Brown vs. Berkeley

Colleges & Universities A-Z Brown University
1

<p>I’m not an active CCer, but hear me out and offer your opinions, your advice, anything.</p>

<p>Two days ago, after having been rejected from Rice and Pomona, I was preparing to go to Berkeley and to take advantage of all its prefrosh activities. After those rejections, I felt that Brown wouldn’t look at me at all, that’d I’d be among those dreamers.</p>

<p>But I got in. And now I’m torn between Brown and Berkeley. Brown: I’ve fallen in love with its website. It’s my only exposure to the school besides my alumni interviewer. Everything I read about Brown made it feel more like a perfect fit. What I like most is the open curriculum and the laid-back welcoming environment. And the fact that it’s an ivy league, that does a lot. I’m not sold on the name alone, but knowing that I got into an ivy league is amazing. I’ve never lived above the poverty line and would have laughed in your face if you told me four years ago that I would be accepted to Brown. However, I’ve never visited Brown and may hate it when I get there. Also, because Brown is small compared to Berkeley, I can get more attention from professors. I can get the most out of an undergrad education. Then again, Providence doesn’t seem like a lively town.</p>

<p>Berkeley: I planned on going to this school since middle school. Mainly because my older brother attended, and I sought to repeat his success and the pride he instilled in my family. I visited Berkeley twice and I loved the culture, the atmosphere, the pro-activeness. But the numbers of students can feel overwhelming. I know there are breakout discussion groups, but that may never match up to Brown’s classrooms that were initially small. But the sheer number of programs and clubs on campus are so varied, it’s amazing. I will never be bored. Berkeley is prestigious in its own right too, especially internationally. And my boyfriend, who I care for deeply, attends Berkeley.</p>

<p>Finances are not a problem for me for either college, as both have offered very generous financial aid packages that cover all expenses. I do plan on living in the dorms. I have an undeclared major, but am interested in theater, marine science, education, and non-profit work.</p>

<p>It seems like when I think of one flaw for a school, I find a positive thing that balances the flaw. It’s only been 2 days since I found out about my acceptance to Brown, and my head is already going crazy.</p>

<p>Help?</p>

2

<p>Wow! I am in the same exact situation. I was ready to go to Berkeley after a Pomona & rice wait list. But now I am going krazy! What is your major/field of interest?</p>

3

<p>I chose between Brown and Berkeley myself and still have many close friends who attend Cal. For me the things that stick out the most between the two schools, besides size, are general requirements and course availability. As you probably know, Berkeley has quite a few general education requirements and Brown only as many as your major requires. It really gives you the freedom to explore your interest without feeling like the requirements are restricting you. It can also be a pain trying to complete these requirements at Berkeley if you can’t get into the class in the first place. Most of my friends at Cal have difficulty getting courses outside their majors to the point where several of them are considering abandoning their minors because they simply cannot get into classes. Given people do have trouble getting into some of the most popular classes at Brown, but any course that you want to take upon entering Brown you’ll be able to take by the time you graduate if you plan ahead reasonably. </p>

<p>I don’t know enough about the departments to comment on their comparative strength, but Brown has lots of opportunity to participate in theater both in and out of the classroom.</p>

<p>Personally I don’t know in the long run how much of a difference it really makes. Most of the discussion sections here aren’t led by professors, and even if they are it doesn’t really mean that they’re all that good at leading section. I really think it boils down to how much initiative you as a student show. Both Brown and Berkeley professors hold office hours and Berkeley’s professors are overwhelmed because they have 5x as many students. The Brown’s culture is that it is really a peoplefact is that 90% of students never go to office hours, so you’ll still have plenty of access to the professor if you just show up. Then again, if you are the type who likes to ask a lot of questions in class, then a smaller class size might help you, but again this can also be done during office hours.</p>

<p>One of benefits of going private over public is that you generally have more resources available to you. Undergraduate research is very accessible here in all departments. A lot of people stay over the summer to pursue research doing UTRAs. As a freshman, you have lots of people devoted to helping you figure out what’s going on. More access to computers, software, multimedia equipment. The alcohol and illegal downloading policies are less stringent here too.</p>

<p>I will admit to liking the city of Berkeley more than Providence, especially when you compare our main street Thayer to Telegraph. The food is better in Berkeley and there are just a lot more variety of shops. But really who needs city life when you have a very active and diverse campus life at Brown? There are always tons of activities going on at Brown during the week and weekends. If you like partying there are usually several to choose from, there are also theater, dance, film, music, and other cultural events going on continuously throughout the semester. I would say that there is less campus life at Berkeley just because the majority of students live off-campus, and that might also be another point of comparison for you, majority of the student body on-campus (Brown) vs. off-campus (Berkeley).</p>

<p>School culture is a tricky thing to pin down, but what defines brown’s culture for me are the people. The student body is so incredibly diverse - ethnically, culturally, geographically, economically - (Cal is too to some extent, but the international population is incredibly small compared to the rest of the student body, most of the students are from Cali, and besides Asians, other minorities aren’t very present) and that mix of people is something that you’ll only have once in your life. The size I feel is perfect, you get the close-knit community feeling without feeling claustrophobic (I run into my friends all the time, something that has rarely happened to me a Berkeley without planning). Everyone’s incredibly talented, but laid-back and down-to-earth about it. The majority of us are just a pro-active and involved as any Cal student.</p>

<p>I would really recommend visiting if you can since that’s usually the best way to get a feel for a school. But both are great schools (My friends love Cal) and I’m glad that you’ll be going to one of them.</p>