<p>Hi hi guys!
So.... I just got admitted from the UCLA wait-listing!..
but I committed to CAL already</p>
<p>I'm planning to major in mechanical engineering, and obviously CAL engineering would be a better choice but I'm kind of hesitant because so many people have been saying CAL engineering is cutthroat and what not...</p>
<p>So.. what I'm asking you guys is.. is UCLA engineering just as hard as CAL engineering or is it much easier? I thought it would be pretty hard since UCLA is in quarter system, and Berkeley is in semester system.</p>
<p>Anyways, thanks for reading and please HELP ME DECIDE! Thanks :)</p>
<p>Both are extremely difficult. I would say UCLA engineering is easier than UC Berkeley, but that’s like saying Stanford is easier than Harvard. Know what I mean?</p>
<p>Don’t worry about the difficulty because it’s a difficult major regardless, unless you go to some CSU. Just pick the school you like in terms of environment and where you feel will be happiest.</p>
<p>From what i’ve heard, a semester at cal is structured to be like two slightly shorter quarters (8 weeks vs 10) so a year, it would feel like you’re taking 4 quarters at berkeley as opposed to 3 at UCLA.</p>
<p>I find it interesting how you got waitlisted at UCLA, but got into Cal even though Cal is the better engineering school. Needless to say, stay at Cal, your engineering degree will be worth a bit more and you’ll be glad afterwards even if it is harder than UCLA - your end product is slightly better regarded if you go to Cal.</p>
<p>Academically, Berkeley will be better for mechanical engineering. Do you prefer the semester (~16 weeks + an actual dead week to study for your finals) or the quarter system (10 weeks + no real “dead” week). You will learn the material more thoroughly in the semester system. However, the quarter system allows you to take more classes if you prefer, at the expense of rushing through the material (not true for every course though). Some MechE courses that are extensive in the quarter system are CS, statics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and signals. I got accepted to Berkeley for MechE also but elected to stay in socal and I am about to graduate in June will no full time job offer lined up. I’m not sure if it is hard for MechEs to get jobs right now or if it is just UCLA students but a good amount of my fellow classmates can’t find jobs either.</p>
<p>From the job point of view, UCLA engineers are finding pretty difficult to get suitable jobs. Best would be to find out from one who has graduated from UCLA this year. In my opinion, Berkeley will give you a distinct edge in the job market.</p>