the adcoms? A 3.6 and 34 from Berkeley or a 3.8-3.9 and 34 from UCSD?
Some ppl have been trying to argue that if I hadnt gone to Cal, my MCAT would have been lower, implying that Cal somehow prepared me for the MCATs. In my opinion, that is just plain BS. From my experience of having gone to Cal and SFSU, I know that the education isnt different(Most of the SFSU faculty teach at Cal). Cal doesnt necessarily prepare you any better for the MCAT than any other school. There are numerous ppl that go to lower tier schools and get high MCAT scores, and many ppl that go to Cal/other high tier schools and score crappy on the MCATs. In my opinion, the MCAT can be very easily conquered by just studying the Kaplan/ExamKracker/and other teaching aids, and putting the effort in.
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Sounds good to me. Go tritons!
S
suwaifo
By the way LandSpeed, where are you transferring from?
Or did I miss that in this thread because I'm a noob? 😕
Or did I miss that in this thread because I'm a noob? 😕
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I'm a Cal elitist, but UCSD gets a 👍 in my book.
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I'll be transferring from Sierra College in Rocklin, CA.
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.............i think you could have just studied harder. if you were an ib, or a cdb or anything else easier than that......i see no reason for you to be complaining. high gpa's are very attainable at berkeley, provided you pick the major you are best at.
go bears........freakin' cardinal....wtf?
to the OP: why dont you reconsider? i say you should go to UCLA. why?
bc its the perfect avg of Berkeley and UCSD.
it has some prestige (like Cal) , and a great location in SoCal (like SD). it has great professors (like Cal) , and a great link to a medical center (like SD). thay ya' go.
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Yea, I would go UCLA over UCSD. La Jolla is such a quiet upscale suburban town.
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Good question... to tell you the truth, though, it's because of the cycling teams. UCSD and UCB have great collegiate teams -- and nearby mountain biking, too.
