Cal's Prestige??

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

<p>Ok, yeah yeah, another Cal vs. UCLA thread. I've already started reading all those other ones, but I've barely put a dent in the stack.</p>

<p>So far, the general trend has been that Cal has a sucky social life and UCLA will provide a better undergrad experience. (Ok, I'm REALLY summing it up; i know there's a whole "you have to make use of the programs/ be outgoing with the ppl" thing going on..but that's beside the point. Kinda.) </p>

<p>But basically, I think I'm ONLY considering Cal because of its name. </p>

<p>Is this wrong? </p>

<p>Like really, will Cal's name look better on future job applications than UCLA's? will it make THAT much of a difference? Or does the prestige only come from graduate programs? </p>

<p>I've visited Cal and it didn't really 'click' with me so much, possibly bc I visited over the summer and the campus was more or less dead. UCLA i haven't visited yet, but everyone I've talked to said that it's amazing. I'll definitely visit UCLA before I decide, but is the long drive up to Berkeley worth it? Should I visit again and judge my opinion based on what campus is like when in session? </p>

<p>I know there's a bazillion threads around, but if someone could point me in the right direction and provide me with a link that kind of goes over my questions, or just answer directly here, I would REALLY appreciate it. </p>

<p>And is there anything else i should consider besides general 'social scene/life/atmosphere/etc'? That's almost what it boils down to... that, and perhaps Cal's name?</p>

2

<p>I'm in the same place as you right now. I've visited both schools and I definitely thought UCLA was awesome, while I didn't really like CAL too much. However, it's not easy to give up that prestige factor CAL has :\ </p>

<p>I'm going to go visit CAL again on CalDay to check it out. The last time I visited was like 4 years ago, so my opinion could have changed a lot lol. I really hope I find that I like CAL or I really really hate it so I can finally make up my mind. :P</p>

3

<p>I would say the "long drive" is worth it for a potentially 4 yr investment :)
...degrees won't make much of a difference, especially with UCLA in an "up-swing" era (recently named a "new ivy" by newsweek I think)...</p>

4

<p>cal and UCLA have "sucky" social life, if you want it to be that way; its big enough where you can be a social person if you want to be, and have a GREAT time.
Don't go to the school that you think will get you a good job, go to the school that you think you'll have the best experience at. If you do everything for money and profit, you will not be happy.
Visit, make sure you see campus on a weekday, and at around noon.</p>

5

<p>Choosing between Cal and UCLA is a life and death decision. Be careful of your decision. If you choose the wrong one you will have a terrible life!!! Your job prospects will be affected immensely!</p>

6

<p>If you're not considering going to a graduate school, then the prestige factor can be helpful when you look for jobs. But if you're going to grad school, then it does not matter. I know someone who went to UC riverside for undergrad and got into Harvard graduate school. If you want to go to graduate school, gpa is more important the school name or prestige.</p>

7

<p>I think that cal has a great social life - don't really know why it would be called 'sucky'</p>

8

<p>go wherever you like more--both schools have a strong name and are both academically rigorous. In the end, your gpa matters more probably, and you'll get the same undergrad education wherever you go for the most part.</p>

9

<p>Wow. It sounds like many of us are going through the same dilemma... Its kinda gnarly how much I'm clinging to the prestige Cal offers...</p>

<p>Hey iceboxx, I'm missing CalDay for JSA, let me know how it goes. I'm not exactly enchanted by the campus either :&lt;/p>

10

<p>If you like UCLA more than Cal then go to UCLA. Whatever edge Cal has in prestige wont make any difference (unless you want to study engineering, in which case the difference is dramatic). Honestly, its not like you're trying to choose between Harvard and Mississippi St. Go to the one you think you'll enjoy more.</p>

11

<p>"Whatever edge Cal has in prestige wont make any difference (unless you want to study engineering, in which case the difference is dramatic)."</p>

<p>I probably will study Engineering and was accepted at UCLA as a MechEng major. Can you explain why UCB is so much better Engineering-wise?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

12

<p>isn't engineering at UCLA their strong point? I got in civil engineering in both but is cal actually better than UCLA at engineering?</p>

13

<p>the 4 hour drive is definitely worth it, yeah the campus is eh, but the atmosphere when everyones there, in the city, especially if youre from suburban so-cal is so different its intriguing.. im in the sad little decision everyone is.. i love ucla too. boo. this is so hard</p>

14

<p>Berkeley is generally considered to be in the top three schools in the country for engineering and is probably Cal's stongest/most prestigious program (also one of the most difficult). I can't speak for UCLA, and maybe it has a good engineering program, but in that area Cal has a big edge. Still, I honestly wouldn't make that the deciding point in choosing a college. If you feel more comfortable at UCLA you'll probably do better in your studies anyway.</p>

15

<p>Okay, many things to over.</p>

<p>First, I wouldn't say Berkeley's social life "sucks" while UCLA's is great. UCLA has a better environment in its surrounding city (the city of Berkeley is a bit run-down, although very vibrant). UCLA's a little more into athletics although this past year Cal's football team did a lot better. So I think both schools are typical large public universities, with similar athletics/student groups/organizations.</p>

<p>Second, it's fine to want to go to Berkeley because of its prestige. You have to consider though, that the gap in prestige is not that large unless you go international or something. The question of "how much will it help me in getting a job or getting into a top law/med school/grad program if I go to Berkeley over UCLA." The answer is: it will probably help a little, but not much. There's a thread on CC which I think perfectly illustrates the gap, although keep in mind that this is an overgeneralization and varies from department to department:</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=331960%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=331960&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>
[quote]
Based on Absolute Numbers at Yale Law, Harvard Law, and Virginia Law, following are the numbers of students from these undergraduate schools (*Note: numbers from Yale, Harvard and Virginia are likely to be comparatively inflated as those law schools likely give higher weight to students from their own school or have an in-state matriculation requirement). </p>

<ol>
<li>Harvard (339 graduates)</li>
<li>Yale (209) </li>
<li>Stanford (125)</li>
<li>Princeton (97)</li>
<li>U Penn (71)</li>
<li>U Virginia (69)</li>
<li>Columbia (69)
8. UC Berkeley (68)</li>
<li>Brown (66)</li>
<li>Duke (65)</li>
<li>Dartmouth (59)</li>
<li>Cornell (59)
13. UCLA (50)</li>
<li>Georgetown (45)</li>
<li>Brigham Young (41)</li>
<li>U Texas (36)</li>
<li>Notre Dame (35)</li>
<li>Amherst (33)</li>
<li>Williams (33)</li>
<li>Northwestern (30)</li>
<li>U Michigan (30)</li>
<li>NYU (26)</li>
<li>U North Carolina (26)</li>
<li>Emory (23)</li>
<li>Rice (21)</li>
<li>U Chicago (21)</li>
<li>Vanderbilt (20)</li>
<li>USC (20)</li>
<li>W&M (20)</li>
<li>Swarthmore (18)</li>
<li>MIT (17)</li>
<li>Brandeis (15)</li>
<li>U Washington (15)</li>
<li>Wash U (14)</li>
<li>Wesleyan (13)</li>
<li>Tufts (12)</li>
<li>Middlebury (11)</li>
<li>Boston College (11)</li>
<li>Pomona (11)</li>
<li>Wellesley (9)</li>
<li>U Wisconsin (9)</li>
<li>Carnegie Mellon (7)</li>
<li>Carleton (7)</li>
<li>Wake Forest (6)</li>
<li>Bowdoin (6)</li>
<li>Johns Hopkins (6)</li>
<li>Haverford (3)</li>
<li>Davidson (3)</li>
<li>Vassar (3)</li>
<li>Caltech (2)</li>
<li>U Rochester (2)</li>
<li>Lehigh (2)

[/quote]
</li>
</ol>

<p>Third, I definitely encourage you to come visit during Cal Day. Usually the Berkeley campus and its surroundings is pretty busy so if you happen to go on a deserted summer day you may not get a good idea of what it's like. I think UCLA's campus is more beautiful and appealing, and the fact that the dorms are on a hill within the campus, surrounded by greenry, is definitely something Berkeley lacks. Here's the catch: it's on a hill. It takes you 20-30 minutes sometimes to walk to class, or out into the city. Many students spend most of their time either in the dorms or on campus. Eventually you get bored of the surroundings and the food (even though the campus food is really good). Berkeley's dorms are separated from the campus by about 2-3 blocks, and the campus and the dorms feel integrated with the city. Because of this, I can walk a block outside the dorms and find tons of restaurants and shops. I think this is really a big advantage that students don't realize at first.</p>

<p>Fourth, there are a few specific departments where I feel going to Berkeley will actually make a noticible difference over UCLA. If you want to study Chemistry, Berkeley's Chemistry's department has consistently been ranked #1 in the nation. When it comes to engineering, I also feel like Berkeley has a significant gap over UCLA. To give you an idea, in the US News top undergrad engineering programs, Berkeley was ranked #2 and UCLA was ranked #19:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.sandiego.edu/engineering/news_events/news_details/cbeng06.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.sandiego.edu/engineering/news_events/news_details/cbeng06.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

16

<p>hey, i was wondering
any stats for undergrad schools that are commonly found at top med schools?</p>

17

<p>Could people explain why they feel UCB's engineering program has an edge over UCLA that does not have to do with USNEWS/Rankings.</p>

18

<p>oxypunk151, most of Berkeley's engineering faculty are ridiculously famous in their fields. For you as an undergraduate, this means that any undergraduate research you take part in might be slightly cooler. Maybe. Furthermore, employers actively seek out Berkeley engineering graduates because Berkeley is known for training its engineers extremely well.</p>

<p>In short, UCLA is a good school, but it's not an engineering giant like Berkeley. They're really in two different leagues when it comes to engineering, and employers know that Berkeley is phenomenal.</p>

<p>On the downside, succeeding in Berkeley's engineering program is not exactly easy, and it does not seem to take good care of students who are drowning. But on a personal note, I think I've gained a lot from the engineering program at Berkeley, and from constantly getting back up on that horse and trying to succeed (and succeeding).</p>

19

<p>Berkeley also has a history of innovation in engineering unmatched by UCLA's engineering department. </p>

<p>source: coe.berkeley.edu</p>

<p>Because of Berkeley Engineering's reputation, it has the ability to continually attract and power to select the most talented people for its faculty.</p>

20

<p>My take on this is that if you get active in what UCB has to offer, then it has the potential to essentially be the best engineering pogram there is. If a student simply does class work it has a slight edge due to the prestige factor. Would this be a fair assesment?</p>

<p>By the way, I thank those of you who gave answers based on USNEWS. It seems only a handful of students make choices not based on it.</p>