<p>So i lied. I still haven’t decided. Here is the basic breakdown:
Major: Mechanical Engineering
Personality: extremely outgoing, likes to be funny, well-rounded, sports, academics, fashionable, not your typical engineering student i suppose.
1)Cal
ranked 2nd in the nation behind MIT for my major
-extremely prestigious
-stellar academics
-my parents WANT me to go there
-did i mention extremely prestigious?
-id rate the general vibe of cal for me as a 8/10
2)UCLA
-i love the school
-great atmosphere
-i dont know what they rank for my major
-prestigious as well although arguably not as prestigious as cal
-MUCH closer to my girlfriend
-id rate UCLA’s vibe as 9.5/10
3)Stanford
-im not going to get in
-PERFECT FIT
-10/10 hahaha just thought id stick that in</p>
<p>basically I need a 3rd person perspective on this…</p>
<p>Okay, this is TOTALLY not biased, either- but everything you said about Berkeley was about how prestigious the school/departments are… and while that’s important, UCLA surely isn’t too far behind. Plus, it sounds like you will be happier at UCLA. You love the school, the atmosphere, it’s close to your girlfriend, you get a better vibe. You’ll have amazing academics wherever you end up, so look to where you’d be happiest! </p>
<p>It’s kinda weird how people perceive UCLA to be far below Cal when it comes to prestige& academics…I mean, it’s one of the top schools in the nation. So either way you’re getting an amazing college… I’d base my decision off the programs for my major, but the vibe is really important too, in which case UCLA takes the gold.</p>
<p>but the one mechanical engineering major i’ve met there said the program is really theoretical and has few practical applications and so without a double major or minor with something to supplement it, it is rather difficult to find a job… (i met him taking extra cs courses at cc to “supplement” his degree)</p>
<p>UCLA was my first choice until they rejected me. I have quickly, and when I say quickly I mean quickly, moved on. Sounds like I might be bitter but I’m not. Berk is the better school anyways. I just wanted to meet some celebs.</p>
<p>Edit: It doesn’t even seem that you actually like Stanford so I would pick UCLA if I were you. By the way, you are a major prestige whore.</p>
<p>@ SF: I would become more familiar with UCLA’s ME program before making any decisions. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems like you don’t know too much about what they offer. Also, look into UCB’s! I’m sure that both are excellent. Perhaps UCLA’s is top 10 or something. Who knows? </p>
<p>Anyway, by feel you should go with LA. By prestige by program - Berkeley.</p>
<p>Which one will you choose? I’m pretty sure I know, but I won’t sway your decision in either direction.</p>
<p>If I could pick in 5 minutes, I would choose UCLA. Alas, we do not get everything we want in life. Oh well. Time to swallow the Cal pill for 2.5 years.</p>
<p>if your heart isn;t at Cal and your parents insist you go there because of “prestige” sit them down with ranks and explain UCLA is not to far behind, and you will be much more happier at UCLA. If they still don’t like the idea you can always say you got rescinded</p>
<p>You’re going to like Cal. Trust me. lol. In your personality description, you listed: fashionable, outgoing, interested in sports and academics. Cal has all of this. UCLA does too lol, but Cal has a real powerful environment, and imo a slightly more studious atmosphere. It seemed a bit more intense. You’ve visited, right?</p>
<p>believe me I tried. I just ended up getting yelled at. He compared it to Ferrari vs BMW. Sure they are both great cars, but one gets you the girl. Then again, would I want a girl who would pick me because I drove a shiny red car… this whole prestige thing is rather irritating. </p>
<p>Asian parents and their obsession with prestigious schools…</p>
<p>I’ve spent the night there. I mean im going to definitely give Cal a chance. Just dont be surprised if you see my name on the list of people who have jumped off the Math/Stats building.</p>