<p>After several posts on this foruma s well as much personal deliberation, I have narrowed my choice down to Berkeley vs UChicago for a physics major. What I'm concerned about for Berkeley is its reputation for limited resources with many students competing for them. I am not an overly aggressive person by nature, so would this limit my experience at Berkeley should I choose to attend? Does Chicago have this same problem or is there less of a cutthroat mentality required for a good college experience? I must say, ceteris paribus I would choose Chicago, as it has an intellectual (perhaps overly so) atmosphere I rather enjoy. However, Berkeley is in state so that is definately a factor. Comments/advice anyone?</p>
<p>Chicago is not cutthroat - but the students spend their time in the library. There is a highly academic climate here, which is wonderful. On the other hand, my mom, a UChicago grad, said that she was considering Berkeley for B School years ago, and, though she ended up at Chicago, she says that the academic environments are very similar. She felt more comfortable at Berkeley than at any other school - except Chicago.</p>
<p>Both are excellent schools, and it must be a tough call for you. Are there financial concerns?</p>
<p>By the way, I know a physics major here at Chicago, and he is quite brilliant. So, the physics dept has nothing lacking.</p>
<p>My biased choice, though, is the University of Chicago, where I will be attending in the fall. You might want to check out the UChicago thread on CC for more information.</p>
<p>Best of luck.</p>
<p>id pick UChicago</p>
<p>Probably UChicago for ugrad.</p>
<p>UChicago - physics and the sciences are awesome there!</p>
<p>How do you feel when you think of spending four years or so in Berkeley? How about Chicago? </p>
<p>You say "ceteris paribus." I find that awesome, and imagine that most Berkeley students aren't using latin (explicitly) that often in their speech. Is the average Chicago student? Probably not, but I'd guess more so than the average Berkeley student (besides those Greeks). Berkeley does have many resources, and some competition for them, but much of it is overexaggerated. Is there much competition to go up before or after class to talk to your professor? To go to their office hours? No, not really, but many, probably most students just don't do it. Would you do it? If you don't think that you would, perhaps Chicago would be better for you, where professors (so they say) are more likely to come to you, or seem more available. What do you think about the surrounding location, campus atmosphere, relative class sizes (although <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=165910&page=2&pp=15%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=165910&page=2&pp=15</a> seems interesting), and other factors you might find important (food, for instance? Sports teams? Weather? Ect?)</p>
<p>Thanks DRab! That was really helpful. You refer to "surrounding location, campus atmosphere, relative class sizes". If you or anyone else has any information on these factors that you would like to share, that would be great! I did follow your link, and that really reassures me. Also, some people on this forum have told me that physics is not one of the overcrowded majors. So I guess my major concern is atmosphere. Do people feel closely knit at Berkeley? Or do they feel like another serial number (as I've heard)? Thanks again to all posters!</p>
<p>I don't think most people feel very close knit. I would guess that at Chicago there is more of sense of community than Berkeley. Some Berkeley students have a sense of community, and some very intense feeling, but I would imagine Chicago has more because of its smaller undergraduate class size and common core. I also think the school does something to match students with other students (or so the princeton review said). Berkeley is like many other schools in that students find a niche, a few activities that they tend to do, or don't do too much outside of school. This might be marching band, or a particular club, or a sport, or a frat/sorority. You should visit the schools and talk to students in person.</p>
<p>I'm not too familiar with Chicago, but from what I've heard, I think that the surrounding atmosphere of Berkeley is more interesting than Chicago's. I think that the campus is slightly less dreary, although Berkeley does have its rainy days. The students seem more intellectual as a whole at Chicago. Chicago attracts a particular type of student. I think that Chicago, on average, is more intense than Berkeley. When my friend was intervied, and the interviewer found out she was interested in activities outside of school, she was very excited. "Someone who does something." It seems like many Chicago students are focused very much on academics, even more so than the Berkeley students (and many are known for studying a lot). </p>
<p>I'm not sure, but I bet Chicago's classes will probably be smaller than Berkeley's. you can check courses on the internet sites for each school.</p>
<p>Dreary Chicago winter -vs-</p>
<p>bustling street vendors,raggae underground music on sun-filled Telegraph avenue in a warm California afternoon.</p>
<p>I'd go with UChicago as well, unless money is a major, major factor. Another limitation of Berkeley is that you'll have a hard time exploring different fields -- once you're in physics, you've pretty much locked yourself in physics.</p>
<p>I'm sorry, how is that more so than Chicago?</p>
<p>Well, physics majors often find later in their academic careers that they aren't as employable as engineers, for example. It is not easy to transfer into Berkeley's engineering school from elsewhere in the university.</p>
<p>Well, perhaps, but would some later-career physics major at Chicago have an easy time adapting his or her path towards engineering? Also, physics majors are plenty employable. There are few majors which are more "employable" than the physics majors. I think that you can explore fields plenty at Berkeley, perhaps in some ways more so than Chicago, because there's more flexibility in requirements and fewer of them.</p>
<p>Chicago...Berkeley is just too big for undergrad.</p>
<p>I guess most of the people here just didn't realize or isn't aware. Their mistake. <em>shrug</em></p>
<p>I am planning on going for a masters/PhD anyway, so for undergrad I basically just want to improve my powers of thinking. I do, however, want the freedom to switch majors early and often, in case I find that physics is not how I want to go. Is there a differenc ein course flexibility between Chicago/Berkeley? Again, thanks for all the replies!</p>
<p>DRab, by "later career," I didn't mean junior/senior year. I meant, "beyond high school." A friend of mine at Caltech was sure he was going to study physics -- and all in the course of the five quarters so far, he switched from physics to engineering to chemistry to finally mathematics.</p>
<p>Chicago (like Caltech) does have a strong core curriculum, and even if Berkeley allows you more flexibility in choosing your classes, Chicago allows a greater flexibility to change your major.</p>
<p>Also, because of the existence of the core curriculum, it is less difficult to double major, if you are considering it.</p>
<p>With later career, I was referring to "junior/senior year" of college.</p>
<p>I don't understand, how does the core make it less difficult to double major? That seems counter-intuitive.</p>
<p>And students at Berkeley in letter and sciences can easily switch between physics, math, and chem. Only a few majors do not allow easy switching. Granted, some of these are "big name" majors, and popular, but to say that Chicago has a greater flexibility to change majors is only partially true. The engineering fields are one example, and there are only a handful of others.</p>
<p>The core makes it less difficult to double major because more of your required courses for each major "naturally" overlap.</p>
<p>Well, I could see how that helps to some extent, but I still am sceptical if it's somehow easier than a more open curriculum, as many related subjects have similar required courses.</p>