UCBSO vs. SUNY

[liberum_arbitrium]

Hey all! I'm blessed to have been accepted to both programs and I'm having the hardest time choosing between the two. Would love some insight!

UCBSO:
I'm a Bay Area native so attending Berkeley is my least expensive option. It would allow me to stay close to my family. In the future, I plan to practice in California so it's potentially smarter to stay in the area and create a network during my years in school. I have heard that the equipment and technology at Berkeley is older, though I'm not sure how true this is. I'm also apprehensive about the notorious inter-student competitiveness in the program -- I don't know if it would be a less-than-ideal environment mentally, as I really value being in a good state of mind.

SUNY:
My biggest plus for SUNY is that it's so close to Times Square, which is full of things to do, people to meet, places to see! I've always wanted to live in NY and explore the east coast. It's the perfect situation because I want to be able to move back to California to start a family when the time comes. But being from CA, I'm not sure how I'd adapt to colder weather -- I've probably seen snow maybe twice in my life? I also have no idea what to expect about living in a city and using public transport to get around. But I have a cousin who is a third year at SUNY, who says she chose SUNY over Berkeley because of the newer equipment/technology and family-vibe.

Thanks in advance!! Good luck to everyone applying this cycle!

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[DrBTorres]

Hey friend, just going to add my two cents

Berkeley’s name carries a lot of prestige, so on paper, that will look more impressive. Also, I hear they’ve updated a lot of their equipment recently, so that should no longer be an issue. What you stated about competitiveness is apparently also true...

I’d also love to live in NYC at some point, but there will also be other opportunities later on for that. For example, summer research program in NY after freshman year (when the weather is amazing), rotation during 4th year or even residency after optometry school. I think that during a residency you’ll be doing less studying, so you might be able to enjoy NYC a bit more than as an opto student. I will say that as a Cali guy, I once made the mistake of visiting NYC in the winter and there was an awful blizzard. I didn’t know my face could be in so much pain because of the cold weather! Haha I also visited multiple times last year in the spring and summer and NYC was gorgeous and I finally understood why so many people love it there.

Hope this gives you more insight for your decision! You will kill it no matter where you go

 

[optogirl619]

Hi there!

I am currently a first-year at UC Berkeley and wanted to offer some insight because I also had SUCH a difficult time choosing between SUNY and UCB. Just for some context, I am from southern California and also plan on practicing in California in the future.

I was debating for so long between these two schools and wanted to go to SUNY for the experience of living in New York, because their school was amazing when I went to visit, all the students who showed us around were super friendly, the food in NY is unbeatable, and SUNY has a great curriculum with great professors.

I ultimately chose to go to Cal because I realized that both schools are nearly academically equivalent and I would be an incredible optometrist no matter which school I went to. I also realized that a lot of the reason why I wanted to go to SUNY was because I wanted to experience the east coast and live in NY. But I realized that I should probably do this when I'm not a broke student who will probably be busy studying the majority of the time and won't have time to experience living in NY the way I envision it.

So I made a compromise with myself that if I went to Cal to get my OD, I would try and make it out to SUNY for my residency!

I am SO happy with the decision that I made so far. Cal is great, the equipment is not old haha and I have met an awesome group of people that are not competitive and keep my mental health at a good level! I have a great study group, and we all support each other and help each other out.

Also, if you are craving those big city NY vibes, San Francisco is only like a 20-30 min drive/BART ride away. I have gone there for quick little day trips and it has been so much fun!

Hopefully this helps but feel free to message me if you have any questions