Hi everyone, my daughter just got accepted to both USC and UCLA. I wanted to hear from parents who might have insight to either school’s premed programs. My daughter is torn and I know the cost is more considerable for USC.
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A few questions-
- Can you afford USC without loans?
- If your daughter choses the less expensive school, would you have that extra money to put toward medical or grad school?
- Are you from California?
- Putting premed to the side (she can change her mind) which school does she like better?
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She JUST got accepted? Is this a transfer or waitlist situation?
My opinion…choose the one that is least costly and save your money for medical school…should she get there.
Both colleges are fine for premed.
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You go with the cheaper option to preserve funds for med school.
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Absolutely agree…choose the less costly option. Medical school is crazy expensive, and even if she chooses a different path it still likely means some type of grad school.
It looks like your D was accepted off a waitlist. What school did she originally commit to attend?
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I have an older daughter who graduated from UCSB last year and one that will be attending SC in the fall. My opinion is that if you can afford SC without loans, I would choose SC. The reason being, if she wants to change her major, it’s going to be harder to do so at UCLA and she might have to attend the school longer than 4 years to graduate. At USC, changing majors are not that difficult to do (unless it’s Viterbi or Marshall). I know you said she is pre-med but my daughter’s friends who went to UCLA and UCB as a medical school hopefuls (bio-major and a chem major) all changed their minds after the first year. Not saying this is going to happen for your daughter but kids do change their minds at school. My older one thought she was interested in medical school too but now she just took her LSAT and is applying to law school.
You never know what road they will take after their first year in college.
But if finances are an issue, I would choose UCLA. Congrats on your daughter for her achievements! You must be so proud. Tbh, she really can’t make a bad choice. They are both great schools. Best of luck in the future for your daughter.
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Is it really that difficult to change your major at UCLA (I don’t know)?
To the OP- your daughter is young and can change her mind 10x about her career path and/or major.
My daughter is currently in a graduate program with a tiny cohort. She has peers who graduated from UCLA with degrees in biology, microbiology etc. While I do not know if these students changed their major….I will say that during undergrad at UCLA they had opportunities for research, shadowing, work in underserved communities etc….and were fully involved in all.
I am curious about the school she is currently committed to…and why she wants to leave.
She originally accepted USC but now off UCLA waitlist.
I don’t believe it is significantly more difficult to change your major at UCLA (L&S) compared to USC (Dornslife).
USC has better advising. That said, all of the advising in the world isn’t going to get a kid into med school.
How sure is she that she wants to go into medicine? Has she considered other allied health professions or science related careers? If she is in the mindset of “MD or bust” then you need to look at how much you have budgeted for her education.
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1). Will probably need to get a little bit of loan for USC.
2). This is a great point I was not thinking about.
3). Yes we are from California
4). Her mother and I prefer UCLA but I think she’s leaning towards USC. Not that it matters but her boyfriend is going to UCLA on a baseball scholarship.
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When did your daughter get off the UCLA waitlist?
We heard back from UCLA June 26th.
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Congrats. If money isn’t a huge issue, then she should pick the school that she likes more. What is her major at each school?
I would not take out loans and would choose UCLA. Remember - she will likely end up in some type of grad school or med school.
What is her major?
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If money is not an issue, then pick the school with the best fit and pre-med advising where you are most likely to succeed.
I will be the contrarian and say spend the money, if you think it gives you the best shot at med school.
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Both of these colleges will give this kid a shot at medical school. Right? @WayOutWestMom ?
I would suggest she choose the option where she feels she will be most comfortable and happy if both are affordable without parent loans.
Medical schools, should she get there at all, will be over $100,000 a year by the time she applies.
It’s also very hard for CA residents to get accepted to medical schools in CA as there simply are way too many applicant for available seats. A high %age go to medical school in another state. Likely not a bargain in terms of price.
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Everything @thumper1 says is the truth.
Med school is hideously expensive. ($100K/year at some schools already and going up very year).
Every year UCLA alone produces more than enough med school applicants to fill every med school seat in California (public and private) and still have applicants left. (1) 60% Of successful CA med school applicants matriculate at OOS schools. (2) The majority of CA med school applicants do not get any acceptances anywhere. (2)
1–https://www.aamc.org/media/9636/download?attachment
2–https://www.aamc.org/media/6016/download?attachment
Because of the cost of med school, I always advise pre-meds to minimize any undergrad loans because there is very little “free” money for med school. Med students finance their education through loans, loans and more loans, or the Bank of Mom and Dad.
BTW, research data show that only 16% of freshmen pre-meds actually finish all the required med school pre-reqs. (3) Even fewer than that actually apply to med school. The reason why students fail to pursue pre-med can be academic, but mostly students discover other more attractive careers than medicine or decide they don’t want to postpone living their lives for the 11-15 years or longer before they actually are finished with their education.
Attending a private undergrad will not boost your daughter’s chances for a med school admissions. Pick a college that makes the m most sense for your family and your child in terms of fit, cost and opportunities (including exploring and finding careers that are not being a physician).
3–The process of attrition in pre-medical studies: A large-scale analysis across 102 schools - PMC
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You wrote that your daughter is leaning toward USC. Has she expressed why?
As far as opportunities and careers in the event she decides against medical school, I cannot imagine that 1 is better than the other. These are both excellent schools and it comes down to fit, affordability, and the student. Just my opinion.
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It is not difficult at all to change your major at UCLA (assuming you aren’t trying to get into Engineering). My second year has done it at least 3 times already 
. Granted, she is toggling around humanities programs. But she has STEM friends who have pivoted within different STEM major areas.
UCLA is a blast. The quality of life, friendliness of the students, the academics, the clubs… my kid is having a great time. She has definitely learned how to hustle to get into competitive clubs, and she’s found her 2 internships on her own. The in-state price tag is a dream… I happily and gratefully send her tuition money every quarter … and for a family that’s looking ahead to med school possibly, it would be life-changing.
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There are enough differences between the two schools one of which is a public operating on the quarter system and the other a private school operating on the semester system. So it is upto the OP to do compare and pick the right school.
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