With the UCS, when I was growing up - it was always Santa Cruz and Riverside were like - not real schools Embarrassments. I remember applying to Santa Cruz with my 2.8, just so I can say I got into a UC - and yep, I did.
Today it seems like Merced and Riverside are those schools.
Students apply - like this did - and begrudgingly went - and will find any reason to be disappointed that they didn’t get into a “real” UC.
That’s how I read these type stories anytime someone mentions these two.
I’m ingrained to think so - in part - because half the kids that get into these two and even Santa Cruz to an extent - always seem disappointed…when in reality Davis and UCR are subsitutes - both fine UC schools.
I do wonder, if this same thing happened at Davis, if the student would even be asking the question - should I attend?
Of course you should attend.
If you had a bug in the lettuce at the salad bar, would you be asking if I should leave?
It’s orientation and advising.
You might see your advisor in the grocery store and not recognize them.
That’s how infrequently you’ll be dealing with them.
California has the best educational system anywhere and yet for some reason these kids are ingrained with that only some of the schools are good and the rest are an embarrassment.
I disagree that they are equivalent “substitutes,” as though the student got prescribed a generic medicine that is actually equivalent to the brand name. Davis and Riverside are both fine schools, but they are also different schools. It is legitimate for students to have a strong preference for one UC campus over another for a variety of reasons, just like students who choose Davis over Berkeley (we know quite a few).
For a student who wants to be a veterinarian, it’s also quite understandable that they might like to attend the university that has arguably the nation’s best vet school.
And the name counts for something. I know we are local-ish to Davis (about an hour’s drive I think), but when I volunteered at a wildlife rehab hospital, all the vet interns that they had while I was there were attending Davis. (That said, I don’t know if they were pre-vet or in vet school already.)
They are subs just like Michigan and Wisconsin are or Alabama and Florida or U of SC and Clemson are.
All schools have differences - goegraphy, weather, sports, environmentals, etc.
In the case of UCs, let’s be honest - most have them in a pecking order.
The student can study at UCR the same things they can study at Davis - and be set up to be vets.
Perhaps we won’t agree - but I see this as I see most (not all) who post on UCs and no different than I was a kid.
There’s:
UCLA/UCB
UCSB/UCSD
UCI/Davis
UCSC
UCR and UCM
Before UCM, you could put UCSC and UCR on the same line.
People feel like they failed if they attended them - and yet they will have access to many / most of the same things and could end up in the exact same place.
And not to be mean - but a lot of kids on these sites express sour grapes that they had to settle.
Think about this - this student really didn’t want UCR but they got in but not to UCD.
Orientation didn’t go well.
Already wants to bail.
Will he bail his first day at work too because his office is next to the bathroom?
I do not think you are being fair to this student. Here is what they said in the original post:
I do not see anything in this student’s posts that suggests to me that they “want to bail” because they look down on UCR and consider it less prestigious. The student had their heart set on UC Davis specifically, and feels they are a good fit for this school, for very understandable reasons. Throughout this thread, the student comes across as thoughtful, honest, respectful, and listens to advice. There is no reason to refer to this student in a disparaging way. They are simply looking for alternative ideas and to discuss their situation.