Berkeley EECS Questions

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Hi Guys,</p>

<p>I'm going to be an EECS major at Berkeley in the fall and I am honestly dead scared. I really wanted to go to UPenn this coming fall for a dual degree program but due to certain factors I had to pick Berkeley. Not super stoked about coming here, and after hearing supposed rumors about EECS and Berkeley (ie grade deflation), I'm only growing more worried. I just have some general questions about Berkeley and the EECS program so that hopefully I can look at this more positively:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Are EECS majors super cutthroat competitive/ jack up the curve? I've heard that the cutthroat nature at Berkeley is mainly due to Haas majors, but with top engineering programs, I'm still skeptical on the lack of a cutthroat nature among engineers, especially EECS.</p></li>
<li><p>Easiest R&C courses from List A and List B, specifically courses that do not consume too much time?</p></li>
<li><p>Would this be a good freshman schedule?
CS 61A (I'm not sure if Hilfinger is teaching this, but I've heard "stories" about him)
Math 54
Physics 7B
R & C List A</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I've already taken Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra through CC courses taught at HS. I got an A in Multivariable (and I'm planning on skipping out of it) and I got a B in Linear Algebra. I also have some programming knowledge through AP CS and I'm learning Python over summer. I've also taken AP Physics C in HS and I got an A in both Mechanics and E/M. However, I know Hilfinger is a damn hard teacher, and I know his classes are time-consuming; I'm not sure if he's teaching CS 61A Fall 2014, but starting off Freshman year with his class doesn't sound like a good idea. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Substituting CS 61AS for CS 61A? Or, if it sounds like too much, substitute Physics or Math for a Humanities course?</p></li>
<li><p>How hard is it to do well in Berkeley? Some of my friends who are students at Berkeley claim to have 3.9+. They're smart guys, but I wouldn't call them "geniuses" or anything. My goal after undergrad is to go to Harvard Business School or Stanford Grad School of Business to pursue an MBA, and I'm really worried that the difficulty of Berkeley will ruin my GPA to get into these programs. </p></li>
<li><p>Is it possible to get summer research with EECS professors even before Freshman year? I was specifically looking at Professors Vivek Subramanian, Ken Goldstein, or Ravi Ramamoorthi. Although I'm not super-stoked about the school, their work at least seems interesting...</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Additional Info: I was nominated for Regents, but I didn't get the award. I also had a perfect HS GPA until Linear Algebra, and I'm willing to work hard no matter where I go. Although I don't fancy Berkeley at the moment, I can always try to like the school soon. My school is ranked in the top 400 nationally overall, and top 100 in STEM nationally. </p>

<p>Thanks for your help!</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>The environment itself isn’t competitive… it feels very collaborative, students are always working together, and for the most part everyone is friendly and helpful. It is competitive in the sense that many classes are curved. Usually that curve means you’re going to get a B… very few students fail the class, but if only 20% gets an A, it’s going to be hard to be at the top.</p></li>
<li><p>I’d suggest choosing one that actually interests you… you’re more likely to do well in classes you enjoy.</p></li>
<li><p>Hilfinger is teaching B in the Fall and A in the Spring. I’d say that schedule looks fine. If you concerned about whether or not you should skip a math, try taking an old final online and see how you fare.</p></li>
<li><p>Eh… I’d suggest taking 61A as opposed to 61AS. AS is self paced and it’s in scheme… 61A is a normal class, taught in python with pretty interesting lectures/assignments.</p></li>
<li><p>You can see past grade distributions on here: <a href=“https://schedulebuilder.berkeley.edu/explore/department/FL/2013/53”>https://schedulebuilder.berkeley.edu/explore/department/FL/2013/53&lt;/a&gt;
No, not everyone is going to get an A, and a 4.0 is pretty unlikely… I think above a 3.5 is considered great. So, redefine “well”, and realize that this sin’t highschool anymore… 4.0 isn’t the only GPA worth having.</p></li>
<li><p>Doesn’t hurt to email and ask. I’ve never heard of students getting research that early, but who knows. If you want something to do over the summer, you could also look into taking classes during summer session through Freshman Edge, or you could relax and enjoy your summer. :P</p></li>
</ol>

3

<p>Wow, I can’t tell if your attitude is conceited, nervous, or both. Congrats on getting into the Penn dual degree program, sucks that you’ll have to “settle” for an objectively better EECS education and environment than you’d get in Philadelphia. The post above me covered pretty much everything, but I feel compelled to say a couple things. </p>

<p>First: no one cares about your HS GPA, and even fewer people (recruiters included) care about your college one, especially in EECS. You’ll get a job out of college, at the very least. At most, you’ll meet the most amazingly creative and intelligent people you’ve ever come into contact with, sitting next to you in labs and grinding out HIlfinger projects for 48 hours straight in the basement of Soda. Those people will hook you up with jobs at their friends’ start-ups, they’ll give your email to their friends at LinkedIn, and you might even get to found a start-up yourself. </p>

<p>Second: take Hilfinger. There is no better Python/Java education than HIlfinger for 61A and 61B (the latter is more important). Yes, his projects are huge. Yes, you’ll fail his tests. But in the end you will have a better understanding of (at the very least) the ins-and-outs of Java/Python, and at most you’ll understand Data Structures like a ■■■■■■■ champ. I’ve gotten jobs and been promoted because of projects I did in Hilfy’s class.</p>

<p>Third: I doubt you’ll get research before Freshman year unless you personally know a professor. You might try emailing though. I don’t know a lot of kids who do EECS research rather than just becoming a TA for 61ABC, since research doesn’t pay and being a TA looks (almost) as good. With that said, heed the advice above and enjoy your summer. It will be the last summer where you can have free reign over your life; the future will be filled with classes, internships, building websites and attending hackathons, and countless other invaluable opportunities. </p>

<p>Stop worrying about your future GPA, stop worrying about the kids who are going to Penn’s sweet dual-degree program, and stop worrying about business school after college. All of those things will make you hate your time here, and I’ve seen plenty of kids go down that path. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the amazing CS opportunities you’re about to have for 4 years. If you do Berkeley EECS right, you’ll never have a free moment - and you’ll learn to love that, trust me. </p>

4

<p>Your schedule looks fine. However, Math 54 may assume some introductory knowledge of differential equations that is taught in Math 1B, so you may have to self-study that material:
<a href=“Math 1B | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley”>Math 1B | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley;
<a href=“Math 54 | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley”>Math 54 | Department of Mathematics at University of California Berkeley;

<p>Also, you may want to try the final exams for Math 1A, 1B, and 53, and Physics 7A, to make sure that you know the material as expected in Berkeley courses:
<a href=“Exam and Syllabus Database - Tau Beta Pi, California Alpha Chapter”>https://tbp.berkeley.edu/courses/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Re: CS 61AS versus CS 61A</p>

<p><a href=“http://www-inst.eecs.berkeley.edu/~cs61a/sp14/61as.html”>http://www-inst.eecs.berkeley.edu/~cs61a/sp14/61as.html&lt;/a&gt; describes the differences.</p>

<p>Re: cutthroatness</p>

<p>EECS students are safely in the major, so they do not have the same GPA pressure that pre-business students (or pre-med / pre-law students) face. EECS students share CS courses with prospective L&S CS majors who need a 3.0 GPA to declare the major, but the lower division CS courses are not graded on a curve.</p>

<p>Re: R&C courses</p>

<p>Some departments offering R&C courses post instructors’ reading lists on the departmental web sites. You may want to check them to see which sections have the readings that are most interesting to you. For example, here are some course listings:
<a href=“Berkeley English Fall 2014”>Berkeley English Fall 2014;
<a href=“http://africam.berkeley.edu/courses/current-term”>http://africam.berkeley.edu/courses/current-term&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://rhetoric.berkeley.edu/courses.php?page_id=1090”>http://rhetoric.berkeley.edu/courses.php?page_id=1090&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

5

<p>@ucbalumnus the lower divs are “not graded on a curve” but somehow the average is always the same, and the distribution is a beautiful bell curve. They always start the semester with set point values and end up moving everything around when half the class gets an F- on the final.</p>

6

<p>@UnsureOnLife‌ trust me… I’m not conceited. I’m actually pretty scared/humbled by the intelligence that a lot of EECS students have. Getting into EECS was a big surprise for me already, and getting into Penn was also a huge surprise as well. Both of the programs are awesome and right now it kind of feels like I’m “settling” for Berkeley (not for academic/prestige reasons though, I just liked Penn’s surroundings and community a lot more), but I know that I can eventually grow to like this school. It’s not the #3 engineering school for no reason…</p>

<p>And thanks for the advice. I want to be successful, but make the most out of college at the same time.</p>

7

<p>Mostly answered very well on the above posts, but to answer you again with my style,</p>

<ol>
<li><p>There’s hardly cut-throat competition in engineering. In fact, if you want to do well in classes, I suggest finding good study partners and work together for homework or exams. College classes are kinda tough to just one-man show everything. There will be times that you just don’t get it even if you look at the textbook or lecture notes. Make study buddies that you find mutually beneficial for learning. If you don’t believe me, observe what grad students do - they collaborate all the time.</p></li>
<li><p>What you find interesting or already have a lot of background information is the easiest. If you go to each department’s website, they should’ve listed what each section’s topic or theme will be or even uploaded a syllabus. Read through those and take the class you find most interesting. All R&C have similar requirements that you write 32 pages of paper over the semester and such, so you might as well as take something you like.</p></li>
<li><p>Your proposed classes are fine and pretty standard for freshman and sophomores. It is also the first and last time you get to see a lot of folks from other engineering departments since you’re skipping a lot of earlier courses. Make good friends and study buddies with them - it will be helpful very soon.</p></li>
<li><p>The classes you listed (CS 61A, Physics 7B, Math 54, R&C) are fine as it is. It is certainly work, but that is exactly the workload you would expect for future semesters to come.</p></li>
<li><p>The so-called grade deflation is for those who aren’t studying much at all and later get frustrated why they didn’t do so well in class. There are definitely times that you work your butt off only to end up with an A- and that is clearly frustrating. If you work hard what you’re asked to do (this is much tougher than it seems) and study on regular basis and keep up (even harder), then it’s hard not to get at least an A- in any department. Just work and see how you do.</p></li>
<li><p>Too many people think research is some sort of privilege or entitlement. The reality is, by being a researcher, you just appointed yourself as a free labor. Maybe you get some credit hours or stipend if you’re really lucky, but it’s really not much benefit. At least do something that interests you. Even if you do the most interesting research, there will be some point that you feel tedious about it, and that feeling is worse when you do a research that you didn’t like in the first place.
A lot of research require sound knowledge of the core classes, and this is why most freshmans or sophomores don’t do research since they simply haven’t learned the fundamentals yet. Do something you would like to do with almost no reward, this is important for long-term.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I’ll also tell you that particularly in EECS, there are not that many students who go for research since that indicates you are more of a scholar type and you would like to do grad school and try to be a professor rather than going into industry. Since you also indicated a strong interest for MBA (which almost no one does straight after undergrad, by the way), it seems you would like to do ‘everything’ whether that’s going for the scholar path or the industry path or the business path. You don’t have to choose now. Just work hard and do well for the upcoming classes b/c that is the best preparation for whichever path you would like to go to.</p>

<p>As you work hard, you will realize what you like or not and have a better idea which path you would like to go to. As for research, definitely spend the time browsing through each professor’s website and find what seems interesting. If you truly find it interesting and have the sufficient knowledge to be part of the research, then e-mail the professor and make an appointment. (or call. This is surprisingly effective.) Otherwise, don’t even bother. Nobody likes to take students who have no passion but just want something.</p>

<p>Lastly, welcome to Berkeley. It is a place that you work through and you improve. Even if you don’t always get the GPA or the job offer you want, you don’t sit there and bemoan things and feel sorry for yourself. You have what you have, and Berkeley has a TON of resources. Just don’t make excuses or allow people to hold your back. This is truly a great place if you want to make the most out of it and stay positive.</p>

8

<p>Bump… any help is appreciated. Thanks to everyone who already answered my question(s)!</p>