<p>How are the programs + college life?</p>
<p>USD is a smaller private Catholic college that has a very good School of Nursing and School of Law. I don’t know anything about their chemistry department. It is an expensive school but does offer some scholarships. It is located in an older, mixed-use industrial/small business area of San Diego. People typically go off-campus for activities. </p>
<p>Cal Poly SLO is an “aggie” school but is extremely competitive because it is a good Cal State school so tuition is affordable for in-state students. Activities are known to be “on-campus” because it is in a very agricultural area far from the major California cities. Their STEM courses are regarded well by employers and graduate programs and as such, is tough to gain admission. </p>
<p>SLO is very highly ranked in engineering, architecture and business. It’s located in a “college town” with lots of activities to do both on and off campus. About 98% of freshmen live on campus. Lots of wildlife on campus, too, (excluding those in the agriculture programs) – wild turkeys, rabbits, and an occasional bear! </p>
<p>My son is at SLO and just finished his freshman year. He’s a chemistry major with an interest in polymers. He’s very happy with the program, the department advisers have been extremely helpful, and is working on campus this summer doing chemistry lab research and taking a couple of general ed classes. </p>
<p>SLO is very competitive and it’s not a safety. </p>