[plainsong]

College is a time not just to learn what's in books, but to learn how to be on your own without your parents. It's so crucial to get that time to yourself. I've seen so many friends with failed marriages who basically went from mommy and daddy straight into married life - how do you even know how to take care of yourself much less adding someone else into the equation. It's insane. These fights actually mean it's time to fly the coop. It's natural. If they have an ounce of common sense, they know it as well as you.

Speaking of common sense, I'd ask them how they intend to pay for UCB. With no yelling or shouting, if you're serious, simply inform them you will take no loan, you will work no jobs to pay off said loan for going to any school you where you don't wish to go. Offer that if they want to pay for it and throw good money out the window sending you to a place where you probably won't be motivated enough to put their money to use, then hey, they can knock themselves out.

Otherwise, no dice, you're not paying, you're not taking a loan, that's that. If you have the scholarship to the school where you want to go, that means the decision is in your hands, not theirs. It also helps at this point if you own your own car, it's in your name and you pay for all the maintenance, otherwise, they'll pull the stunt of taking away your means to go anywhere (yes, I know, it's stupid, but this is a time when parents do dumb things).

Problem solved - you won't pay for anyplace you don't want to go.

 

[hempcamp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chroot /img/forum/go_quote.gif Make your own decisions based on your own goals and needs. If it pisses your parents off, don't worry -- they'll get over it in six months or less.

I disagree. Sure, it's great to make your own decisions and think for yourself, but remember (unless you just have bad parents) that you are where you are because of your parents and how they raised you and what they've given you. What they think also counts for something.

--Chris

 

[chroot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hempcamp /img/forum/go_quote.gif I disagree. Sure, it's great to make your own decisions and think for yourself, but remember (unless you just have bad parents) that you are where you are because of your parents and how they raised you and what they've given you. What they think also counts for something.

Keep dreaming. Most peoples' parents are not the loving, happy dispensers of sound guidance you'd like to pretend they are. The fact is, most people are stupid, self-centered, illogical, or irrational -- even those people who happen to have children.

- Warren

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

*If you're mature enough to go to college you're mature enough to decide which college YOU will attend and pay for.

*You're also mature enough to get a loan and pay your own way if the 1st National Bank of Dad isn't going to foot the bill.

College will effect everything you do for the rest of your, hopefully very long, life (mostly in a financial sense) you have to do what will be best for you, even if it is unpopular with other people.

 

[nghiasays]

Go to Cal. They have the best football program of the UCs. UCLA beating USC was exceptional and I abhor the traffic in LA. SD has no such football program. Maybe they all surf there. I don't like basketball so the choice is easy. Go with your plan to see each campus and the surrounding areas and find out what they have to offer you. The further down the coast you go the less clothes people wear to school which might be something to think of. If you're worried about a job, it doesn't matter where you go but rather what you can do when you get out. Projects, teamwork and social skills is more important than a degree though the degree does a lot for getting an interview. If its grad school you want to go to then the better university gives you more opportunity joining a research project as a student and getting into a better graduate program which is the only way you could teach at a big name university. Take your folks with you to Cal and show them the hippies and then the part of Oakland right next to Cal. Maybe they'll change their mind. Good luck with the choice you make. In the end its up to how you want to enjoy/suffer your college years.

 

[uzziah]

apply to Berkeley, get rejected, go where you want

 

[humanflyz]

Ha, if you really want to negatively influence your parents' opinions about Cal, take them walking down Telegraph Ave. in the middle of a school day and watch the bums do their thing. Make sure to hit up the "Happy Happy" guy, the Drum Bum, Yoshua, and the bum who randomly heckles people in Dwinelle Plaza.

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure /img/forum/go_quote.gif Based on what I've read and heard, I don't think I'm serious enough to make it at Berkeley (at least not with good grades). I'm not even really that smart/adept at hardcore math/science (I'm like only 4th or 5th in my AP Calculus and Physics classes, and I got mediocre 740s on my SAT II Bio and Math exams), and my work ethic is sub-par (I'm a procrastinator)

i like you more and more already

a full ride to a UC is nothing to pass up. definitely visit what you can, and perhaps consider some other UC's, but perhaps it's late for that? also, i wouldn't totally give up on the idea of a year of commmunity college, and then transfering; would save some dough, and give you a better chance of getting into berkeley eecs


there's a mix of things that make a college a good choice. academics are first of course, that prepare you for a graduate degree or career. but that's not all. college is a great experience, and the right location is important. so is cost. i like that you're thinking about where you're going to live and how loud you can play your music

my dude.


ps: are you really this much of a dork?

http://www.eecs.berkeley.edu/ it's a concentrated list of the nation's "most likely to succeed" and "least likely to get a date" highschool grads

 

[Azure]

Quote:

Originally Posted by uzziah /img/forum/go_quote.gif i like you more and more already a full ride to a UC is nothing to pass up. definitely visit what you can, and perhaps consider some other UC's, but perhaps it's late for that? also, i wouldn't totally give up on the idea of a year of commmunity college, and then transfering; would save some dough, and give you a better chance of getting into berkeley eecs there's a mix of things that make a college a good choice. academics are first of course, that prepare you for a graduate degree or career. but that's not all. college is a great experience, and the right location is important. so is cost. i like that you're thinking about where you're going to live and how loud you can play your music my dude. ps: are you really this much of a dork? http://www.eecs.berkeley.edu/ it's a concentrated list of the nation's "most likely to succeed" and "least likely to get a date" highschool grads

I'm going to visit UCLA on the 10th, UCSD on the 14th, and Cal on the 21st.

Hmm...I think you're confused here. This thread is about CHOOSING a college to go to (I already applied to UCLA, UCSD, and Cal and got into all of them, with a full ride at UCSD). I'm afraid of Cal because 1. It's going to cost a lot more than UCSD, and 2. It might be too hard for me (Stories about staying up doing labs all night are frightening). I think I would have a better shot at getting into a good grad school if I went to UCSD instead of Berkeley (I think my worser performance at Berkeley would outweigh the greater prestige Berkeley has over UCSD).

 

[[zero]]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm not even really that smart/adept at hardcore math/science (I'm like only 4th or 5th in my AP Calculus and Physics classes, and I got mediocre 740s on my SAT II Bio and Math exams), and my work ethic is sub-par (I'm a procrastinator).

740s are mediocre?

Man, I was lucking to break 650 on my Physics SAT II (doesn't really matter to me though, since SUNY schools don't look at SAT IIs). It seems like you're pretty well off, what's your GPA?

I was hoping to do Computer Engineering in college, but I'm not so sure. I'm only really good at math, it's just about the only class that I stay relatively consistent in (I'd say, I have maybe 95-97 average in math). I'd like to go to UC Berkeley, but the only way I'd be able to go is if I got a free ride or as close as possible to one (maybe only spending $10k a year at most).

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer /img/forum/go_quote.gif That's true, but in this case it's not as if you'd be choosing between education or nothing. UCSD is a great school, and I'm sure you could get into any grad school from there, if you get your work done. I'm just saying that you really need to consider whether going to UCB instead is worth being in an $80,000 hole the instant you walk out of graduation. While Berkeley is a great school, how much better will you be as a person for having gone there instead of UCSD? To me it seems that difference would be quite marginal. And especially if you go to grad school, that extra smidge of "prestige" or marketability of the USB degree won't really matter much, since your graduate work will be of paramount importance.

plus you can go to Tijuana and get wasted

let's concentrate on the important things here

 

[uzziah]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfrenchman27 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Learn how to make social connections in order to obtain your objectives. This is really important, yet very few people on head-fi are able to do it. That's why they spend so much time on head-fi talking about SAT scores and other meaningless psychometric evaluations instead of doing what they should be doing: hitting on girls

greatest statement ever.











time to get off line and pick someone up

 

[daba]

Congratulations on getting into Berkeley. If you have doubts about coming here you should really consider what you're getting into. The average EECS GPA is 2.7 and there's a good reason for it. If you want to do graduate studies you either have to work your ass off here (that does mean spending your fair share of nights in the labs with no guarantee of success -- which sucks -- take it from me I have done it plenty) or go to another school where you have a better chance of being a top student.

 

[granodemostasa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azure /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just found out that I got into Berkeley (I was hoping I wouldn't get in so that I wouldn't have to argue anymore with my parents) Official UCLA decisions were also posted today. UCLA is going to cost $8568 a year (I can pull out a $5000 loan and/or get $2500 for a workstudy program).

DUDE, if you just don't tell your parents that you didn't get in, then it would make things easier. a full ride isn't anything to pass up.

In any case, staying up is fun. the campus is beautiful at 3-5am. plus, we have great scenery and you will meet many interesting people and have encounters that will seriously make you think.

if you are lazy Berkeley will end up being "the fourth biggest disappointment ever."


that sorta reminds me... i've totally lost track of your rig... what's going on there?

 

[DrizzitT]

If you're gunna be an engineer, be prepared to work your ass off REGARDLESS of where you go. I go to Harvey Mudd, have friends who go to Cal, Cal Tech, UCLA, UCSD who are engineers/hard science majors, and let me tell you, we're all crying. Some more than others (me/Techer), but don't be surprised if UCSD/LA's program is more difficult than you thought.

Frankly, unless you want an EECS major FOR SURE, there isn't much reason to go to Cal. The quality of EECS at Cal is pretty much undisputed, but the other engineering fields are pretty average (in the UC/high-end engineering college sense).

A piece of advice though... change your hw/studying habits NOW. If you start work the night before, you won't get sleep that night. Problem sets will be ~6ish problems (at least ours are), and if you know the stuff already/have seen it before, it MIGHT take 2 hrs if you're lucky. MIGHT. If you're unlucky/don't know the stuff... 6+ hr sets aren't that uncommon. There's a reason its a week-long hw.

And labs? Don't get me started. I'm in a lab that meets 6-9 PM Tues, 1-4 PM Weds. +4 hours minimum prelab. Its the engineering initiation course. I'm sure UCSD/LA/B will have an equivalent. And this aint even CS... Engineering/hard sciences require an intense amount of dedication...