Which School?

[GoldenAxle]

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Hi. Ok well I will be getting an acceptence to UC Berkeley under a MCB major, and an acceptence to UCSD under another bio major. My question is which school should I choose? I know UCB is ranked higher, but UCSD has a medical school. So which school is a better pre med school to go too?
Thanks!

 

[Jonkst]

Which school do you like better.

Don't start getting anal about being premed until AT LEAST your sophomore year. Freshman year is for doing stupid things with your friends, and changing you major twelve times.

Just my advice.

 

[GoldenAxle]

well by the time i get accpeted i will be a jr. i am in cc rite now...so thats why i wanted to know what you think i should do. i like both colleges but what would adcoms think of each school. one is ranked higer, while another one has a med school...

 

[voltron77]

they're both great schools to choose from. look at everything from academics and reputation to social/cultural activities, etc.......as long as you do well in your coursework, adcoms know that both of these schools (ucb and ucsd) are academically challenging and remember, applying to med school is more than just the undergrad school you went to......there are many more parts to your application that are given more weight!!! have fun your freshman year and study hard....when you decide to transfer, then think about your choices then.😛

 

[trauma_junky]

Doesn't matter which school, just get good grades and a good MCAT.

 

[Childe]

agreed

 

[surge]

There are very few cases in which it would matter, and given your choice of schools, yours is absolutely not even remotely close to being one of them.

Go where you will be happier and hence do better. In the end it's up to you. Good luck.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

If you prefer a more research-focused school and don't mind working yourself to death for A- and B grades, go to Berkeley. If you prefer a more laid back atmosphere where the school is practically ON the beach, go to UCSD. Both schools are full of competitive premed students, although I think Berkeley is the harder of the two only because it has a higher SAT average in its freshman class so the students are probably brighter. I was your in position when I was a senior in high school. La Jolla is really not that great of a college town and it's mostly a commuter campus where everyone leaves to go home on the weekends. The social life on campus is pretty dull and for some reason, I found the architecture of the campus to be pretty boring. Berkeley is a great college town and you're just a 20 minute BART ride (Bay Area Rapid Transit) from San Francisco, a city with about 1 million things to do. Not to mention the fact that you'll have some of the nation's best research facilities at your disposal and the opportunity to do research with some of the nation's finest researchers. This decision will have a slight impact on your medical school admissions, but I seriously doubt it will really sway an adcom in favor or against you. In the end, your MCAT and GPA are what will really matter the most. So go wherever you think you can succeed and be happy as an undergraduate. Personally, I think they're both great schools. Good luck at whatever school you choose!

Berkeley '05
"Long Live the Order of the Golden Bear."

 

[kito]

Berkeley is such an amazing place, how can you not go there?

 

[Mutterkuchen]

Originally posted by ankitovich
Berkeley is such an amazing place, how can you not go there?

"If you prefer a more laid back atmosphere where the school is practically ON the beach, go to UCSD.

This is why I'd choose UCSD.

Don't stress too much about your choice. They are both excellent schools. I don't that that one would give you much more of an advantage over the other. Go where you think you would be happiest.

Trust me when I say that there is never a time like your undergrad time. It is fun and you are young. Enjoy college!

 

[gogiants]

i was faced with this same decision many years ago and i ended up choosing ucsd. it was a tough decision because of course the name berkeley sounds a bit more impressive. but after talking with administrators at berkeley i was really convinced that you are going to get an equally good education at either place. and as a southern californian and a liker of good weather i was drawn to san diego. some people on this board have indicated that their experience as an undergrad at berkeley was a little cutthroat. i have no idea because i didn't go there, but i can attest to ucsd having a really awesome biology department. i had a great time at ucsd but i could imagine that berkeley might have a little more of a "college environment" (aka the frat houses and football team). honestly, as everyone has said, just choose the school you like best and do the best you can, it is not going to hurt you for med school (fyi i am going back to ucsd for med school...but i have no idea if being an undergrad there helped).