There seemed to be a spike in blog views this week.. I wondered why until I discovered that admissions to UCs has been posted. For those of you who got into Berkeley (and other schools you wanted to go to), Congratulations! For those of you who haven't, don't worry- you'll find happiness wherever you end up! :) But I understand that saying that is somewhat pointless.. a rejection cuts deep, especially if it's a school that you had your heart set on going to :/ (For me, it was Stanford.. I know, I know.. haha)
A lot of people who view this blog at this time of year are usually those who are debating which school is best for being a premed. This pool usually includes UCLA, USC, UCSD, and one or two schools from the east coast. So here's my list of pros and cons that will hopefully help you out in your decision-making (keep in mind that this is strictly my opinion):
Cons:
1. Grade deflation: I realize almost every school has grade deflation, but I feel it's particularly bad at Berkeley..
2. Housing: dorms are fine, but once you move out, you'll find that the apartments are priced way above what they're actually worth.
3. Dorm food: pretty bad compared to what UCLA dorms offer....
4. Architecture: I don't know why, but I find Berkeley's buildings to be very unattractive and mismatched to one another..
5. Telebears: This is a big one- it's relatively difficult to get the classes you want here at Berkeley. For those of you who don't know, telebears is Berkeley's way of handling class schedules and it simply sucks. You're forced to set up your class schedule in two sessions so it's pointless to plan your whole schedule way in advance since there's a good chance that one of your classes is going to be filled up or there'll be some time conflict between your classes..
6. Homeless/Vagabonds/Hippies: There are a lot of them... just a warning..
Pros:
1. Research: Berkeley has some of the greatest research opportunities you can find as an undergrad.
2. Science department: we have an amazing science department with some of the most prominent professors in academia, which brings me to point 3.
3. Professors: You'll be learning under amazing professors who have a passion for teaching and who really know what they're talking about (well, most of them anyway...)
4. Culture: Berkeley's culture is very unique- not only is Berkeley an extremely diverse campus as far as students go, but it has a history that's unmatched by many other schools. Berkeley is also a progressive school so you can expect it to be at the forefront of change (I'm talking protests, sit-ins, rallies, etc.)
5. Weather: I'm a big fan of cold, cloudy weather, so berkeley's weather was ideal for me haha. And it never gets too hot here, even in summer.
6. Food: I'm not talking about dorm food, i'm talking about restaurant food. My roommates and I always say how spoiled we are here since we have so many types of foods to choose from, albeit a lot of them are indian or thai. And they're all close in proximity and inexpensive as well.
7. Social scene: Berkeley students study hard, but they party equally as hard. There's something or another going on on the weekends, be it at a frat, apartment, co-op, or club in SF.
I know I'm missing a few points, but that's all I can think of at the moment. If there's anything else you would like me to go over, just leave a comment! Good luck! :)
-K
