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Imperial vs UCSD for physics? need advice

I'm an international applicant (from Hong Kong) and get offer from imperial (physics MSci) and University of California San Diego (physics). If I'm lucky I might get my waitlist offer from U of Michigan and UIUC later, but now just focus on UCSD and Imperial. Which one do you guys think is better?

Right now I plan to get a PhD after graduation and want to pursue a research-related work (can be in either academia or in industry). Will UCSD be a better option as US universities place more emphasis on research? I know imperial offers UROP and students can do a final year project, but it seems that undergraduate research is not too common in the UK, while many students (even freshmen) in the US are involved in some kind of research project. It seems that I can get more exposure to research in the US, and just in case if research is not what I really wanna do in future, then I can figure it out earlier but not during the final year.

But on the other hand, imperial seems to have a better overall reputation (at least in Hong Kong). How will this affect my chance of finding a job if it is not related to research? I don't really mind where I work after school. I will just go to places that give me opportunities but not necessarily in the UK, the US or Hong Kong.

Another thing I notice is that the education system is quite different in the two places. I heard that UK universities are more focused and rigorous than those in the US, is it true?
I think my self-study ability is pretty strong compared to my peers and my quite confident in my ability in physics since I am told I can take part in IPHO in the coming summer. I can also handle most topics covered in first two years in US colleges although in my opinion my secondary school's curriculum is not particularly tough. I know there are some general education courses in the US. I don't mind studying something like social science and history (though I'm concerned that it might hurt my GPA as I assume many classmates should have a better language and writing ability than I). Which system is more suitable for me?

I know this post is pretty long. Thanks for reading it and any advice is welcome. :smile:

Reply 1

alow

If I was in your position I would go with Imperial. You actually get to study physics on its own, not having to distract yourself with social sciences and humanities (which it doesn't seem like you would care too much about if you want to do a Ph.D after). Imperial is also very highly regarded for physics.

Reply 2

Observatory

This is really a choice between the USA and the UK. If you want to do a PhD, I would choose the USA. Their funding opportunities for foreigners are much better. if you want a new citizenship, I would choose the USA. Skilled people are paid more there for the same work. Going to a US university instead of Imperial won't hurt you finding private sector work in the US. There isn't much reason to prefer private sector work in the UK over the US, unless you want to work in banking since Imperial is a target university and UCSD is not.

The general reputation of Imperial is quite a bit better than that of UCSD. Imperial probably has the better student cohort which possibly corresponds to a better education. Bear in mind that US universities admit people based partially on racial quotas, and asians (I assume you are ethnically Chinese) are the most heavily discriminated against, so you will likely not get into as prestigious an institution in the US as in the UK, where admissions are race blind.

Not many people here have any direct experience of the quality of a US undergraduate education however.