BERKELEY or UCLA for Art History?!

<p>Hi Everyone,</p>

<p>I am a transfer student that has recently been accepted to both Berkeley and UCLA. I am an Art History major and am having quite the dilemma choosing which school I want to attend. I have been weighing the pros/cons and cannot seem to come to a decision.</p>

<p>Berkeley is THE number one public school in America and ranked #21 school in the country. However, UCLA is ranked closely behind as #23 school in America. Technically speaking, Berkeley has the better Art History program, but UCLA is surrounded by all the great art museums such as: J. Paul Getty, Getty Villa, LACMA, MOCA, Norton Simon, and also has the Hammer and the Fowler on site. The local LA museums are very tight-knit with UCLA and so getting an internship at one of these places is very possible. Going back to Berkeley, it holds more "academic weight" so that may come in handy when applying for grad school later on. All in all, the two schools are very comparable. I guess I would just like to get your input on the matter!</p>

<p>HELP!</p>

<p>Hey!</p>

<p>I’m currently a junior transfer at UCLA majoring in Art History, and I chose UCLA over Berkeley. They’re both great schools, but UCLA felt like the right choice for me. I know many other transfer students in the major who made the same choice. While Berkeley technically has a stronger department, I did feel that being in a big city had many advantages for proximity to the art world. (I also had personal reasons for choosing UCLA. I grew up in Berkeley but had been living in LA for a few years already, so I didn’t want to move back to my hometown. I like LA better as a city and feel that there’s more to do here, especially for anyone interested in the art world.) </p>

<p>I can say that I’m very happy with my choice. My classes and teachers have been world-class, including curators from LACMA, editors of prestigious art journals, and Pulitzer prize winners. If UCLA is less prestigious than Cal, it’s only by a small margin and I don’t think that sort of difference would effect things like grad school admission chances. If you do well at either school there’s no reason that you can’t go onto pretty much anything you want to do in the field. UCLA has great connections with local museums, including Hammer and Fowler on/near campus. You also get access to the Getty Research Institute library/archives. </p>

<p>I think you should go with whichever school feels best for you! I have no doubt that I am happier at UCLA than Cal, but obviously you can’t really go wrong. Good luck!</p>

<p>Hi~ I am currently a college student majoring in Art History.
I am planning to transfer to UCLA next year, but I don’t know
any of information about how to get into UCLA.
Could you tell me what your GPA was ? Also, Did you do any extra curricular activities such as volunteer or internship?<br>
Thank you</p>

<p>@Ashley</p>

<p>I am a current admit to both Cal and UCLA. I was admitted to both schools as an art history major. My GPA was 3.72, all my pre-reqs for UCLA was complete, and my EC box was full. I am also TAP certified for UCLA and member of TAP for Berkeley. </p>

<p>Try to keep your GPA high and finish all pre-reqs. Art history is not an impacted major, so it should not be too difficult.</p>

<p>Are you a student who came to UCLA reception on 5/17?
Did you decide to come to UCLA or Cal?</p>

<p>Are you from LA County? Are you a minority? If so, go to Berkeley and just apply for the MUI through the Getty. As a transfer, you’ll most likely find it difficult to fit an internship a semester. It’s more than possible, but most transfers do internships during the summer months. </p>

<p>This would knock out many advantages of going to school in SoCal in terms of internship opportunities.</p>

<p>UCLA would give you access to more professors and adjuncts who work in museums and publishing, but Berkeley has more closer ties to the art world outside of L.A. than UCLA does. They also do a lot more research than UCLA.</p>

<p>Both are great schools.</p>

<p>Here’s the MUI link
[Multicultural</a> Undergraduate Internships: For Students (Getty Foundation)](<a href=“http://www.getty.edu/foundation/funding/leaders/current/mui_students.html]Multicultural”>http://www.getty.edu/foundation/funding/leaders/current/mui_students.html)</p>