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> The UC system is sorta weird though. Maybe the top 2 , UCLA and Berkeley compete nationally. After that you're paying UC tuition for an average school.

Does UCSB no longer have an excellent physics department and is UCSD no longer considered a top CS department?

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Assuming this isn't a rhetorical question: San Diego, Davis, Irvine, and Santa Barbara all rank in the top 15 US public, top 50 US / top 200 global universities (USN&WR, THE, QS rankings) and have specific programs that are world class ( including the ones you mention--two UCSB professors won last year's Nobel in physics.

Though Berkeley and UCLA have the advantage of most all departments being top 10, "average school" is not a fair assessment for the rest.

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