<p>Would your daughter be happiest as a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond? If she doesn’t care, then I’d save money by choosing Davis or SD. </p>
<p>I graduated from a big UC and in retrospect probably would have really been happier at a LAC (I didn’t even know what they were). My S, however, craved a big research university experience and is very happy in that environment. He would not have liked the LAC experience as much and didn’t apply to any. </p>
<p>To me, the UCs are so different from LACs that it might be worth the extra money if your daughter would fit better there.</p>