Writing a story: Does this sound realistic?

A person (a character that someone else invented) who lives in Los Angeles decides to go to the university of Berkeley, instead of another university that is closer to her home.
I'm writing a story and I want to know whether things like this are common in the US or not.

That's pretty much the realization of every high schooler's dream.

Getting away from the city you grew up in and trying to see (at least some of...) the world.

So yes, that's very common.