<p>I'm from the east coast and I am trying to compare between going to NYU (LSP =( ) or Berkeley. For those who are OOS and went to Berkeley, why? Do you feel you are getting your money's worth?</p>
<p>I go to Berkeley as an OOS student from the East Coast as well! For me, it’s been an amazing adventure and a real growing experience. I’m glad that I did it, but I’m lucky to have parents that actually pushed for me to go out of state and didn’t mind the extra cost (my state’s public universities don’t compare to Berkeley). I’m only in my second semester here, but so far I’ve really enjoyed it. So many opportunities! Coming from a small southern town, I never had the opportunity to just take the subway right over to a big city like San Francisco, for instance. I just listened to former San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom speak in one of my classes today. Sonia Sotomayor was here a couple months ago judging a contest and making a speech. There’s also just so much to do on campus, and even though Berkeley is in a more urban location there’s still a real, defined campus, and there’s also a very natural feel to it. Big trees, creeks, etc.</p>
<p>I can’t really give you a list of reasons as to why Berkeley is worth the OOS tuition. I think those reasons are different for everyone. For me, the great professors I’ve had, even in my short time here, are one reason. It’s so refreshing to take a challenging course with a really knowledgeable professor. Location was another thing… I’d never understood the ‘California Dream,’ so to speak, until I visited. And, I think the prestige factored in a little bit, but that was more of an added bonus after I decided I wanted to go.</p>
<p>Honestly, for me, Berkeley wasn’t something anyone could ever explain to me. I’d never even been to California before I visited Berkeley on Cal Day… And when I got accepted, I was honestly a little annoyed because I’d semi-decided on going to college kind of close to home, and my acceptance at Cal made my decision difficult. I didn’t WANT to like it. But then, when I got here, and I saw how alive the campus was, I was absolutely in love with it! It didn’t matter that I didn’t know anyone here, that the whole area was completely unfamiliar… When I visited Berkeley there was no way I could say no. If you haven’t visited yet, you really should!</p>