<p>It seems that the best option would just be to go to Berkeley, as the education level there is extremely high as well? </p>
<p>On another note, what if I was rejected from Berkeley and LA… is UCSD far below these LACs in terms of academic education?</p>
<p>^^yea, it kind of is. For example, it would be harder to leapfrog from UCSD into a good law school, if that was one of your goals – not impossible - but, harder.</p>
<p>We too did not qualify for financial aid, but S got generous merit aid at his midwestern LAC. It’s still more expensive than his public state university but he is getting great value. </p>
<p>My sister was a prospective student at Berkeley years ago. She sat in on a calculus class that was so large it was taught in two separate auditoriums concurrently with the professor on a tv-type screen in one auditorium. My son’s calculus class this year, at midwestern LAC, had less than 25 kids and he had dinner at the professor’s house. He decided that he loved math-not his reaction in high school, as I recall. I think that’s worth paying up for.</p>
<p>^^ Not all Berkeley classes are like that… right? I’m sure it’s mostly the introductory classes. Of course, the classes still will be larger than a LAC.</p>
<p>Would anyone else like to answer my question?</p>
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<p>I can’t speak for the ‘academic education’, but when it comes to prestige and recognition, there is a steep drop-off after UCB and UCLA.</p>
<p>Prestige and recognition are definitely important to me… and for graduate/job prospects ><</p>
<p>That is pretty unfortunate.</p>
<p>So my best option after Berkeley and LA would be on of these LACs… (besides the other national universities I’m applying to that are reaches) I might have to work out some loans if I don’t get in to these 2 schools.</p>
<p>When it comes to prestige and recognition, in the public eye size matters. Among people very familiar with undergraduate education, there is not a steep drop-off. If I were hiring someone (or admitting someone to grad school) I’d be more impressed by a college degree from Reed, Swarthmore, or Carleton than one from UCLA. </p>
<p>But it’s true, not all Berkeley classes are huge. Berkeley offers a huge selection of classes; many of them will be pretty small especially once you get past the introductory levels. However, those introductory classes can be very important to getting a good foundation.</p>
<p>It also means that if you aren’t sure what you want to major in, or you are doing classes that are part of very popular majors like psych or econ or bio, or if you change your mind, you will spend more time in giant intro lecture classes. Not a decisive point, but one to keep in mind: The big state schools often best serve those who know what they want and can seek out the advanced classes and niche programs that make it more personal.</p>
<p>Prestige and recognition won’t get you into graduate school; you need good GRE/LSAT/MCAT/etc scores, a good GPA relative to the average of your undergrad school, and good recommendations.</p>
<p>^^that’s true to an extent, but, the eastern, white shoe law firms still cherry pick by law school and the law schools still cherry pick by undergrad. Not saying, Cali might not be different. UCLA Law School is a local favorite (even more so than Stanford) and lots of UCSD folk wind up at UCLA.</p>
<p>Note that law/med/biz school != graduate school.</p>
<p>This thread is really informative. Thanks!</p>