UCI - premeds

[iMedical]

Hi, I got accepted to Berkeley today as a MCB major. The three schools I am considering are UCB, UCLA, or commuting at Irvine. UCB and UCLA seem so appealing to me but I am still deciding to go to UCI. Am I making a bad choice? Still confused.

Has anyone regretted going to UCI when they knew they could of went to UCB or UCLA?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[wontonman86]

Hey, so I got into both UCLA and UCB and chose Irvine over both. This was primarily because I thought that the opportunities I'd have at Irvine would be most available to me since I'd be more of a "big fish". I furthermore thought that given the same amount of "working hard", I'd get a lot more return at Irvine that I would at UCB or LA. I think I've found this to be true (as much as one can tell) once I attended and have not regretted my decision since. You should know, however, that money did play a role and the scholarship I was offered was $9000/year and $1500 over summers. The scholarship currently being offered is considerably less, though it increases dramatically with need-based aid. The Campuswide Honors Program (CHP) is a whole other part to why it was worth it to go to Irvine, so I would definately immerse yourself in it if you were offered membership in its program.

Now. That being said I do wish to bring up the fact that while traveling on interviews, people from UCR, UCI, UCD, UCSB, UC..Merced, UCSC were notibly scant. State schools from Cali were virtually absent. UCSD, UCLA, and UCB were HUGELY dominant in the people being interviewed (in the 9 I went to). On the other hand, all of my friends who are also in the CHP at Irvine currently hold acceptances to medical school. I think they told us that 95% of applicants from the CHP with a 3.7 and 30 MCAT or above got in somewhere. Furthermore, I have friends who plan on going to UCLA, Wash U, and I most likely will end up at Northwestern, so it's not like going to Irvine kills any hope of going to a good school.

Overall you will just have to weigh your priorities and where you think you'll perform the best. If you can pull off a 3.85+ at Irvine and a decent MCAT, you'll do fine. If you think you'd have a better chance fighting with the masses at LA or Berk, go for it.

Hope that helps, let me know if you want clarification.

 

[XRanger]

UCI is a good school. Some of my friends got into UCB and UCLA but decided to go to UCI, mostly due to scholarships, and they're all already got accepted to med school. 3 of my friends from UCI got interviewed at harvard med school.

 

[nick_carraway]

I turned down UCSD for UC Davis, if that's relevant at all to your situation. I turned down UCI because it looked even more boring and desolate off campus than did Davis.

I regretted my rejection of UCSD from the moment I made the decision all the way through freshman year. Looking back, I can say that [1] it was for the prestige of going to a rising start among the UCs and [2] it was for a high school crush.

I eventually got over it, saw what I was missing in that small town of good people, and am now a huge fan of Davis. I'm glad that I made the decision not to go to UCSD's Revelle College and face the hordes of pre-meds. I don't like the beach that much, I don't like Mexico at all, and I wasn't ready to compete against those crazies. Besides, the Tritons' non-existent football team can't beat Stanford.

 

[SiR99]

Go to the school you think you will be the happiest at.

Being pre-med is hard anywhere you go, and there will be times when you will feel overwhelmed, and being somewhere that you are happy will make it a little more manageable as opposed to somewhere that you hate.

 

[Appless]

I made a similar choice and choose UCI mostly becuase of the financial aid package i recieved here. I agree with most of what was said above but i just wanted to add a few things. First one good thing about UCI as was mentioned is that its much easier here then LA or berkley at least thats the way i feel. classes here are so easy to do well in and the environment i know for a fact is no where NEAR as competitive as say UCLA or UCB. Kids here are relax and even though everyone says they are pre med here....theres not a lot of competition or to be honest a lot of intelligent people. In all classes ive taken there has always been some insane curve where if you dont get an A you are seriously just not even trying.

Second, I dont think the poster above was saying this but just wanted to make it clear that a 3.8 form UCI is the same as a 3.8 from UCSD, honestly no one will know or care. The fact that many cali students on interviews are from the big 3 UCs really has nothing to do with the schools and everything to do with the type of students. If you are pre med you are always told in HS go to the best college as where you graduate from matters( which it doesnt but gotta love advisors). So the most competitive, intelligent, and driven people are probably going to end up at the "better" UCs (UCLA, UCB, UCSD). Furthermore if you went to a CC you still are told you want to transfer to UCB or ther others over say UCI. Its just more about the top students go to the 3 main UCs while the rest are spread out at the others.

Personally im glad i missed out on the future insane gunners at UCLA and UCSD with the more relaxed environment here. The only down side I can say of UCI is the campus is kinda boring and if youre looking for a party school this is not the choice, but then again if you wanted that you would be like most kids and go to UCSB lol

 

[Tots]

theres not a lot of competition or to be honest a lot of intelligent people.

ahaha

I also go to UCI and love it here, its not that hard in my opinion but still tons of opportunities. I am only a freshman and I am already involved in research UCI!

 

[sdguy2008]

just a quick comment. at the time (long time ago it seems) i chose ucsd over uci and ucb. i thought ucsd was really tough, especially the science courses...i dont think there was ever a science course i took that was an easy A, and there was fierce competition for those grades. but im kind of surprised by some of the commentary about uci, i didnt think it would be that much different/"easier" than ucsd. maybe a lot has changed

 

[WatchMeRise]

man, everytime UCSB is mentioned, it's regarded as a joke. is UCSB really that bad? so when an adcom reads my application and it says, "Graduated from UCSB" i'm automatically assumed to be a unintelligent party freak?

just trying to understand this...

 

[Appless]

ahaha

I also go to UCI and love it here, its not that hard in my opinion but still tons of opportunities. I am only a freshman and I am already involved in research UCI!

lol glad you liked it. Also another wonderful thing about UCI is the amount of undergrad research here. Its huge and there are tons of opportunities especially clinical which im not sure is the same at other UCs.

man, everytime UCSB is mentioned, it's regarded as a joke. is UCSB really that bad? so when an adcom reads my application and it says, "Graduated from UCSB" i'm automatically assumed to be a unintelligent party freak?

just trying to understand this...

Dont worry about it honestly. SB is a huge party school but that doesnt mean you are screwed. You keep your GPA high and most importantly get a good mcat and it wont matter one bit where you graduated from. UCSB is consider a "joke" by most people in cali when they think of the UC system but its not like an adcom is gonna see UCSB and be like "f this kid we dont want this lazy alcoholic" The mcat is always the great equalizer.

 

[Tots]

I almost attended UCSB over UCI...I don't think you would be any worse off, especially if you will enjoy it there. I actually liked some of their opportunities and the structure and flexibility of their Bio programs, but in the end I went to UCI as a non-bio major anyway.

 

[WatchMeRise]

While it probably won't make a difference where I go, it's funny to constantly hear how SB is such a mediocre school. I'm not attacking those who ridicule SB. I guess it's just a statewide accepted assumption about the school. Sad to say.

In a post related to the thread, four of my family members graduated from UCI and are medical professionals. They love the school like no other. You should hear them rant...

 

[SilentSoldier]

Well there are a lot of research opportunities and ties for clinical experience (although I'd highly advise against volunteering at the UCI Medical Center, I didn't get any real patient experience or physician contact in the time I volunteered there). They have ties with local hospitals as well as other hospitals with their own programs being nearby to get involved with.

However, Irvine and Orange County in general is super conservative and heavily anti-college. There really isn't much to do in Irvine and even the nearby beach closes early. It definitely promotes the need to get involved on campus with some sort of club or organization in order to flesh out the college experience.

In all honesty, if I had the choice to go to Irvine, Berkeley or LA, I'd choose LA. I feel like I'd be happier there, Santa Barbara, or even back home at Davis.

Edit: UCI and UCSB are ranked the same according to the USNews College rankings, but I know how SDN feels about rank

 

[nick_carraway]

lol glad you liked it. Also another wonderful thing about UCI is the amount of undergrad research here. Its huge and there are tons of opportunities especially clinical which im not sure is the same at other UCs.

This is a huge thing that UCI tried to market when I went to a seminar they had for potential freshmen. They kept telling us about all their undergrad research opportunities. I guess there's some sort of book that lists all the active researchers on campus?

 

[Tots]

(although I'd highly advise against volunteering at the UCI Medical Center, I didn't get any real patient experience or physician contact in the time I volunteered there)

I volunteer at the UCI medical center in the ER and while I wish I could do more the ER techs are pretty nice and allow you do all kinds of stuff you're not allowed to do, and I feel I get plenty of patient contact when I just ask the patients if they need anything and end up listening for 20 minutes about their whole life story.
The best part though is that I get to see everything happening the Trauma rooms, so much better than a TV show.

This is a huge thing that UCI tried to market when I went to a seminar they had for potential freshmen. They kept telling us about all their undergrad research opportunities. I guess there's some sort of book that lists all the active researchers on campus?

Yea they keep a pretty massive list of the Bio researchers projects and requirements to do research with them online, but I found my research spot by responding to a flyer on the wall.

 

[Appless]

This is a huge thing that UCI tried to market when I went to a seminar they had for potential freshmen. They kept telling us about all their undergrad research opportunities. I guess there's some sort of book that lists all the active researchers on campus?

Theres not really a book persay, but its all listed online for the most part and basically research is so huge here everyone does it and there are just so many opportunities it would be impossible not to find something interesting. Im sure UCSD and others have something similar to be honest, though I dont know for sure. At the very least im sure it more accesable at UCI compared to other schools, at least thats the feeling i get from friends who go to other UCs.

Also about the volunteering thing at UCIMC, ive never done it, but it cant be worse then hoag or western medical center i mean......my god those places are the biggest ****ing wastes of time ever. Im dreading trying to think of some useful experiences of positive spin i can put on my time i spent there over the past year and a half. hopefully my interviewer wont focus on the bs stuff i did there. Id have quit it if there was something else or if I didnt already invest so much time. sadly the long term experience is too important.

 

[BJPENNSTATE]

is it true that UCI is ranked top 10 in the nation for the department of Biological Sciences?..i read it somewhere...

 

[Ibn Rushd]

I remember reading that UCI is ranked in the top ten for all public schools.

I chose to go to UCI over UCLA and UCSD for personal reasons. I enjoyed my time there, did well in most of my classes, and got lots of solid research experience. I know several UCI gradutes that got into great programs.

 

[Legacy87]

theres not a lot of competition or to be honest a lot of intelligent people. In all classes ive taken there has always been some insane curve where if you dont get an A you are seriously just not even trying.

Totally agreed. A typical lecture hall is about 300+ students. 17% of the class will get A so thats about 50-60 people. To be honest, I thought getting A's at UCI was easier than getting A's at my hs. Nevertheless, you still have to work hard to maintain straight A's.

 

[GoBeers]

.

 

[ksmi117]

Moving to hSDN.

 

[Vicviper]

I'm a transfer student Anteater and I love UCI, I turned down UCLA because it just felt too crowded and busy. One thing I love about UCI is the surrounding area - on one side you've got the San Joaquin Wetlands which is a wild life / habitat preserve that is supported by the school and is totally awesome if you take Freshwater Field Ecology (Best Upper Div Lab Ever), and on the other side is just the open scrub sageland that is a huge chunk of Irvine because it's undeveloped. Its very beautiful, and I don't know how many times I've seen Hawks and other Raptors flying around, or sitting on freeway signs and buildings - you definetly don't get that at UCLA.

As far as the people who say there's nothing to do, sure, there might not be as many clubs around as there are at LA, but there are plenty of frats at UCI and they seem to keep themselves busy. Most of the people I talk seem perfectly happy and have plenty of stuff to do on the weekends.

And as many people have said before, my best experiences at UCI have been the amazing research oppurtinities. After having done research for a little over a year, I've already had two papers accepted for publication. Just about every other bio student is in research, and the research is so incredibly varied - I'm doing research on Oral Cancer Diagnostics and I've got a friend who's doing research on Viral Signaling, another friend who does Ornithology research (birds), the list goes on.

Go with whatever school you feel most comfortable at, and best fits you. I'm confident you won't regret UCI. And welcome new anteater, zot!

 

[SilentSoldier]

Also about the volunteering thing at UCIMC, ive never done it, but it cant be worse then hoag or western medical center i mean......my god those places are the biggest ****ing wastes of time ever. Im dreading trying to think of some useful experiences of positive spin i can put on my time i spent there over the past year and a half. hopefully my interviewer wont focus on the bs stuff i did there. Id have quit it if there was something else or if I didnt already invest so much time. sadly the long term experience is too important.

I hear that the Hoag program is really bad, totally glad that I didn't follow through with that program. I have my clinical experience over at a Long Beach hospital that is totally greater than I could've imagined. Night and day difference between my experience at UCIMC, plus I'm getting paid.

Plus, I cant stress how important it is to get involved, especially at a commuter school like UCI. I would've went crazy if I didn't join a fraternity, get involved with the community service organizations, or get a job on campus to surround myself with good people that had similar interests. I just have this feeling that the area doesn't really like having the college there. That's just how I feel, so no offense to anyone that loves UCI.

 

[iMedical]

Lets say I do well at any school I go to. Will going to UCI lower my chances to get into Med school?

Does the prestige factor from UCB or UCLA help me get into Med school more easily? Or does prestige of undergrad school play a minimum role for Med school admissions?

 

[Vicviper]

Unless the Adcom who is making the decision went to UCLA or UCB and is like a total fan of the schools or whatever, there will be no difference.

 

[iMedical]

Unless the Adcom who is making the decision went to UCLA or UCB and is like a total fan of the schools or whatever, there will be no difference.

I don't why everyone wants to go to UCB, UCLA, or UCSD then. Seriously everyone from in my class are going to one of those schools and I am the only one deciding to go to UCI. I am like top 5 of my class too..

 

[Appless]

I don't why everyone wants to go to UCB, UCLA, or UCSD then. Seriously everyone from in my class are going to one of those schools and I am the only one deciding to go to UCI. I am like top 5 of my class too..

because there is a perception that these schools are head and shoulders above other schools. Most advisors in HS tell you that if you dont go to UCB or LA or SD you are short changing yourself basically. At least that was my experience. I sort of equate it to the idea of neurotic pre meds who think if you go to john hopkins you are a better doctor or if you dont go you are a failure doctor. Is someone who graduates from UCLA med school really that much better then say someone who graduates from wake forest or eastern virginia? Obviously in the end it doesnt matter and it depends on the individual person not where you went to med school.

I think the same can be said about undergrad. It depends on what you do as an individual not the name of your school, especially in the world of med school admissions.

 

[Vicviper]

Haha, yeah, when I told my HS advisers that I was going to a CC they thought I was nuts.

 

[rycetrix]

I know this is a premed thread, but despite going to UCI, I don't think it has had a major effect on where you go for professional school (worked out pretty well for me). If you rock the MCAT/DAT/OAT/LSAT/PCAT (for out of state) and have a really good GPA, so long as you don't screw up your application I don't see why you can't move on to the professional degrees.

 

[Icure]

I love UCI! I think they have a great Bio program. Worked for me.