Engineering: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo vs. Pamona. Major differences?

Question

I have an OK chance of getting into SLO, and I'm pretty much guaranteed into Pomona. My first choice is SLO. (I want to major in engineering, probably mechanical or electrical. Definitely not software.)

What are the major differences?
Does going to Pomona instead of SLO decrease my chances of earning a good job w/ a high income?
Should I go to a UC? I'm also applying to UCSD and UC Davis.

I know that Pomona's average gpa and test scores are way lower than SLO, but does that mean it's not as good?

Anyways, here are my stats:

My GPA for my 10th and 11th grade is 3.65
GPA for 9th, 10th, AND 11th grade is 3.83
(both are weighted)

I'm fairly confident that I did well on my ACTs. (took em a week ago.)

Currently in 12th grade, taking
AP Calculus BC
AP Chemistry
Composition
Civics
Robotics

Answer 1

No matter which school you go to.
I recommend that you find an internship or a Co-op job.
This will distinguish you from the rest of your fellow students. It shows that you have work experience.

Answer 2

Cal Poly, SLO has an awesome engineering program. It's nationally recognized, the engineering school has won competitions around the world. It would be AWESOME if you could get into SLO. Just because you don't go to slow doesn't mean that you won't get a job. I am sure that you would find a job from either school. However, I know that at SLO you could probably find a job faster. It's got an extremely good reputation for having quality engineering students come out of the school. Employers love getting students out of SLO. If you can get it, it would be an awesome opportunity. I am not sure about Davis and San Diego however. But, I am sure that they're really good too. After all, they are UC's.

Answer 3

SLO has an awesome reputation, and as far as reputations go, it'll look more impressive on your resumé than Pomona.

Unfortunately, we still live in a culture where names and reputations have greater weight than true substance.

That aside though, just make sure you scope out both school and try to get the inside word on each. I can't say anything about Pomona, but SLO produces the majority of architects on the West Coast, as well as a large number of people in engineering. You can't really go wrong with SLO.

It would be good to hear from people who actually graduated from SLO, or people currently going to SLO, and also to Pomona, than to get a third person assessment from me.

Answer 4

go for UCSD, it has the best engineering program of the four schools by far (biggest engineering school in the UC system with approx. 5,000 undergraduate students...1/4 of the undergrad population at UCSD).

one thing to remember, UCs are more theory and Cal Polys are more hands on. If you want to be an engineer right out of college, go for SLO, you'll definitely have the advantage, but if you want to go to graduate school, go for a UC.

Also, only high school students really give a **** about what college you went to, your employer won't really care and neither will grad school admissions people, your grads are what really matter.