UCSC is D3 - any athletic potential there?
Looking a little bit, he could maybe walk on, but not at the recruitment level.
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I think that it depends.
The quality of the instructors are generally pretty comparable…sometimes even better at schools that are not R1 institutions, as the professors are often held to a higher standard for teaching than those where research is a bigger focus. (That is not always true…I went to an R1 with some fabulous professors…but schools that focus on Bachelor’s or at most Master’s tend to have a better reputation for teaching quality.)
If both colleges are residential (vs. commuter), then there can often be a lot of similarities.
Sometimes, a particular campus might have better facilities/equipment for a particular field of study than others, and studying at that campus (if undergrads get access to those facilities/equipment) could be a reason. Or the curricular requirements are different (more or fewer distribution requirements, for instance) or the academic schedule is different (J-terms or May term (4-4-1 or 4-1-4) vs. a trimester vs. a quarter vs. a semester vs. a one-at-a-time model) and certain types of schedules work better for a kid than others.
Or a student may qualify for the honors college at one school but not at another, and the perks of belonging to the particular honors college are of significant benefit and interest to the student (not all honors colleges are the same).
Alternatively, a school may have a much better first-year experience program, creating more social and academic and transition supports that can lead to a better college experience and a higher likelihood of thriving.
So these are reasons why a different school could work better than another school, but these could be differences between in-state schools or where an in-state school might be better than out-of-state or the reverse.
I believe that there are a number of schools that could be attractive options and that would make themselves price-competitive with the UC flagship price (UCLA or UCB). So if you want to set that as the top of your budget, you could tell your kid that schools need to meet that budget to be a contender.
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California has so many excellent universities that it’s hard to justify attending elsewhere. However, as mentioned above, there are several valid reasons for having a few OOS universities on the list: first, and very importantly, OOS universities can provide safeties, especially those with rolling admissions, lifting a big stress off seniors’ shoulders.
In addition, since your area CSU is CSULA which is primarily commuter, if he wanted a primarily residential college there would be SDSU (probably a reach for his stats?), Humboldt (not quite the right fit based on what you said), Chico (he may even qualify for the Honors program) and Sonoma State. If these don’t come through or aren’t his cup of tea, having a similar university OOS would be worth looking into - hence Utah, OSU, etc.
There could also be a university that is especially strong in a niche subject of interest (not your son but this can happen- lately there was a student interested in mycology research for instance.)
A last reason is having access to the perks and more personalized setting of an Honors college: these aren’t common at UCs/CSUs, but some students thrive in smaller, discussion-based classes and enjoy a strong peer group, a personal adviser, special housing… Finding a university where the student qualifies for that can also justify OOS study.
You could look into University of New Mexico, Utah, or WWU, but also Adams State (safety), or University Puget Sound (high target, good business school).
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One school that I mentioned for a different student seems as though it could be of interest here is U. of Cincinnati.
Sticker price is a little over $43k, but I suspect your son would get merit aid here if he gets his application in by November 1 (info on National Outreach Scholarship).
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Most CSUs are non impacted and have few or no impacted majors besides nursing. So there is no lack of transparency there (besides nursing).
Of the impacted campuses, SJSU and CPP are more transparent about prior year thresholds, while CPSLO and SDSU are less transparent than they could / should be.
UCs are more transparent than many schools of similar selectivity, but that is still less transparent than other state universities that are much less selective, like those in Arizona.
But that doesn’t mean that the CSUs give responses early, which was my point. A few do, but most come in February/March.
Here are some additional schools your son may want to consider:
U. of Idaho: Your son would receive nearly $17,000/year in merit aid here (source) bringing the price down to about $24k/year, so less than your UCs. And this page talks about some of the supports that are offered to business students.
U. of Nevada – Reno: Your son would qualify for WUE (source), bringing the annual cost to about $29k/year. There are about 18k undergrads here. It has the FIT (Freshman Intensive Transition) program which is for incoming first year students where they come to campus a little early, start forming bonds, and take a 1-credit class together (and sometimes additional ones). Exploratory students would be in the Nevada FIT program, or if your son is more confident about wanting a business-related major, then he could participate in the Biz FIT program. UNR says that it increases freshman retention by 7-10%, and from my outside reading, it’s because programs like this really help students to form social and academic connections that lead to success.
U. of Utah: About 27k undergrads here. Out-of-state costs are about $45k for the first year, but if a student stays in UT for 12 months (summer before or after freshman year) then they can receive in-state residency, making the remaining years about $24k/year. Or he could just do WUE for four years at a cost of about $28k/year (source). The U. also appears to have a lot of intentionality in its programs for first-year students. It offers a summer bridge program (Strong Start) where students get used to the campus and earn credit for two classes. It offers numerous themed housing and LLCs for students, but the Quest one seems particularly a propos for an exploratory student. They also have made their advising system really straightforward for students, it’s prior to orientation or seeking career advising, and has certain points when students are required to do advising before they can register for classes. For a big state school, they definitely appear to be trying to eliminate as many barriers as possible for students.
U. of Houston (TX): About 38k undergrads attend this school that is less than an hour from the Galveston beaches. Sticker price is about $34k for out-of-state students and if he applies by November 3 he could be considered for merit aid (source). Students who receive $1k/year or more in merit aid may then qualify for in-state tuition, which would mean the price would be about $22k/year (source).
U. of South Florida: If a campus by the coast is super important, this would be another option to consider. This page gives some info on Why USF. It’s sticker price is about $32k for out-of-state students. This one would more of a target/low reach, or could be more worthwhile to apply as a summer candidate rather than fall for a higher likelihood of an admittance. This thread has some useful info on admission to the Florida publics: https://talk.collegeconfidential.com/t/guidance-counselors-guide-for-florida-public-universities/3672949. If Orlando appeals more than Tampa, then he could similarly consider the U. of Central Florida.
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