please help w/ the final decision: Occidental vs UC-Berkeley vs Univ of Notre Dame

College Search & Lists
1

<p>Hi~! I’ve been admitted to Occidental College, UC Berkeley, and University of Notre Dame, but I don’t know which school to commit to. It doesn’t help that I haven’t decided on a major, but I am leaning toward Business and Law.</p>

<p>Occidental College:
Pros:[ul]
[<em>]I’ve visited the school and really liked how friendly and close everyone was.
[</em>]Because of its small size, I will probably get more attention from my advisers and help here than I would at the other universities.
[<em>]There are more opportunities for internships because there are less students competing for them.
<a href=“might%20be%20a%20con”>*</a> The college is pretty close to home, a 40 minute drive.
[</em>]I am already used to the southern California weather.
[<em>]Net cost: $5,139/yr[/ul]
Cons:[ul]
[li]The range of courses available are limited, in comparison to the other two universities. [/li][</em>]I would like some change, especially in weather.[/ul]</p>

<p>UC Berkeley:
Pros:[ul]
[<em>]A wide variety of classes/majors are offered, most of which are very prestigious.
[</em>]I really liked the northern California weather: a bit gloomy with a light breeze and bit of sunlight. (not too warm and not too cold)
[<em>]It has a great business program!
[</em>]It’s easy to change majors and schools.
<a href=“might%20be%20a%20con”>*</a> A lot of the people at my school have submitted their SIR to the university.
[<em>]Net Cost: $18,595/yr[/ul]
Cons:[ul]
[li]The university is so competitive (academically) that my grades will suffer if I relax even a bit.[/li][</em>]The student population is pretty big, so I would probably have a hard time getting the classes I want.
[<em>]I would be extremely busy my freshmen and sophmore year, trying to finish both my breath requirements and the Haas’ requirements.
[</em>]I might not be able to get into Haas. [/ul]</p>

<p>University of Notre Dame:
I don’t have a lot of concrete stuff to say because I haven’t visited the school yet. But for some reason, I’m feel very attached to it. @_@
Pros:[ul]
[<em>]It’s far from home.
[</em>]It has an awesome business program, which may not be better than Berkeley’s (in terms of ranking), but it’s easier to enroll in it.
[<em>]The majority of the classes are not too big and not small. Good student:faculty ratio
[</em>]It has an involved alumni network.
[<em>]Just a week ago, I got an e-mail from the ND’s Asian Pacific Alumni Board congratulating me on my acceptance and answering the numerous questions I had about the university.
[</em>]The alumni told me that “**ecause the Asian community is so small there, EVERYONE knows each other and EVERYONE hangs out with each other. In LA, Koreans tend to stick with the Koreans, the Filipinos with the Filipinos, Chinese with the Chinese, etcetc., but at Notre Dame, everyone is just ASIAN and the Asians stick together.” [/ul]
Cons:[ul]
[<em>]Net Cost: $21,405/yr
[</em>]Hard time fitting in…? Its Asian community is small.
[<em>]I might have a hard time adjusting to the weather. I get sick easily, but I love the cold.
[</em>]I might get home-sick.[/ul]</p>

2

<p>bump…please help :(</p>

3

<p>All depends on where you think you’ll fit in best and what you want out of a college. If you want to meet more new people, go to Berkeley. If you prefer a small community, Occidental and ND fit the bill. When it comes to academics Berkeley and ND and better than Occidental with Berkeley being a little better. If I were you i’d go to Berkeley. From the sound of it, everything you have as pro in a college you can find at Berkeley for less money than ND.</p>

4

<p>Law is not an undergraduate major; pre-law students can do any major. However, getting into a worthwhile law school (basically top 14) means a very high LSAT score and GPA.</p>

5

<p>How will you pay that net cost?</p>

<p>Does the net cost include any student loans? If not, and you qualify for the Staffords, then with a Stafford loan, you’ve got Occidental covered. This would make it easier to pay for law school someday if you decide to follow that route.</p>

<p>The others are significantly more expensive. Can your family pay that much each year without having to take any PLUS loans or private loans? If your parents would need to borrow, how much exactly, and how do they feel about it? Some would be OK with this. If you were my kid though, the deposit would already be paid at Occidental.</p>

6

<p>Berkeley in a heartbeat.</p>

7

<p>ucbalumnus… There are law schools outside of the T14 which are still ‘worthwhile’…</p>

8

<p>if though the others are cheaper, ND!! because im going to be there lol. but seriously, I would take Occidental. if you have scholarships coming in to pay for ND, then try. did you appeal your FA?</p>

9

<p>Berkeley is the best school for you and is the best deal for you too. </p>

<p>A friend’s friend who’s half white half Filipino left Notre Dame and transferred to USF because of discrimination. ND has somewhat of a racist community feel, according to her. She regretted not attending UCLA where she also was accepted.</p>

10

<p>You may not get into Haas so I would go to Mendoza which is less competitive. Notre Dame is more highly regarded than Berkeley in the U.S. if that matters to you. Internationally, the Berkeley name reigns supreme.</p>

11

<p>Cal is more highly regarded than ND anywhere. ND is just more “famous” to your average football watching American.</p>

12

<p>Occidental seems to be the best bet in my mind, however if your family is easily able to pay the cost of Berkley and Notre Dame, then make the decision based on what kind of environment you want to be in. All of the schools you were accepted are excellent; it’s a matter of preference now.</p>