<p>I've seen the "Some tips for succeeding at UCLA" in their thread and found it very helpful, even though I'm probably not attending there. I think making a "Some tips for succeeding at Cal" would be very beneficial to incoming students, from general to specific things. </p>
<p>Anyone up for the challenge?</p>
<p>Thanks guys!</p>
<ol>
<li>Decide your major sooner than later:</li>
</ol>
<p>Overall, the happiest people I have met at Cal are those who come in knowing exactly what they want to study, and how that will translate into their future career. The people who know exactly what they want put the right amount of effort in their classes, join clubs they enjoy and are passionate about, and build a strong group of friends that think a like. People that are undeclared, or really don’t know what they want to do with their life seem less happy, probably because they dont have a dream in mind to keep them motivated in the intense academic environment at Cal, and might not have an identity that they can connect to various clubs and social groups on campus.</p>
<ol>
<li>Try things you never did before, and don’t be reluctant to try new things, unless it jeopardizes your grades or self-integrity </li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><p>Don’t just study study study. There’s more to life than just studying. Plus, if you keep turning down friends to go study, then you’re not going to have many friends. Though, maintain your grades. Yes, my gpa is 3.45. Could it be higher? yes, but do I really want to sacrifice my social life to get a 4.0? Not really. </p></li>
<li><p>You are probably a top student from your high school entering UC Berkeley; so is everyone else. You may or may not be the smartest anymore, and that’s okay. You’re going to meet very inspiring people who just seem to be able to balance so many things at once. Don’t compare yourself to them, and just try your best. You are not a “loser” if you can’t do as well, everyone is unique and different. You can’t compare oranges to apples. And you can be amazed at what you can learn from your peers who come from different backgrounds. </p></li>
<li><p>When you start school, try your best to get to know people. It gets harder to make friends as the semester drags on. Go out to eat with your floormates to get to know them. Introduce yourself to the people sitting next to you in class and make small talk. Go to calapalooza, which is on the 1st thursday when school starts, to walk around tables to see what clubs you are interested in and join them. Be active in one or two, and apply to be in a committee/family. Being a general member won’t let you get close to people as being in a committee or family. Get people’s numbers if you want to be friends, arrange dinners with your floormates.</p></li>
<li><p>yes, ^jeweinst1 knows it. Try things you never did before. Go apply for Berkeley’s Alternative Breaks program, or the Cal Externship program. Become comfortable with being uncomfortable.</p></li>
<li><p>If you are pre-med or pre-Haas, the environment is going to be a little competitive. Yes, there’s going to be some ■■■■■■■■ who think they are the best and that they only took 1 hour to finish a problem set. Just ignore those people, they just like to see the panic on other people’s faces, and they do not represent the whole student population for the major. Haas is actually very cooperative for example, and many are very nice.</p></li>
<li><p>Use your breadth requirements to try new subjects you were interested before. Curious about forestry? Take the forestry class if it fulfills a breadth requirement. </p></li>
<li><p>If you know what you want to do for a career, join a club that is related to whatever you want to do. It will help you in the long run. Apply for research positions when you qualify, and do internships as early as possible. You need to start building your resume. When you graduate 4 years later, you will be glad when you apply for jobs, or when you need to apply for grad school.</p></li>
<li><p>Take a language class if you have the space. Berkeley’s language programs are very demanding, but also very rewarding. I took Chinese for only 1.5 years, and I can hold conversations pretty well. I can even write in traditional. I was actually surprised by my progress. The language classes are small, and you get to know your classmates. They are also stress relievers for people since they are fun </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Remember that college courses (at any college) require a lot more self-motivation, and have much less hand-holding and teacher-monitoring than high school courses (including AP courses). If you do readings, assignments, etc. when given, rather than waiting until the last hour, your experience and grades will be much better.</p>
<p>Also note that many AP courses cover over a year in high school what college courses cover in a semester, so be aware that college courses are likely to cover material faster than high school courses.</p>
<p>Wow, I’m amazed at the amount of tips you guys have. Thanks a lot guys, let’s keep it going!</p>
<p>Sorry this is a bit long, but I hope this helps. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do the work.
Not everything assigned (like reading, homework) will necessarily count for a substantial portion of your grade in your class, but will factor into your grade through other means like tests, papers, etc. So doing that homework which only counts for 0.5% of your grade will, in the long run, help you ace that midterm that is 25% of your grade. </p></li>
<li><p>Go to class
Rather, don’t ditch. To be honest, going to class helps but that alone won’t get you a good grade. However, not going to class often is more detrimental than going to class is helpful. So go to class. </p></li>
<li><p>Fostering self-motivation
A lot of Berkeley (and college in general) is fueled by self-motivation. No more parents and teachers to nag you about the doing homework and studying for tests. If you don’t turn in a homework or show up for a test, usually, that’s that (unless you have a good reason and you communicated that to your professor). </p></li>
<li><p>Finding a goal
Whether you are in a major you love or hate, you should have goals, short-term and long-term. Sure, you might not achieve them or you might change you mind later down the line, but it is still important to have an approximate direction of where you want to go in life. It will make your college experience so much more satisfying. </p></li>
<li><p>Keep an open mind
Having goals is not to say you shouldn’t try out new things. Do try out new classes, seminars, and/or decals. Your goals are allowed to change. If you really really hate your major, it’s fine to switch to something you would enjoy more.
An open mind should also be applied to your surroundings as well. You are probably going to meet a lot of different people from a lot of different background, and be mindful that everyone’s different.
Engage in new things and approach them with an open mind. You will learn, academically and personally, so much more. </p></li>
<li><p>Don’t obsess over school too much
This is kind of contradictory advice to #1, but really, don’t obsess too much about school. Do work hard, but don’t prioritize studying over eating. There are a lot of intelligent and talented people in Berkeley, and many Berkeley classes are graded on a curve (something like 30% A’s, 30 B’s, 30 C’s, 10 D/F for most upper division; I believe the lower division curve for “weeder” classes is less generous). If you don’t get your A even though you worked your absolute hardest, it’s fine. A lot of people don’t, and still do fine later in life. Chances are, if you have the self-motivation and ambition, you will too. Don’t let that bad grade keep you down. </p></li>
<li><p>Finding a good balance
There’s also a lot more distraction in college due to the lack of parental (or any) oversight. Sometimes the distractions are bad (going to a party or studying for a test?), but actually, most of the time, the distractions are more along the lines of mundane chores like paying your bills and doing your laundry, and social obligations like just hanging out with your friends and keeping in touch with your family. Instead of focusing solely on one thing, learn to find a good balance between everything, and you’ll find yourself happier and more successful in Berkeley. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Go initially to the tutors and continue to go. They know the course material and can help you focus what to study.</p>
<p>Very helpful, anything else “Berkeley-specific” I should know before coming in as a freshman?</p>
<p>Kind of a side note; these advices are more catered towards living in Berkeley rather than the academics part of Berkeley. I guess knowing these things ahead of time can help with succeeding in Berkeley?
<ul>
<li><p>Other than dining commons, there are also cafes, markets, grab-and-go food places on campus as well. Try out Qualcomm Cafe in Sutardja hall (they have these made to order wraps for lunch) or Ramona’s in Wurster (made to order paninis). Most of these places have a Peet’s attached and i THINK they accept meal plan points. </p></li>
<li><p>There are no major supermarkets that are very close to campus. Closest would be two Trader Joe’s, one on University and MLK Jr. Road and the other on College, the Safeway near the Gourmet Ghetto (there’s a Safeway on College, but it’s under construction), Whole Foods Market on Telegraph and Ashby, and Berkeley Bowl on Oregon and Shattuck. However, there are a lot of corner stores (overpriced though) and marketplaces in the dorms (Cub Market, Bear Market), which accept meal plan points but are also quite overpriced. Not that you would need to cook in the dorms, but if transportation to grocery stores is an issue, there’s this new service called Instacart that deliver groceries straight to your door, although with a service fee. </p></li>
<li><p>Berkeley time: Berkeley classes start 10 minutes after the listed time. For example, a 10am-11am class would actually be 10:10 - 11:00. </p></li>
<li><p>People’s Park is a small to mid-size park near the Units. There is a basketball court and grass and trees … and it is also a place where hobos live/gather. </p></li>
<li><p>Speaking of hobos, they are actually usually quite polite or at least they won’t bother you. You don’t have to interact with them if you don’t want to, but most people come into Berkeley having these irrational fears about hobos. Yes, some of them are crazy and talk to themselves, but I’ve personally never had a real problem with them. If you are walking down the street and this crazy person is yelling at you (and that is not too unusual in Berkeley), just keep walking. You should be fine. </p></li>
<li><p>If you need to walk home late at night and you feel safety is a concern, you can use Bearwalk (they send someone to walk with you to your destination) or the Night Shuttle for longer distances. the phone number for these services are on the back of your Student ID. </p></li>
<li><p>Buses are a nice way to get around in Berkeley. Berkeley students get to ride the AC transit for free; you just need to pick up a bus pass sticker at the beginning of the semester at the Cal 1 card office. Some routes that go near the campus are 51B, 49, F. </p></li>
<li><p>If you have a bike up in Berkeley, take extra precautions in locking up your bike. Bicycle thefts are very common in Berkeley. Use U-locks (no cables that can be easily cut off). And register your bike in case it gets stolen. <a href=“http://police.berkeley.edu/prevention/bike.html”>http://police.berkeley.edu/prevention/bike.html</a></p></li>
<li><p>If you want to go to SF, you can take the Bart (closest station is Downtown Berkeley, but I sometimes take Rockridge as well). Tickets are around $7-$8 roundtrip from downtown Berkeley to downtown SF, ~$19 roundtrip to SFO, and $5 roundtrip to OAK (although if you are going to OAK, you’ll also need to pay an extra $2 for the airBart shuttle that takes from Coliseum station to the airport). Follow Google Maps public transportation directions, then you should be fine. </p></li>
<li><p>If you can afford to spend more on transportation, Uber and Lyft are also pretty convenient ways to get around. </p></li>
<li><p>If you are musically inclined, there are practice rooms open to all students in the basement of Morrison Hall. Most have upright pianos you can play on. Also, some common areas in the dorms also have pianos. </p></li>
<li><p>Gym admission for the semester is $10. I believe you can also access gyms of other UC’s as well. Other than the main gym (RSF), there are also a bunch of other smaller gyms, pools, tennis courts you can use around the campus/city area. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>@sheepsgobaa sorry to break it to you…dorm food has not improved much…still tastes bad haha</p>
<p>For berkeley students, If you like to eat good food. go explore Berkeley, SF, and Oakland. They all have pretty good restaurants and you can try many different types of ethnic foods. It’s pretty cool to try all of them and know the differences between different cuisines. I have tried authentic ethiopian food to middle eastern to korean food. If you’re going to get take out food, you DON’T have to go to Asian Ghetto to get it…go try new cuisines! </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>For more on locking bicycles: <a href=“Lock Strategy”>http://www.sheldonbrown.com/lock-strategy.html</a></p>
<p>Another important tip:</p>
<p>Please take UGBA 196: Personal Finance (there are several UGBA 196 so make sure you choose the right one) before you graduate. It is a intro class to personal finance (credit card, mortgage, loans, basic stuff you need for real life). I noticed so many students are a little ignorant about this and their parents have not taught them much about it. This is important because you need to know how to manage your own finances before you get out into the real world!! </p>
<p>In addition to all of the other useful tips mentioned on this page, I would say definitely consider joining a student organization. I just finished my first year at Cal and can say that I’ve made a lot of awesome friends through the organization that I’m most involved with (The Berkeley Forum). In general, student organizations allow you to interact with a small group of people, which can be a good break from those 300+ person lectures. I can honestly say that joining the Berkeley Forum was one of the best decisions that I’ve made so far at Cal.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in finding out more, here’s a blog post I wrote on the topic: <a href=“http://blog.admissions.berkeley.edu/2014/04/guest-blog-sergey-mann/”>http://blog.admissions.berkeley.edu/2014/04/guest-blog-sergey-mann/</a></p>
<p>@sergey19 - I read your guest post, great read! Berkeley Forum sounds interesting, not sure if I’d want to get involved in politics though lol</p>
<p>Hey, so welcome to Cal.</p>
<p>First of all, here’s the link (<a href=“Teams and organizations - Berkeley Engineering”>http://coe.berkeley.edu/students/current-undergraduates/student-involvement/engineering-student-societies.html</a>) for all the clubs that’s even remotely close to engineering and computer science. Some of them are major-specific and/or need specific GPA to get in, but most of them can be joined by any major and they’re pretty legit. Take some time browsing each clubs and join them if you think any of them are interesting.</p>
<p>Next, signing up for classes. The biggest asset of Cal is a there is a ridiculous variety of courses in any department. In fact, we have a ridiculous variety of departments. When it’s time to sign up for courses, don’t simply pick the top 4 courses and only attend those from day 1. For example, there are three professors to choose from Math 1A. Instead of making all the speculation from ratemyprofessors, actually go to all 3 lectures and check out the professors yourself and decide from there. This is even more helpful later in college and it’s time to take the electives - you want to have the professors that you like to listen to and check out the syllabus to see if you can handle the course.
It will be very tiring to go to potentially up to 10 courses in the first week, but I promise this “shopping” is a very good way to narrow down your choices and take the classes that you feel good about. Don’t worry about registration since people drop out a lot for any classes 2 weeks after school begins.</p>
<p>Lastly, just work hard. People talk about how it’s tough it is here and grade deflation is ruining their lives, but really, too people aren’t working hard enough. For any major in Cal, if you work like you did in junior year in high school for those AP exams, every body should be getting at least 3.5. Do the homework, spend some time on regular basis reading or practicing any concepts or topics that you don’t understand, and this should result in nothing less than A- in any class at Cal even if you never go to office hours. The problem is when students ignore their problems and try to cram everything few days before the exam and then complain about why they sucked. Unlike high school, cramming only works half of the time since the material is kinda tough b/c it’s college, but it’s still undergrad and a lot of stuff we learn are still basic and can be mastered if you put sufficient time into it. Just be diligent and actually work and Berkeley won’t be as terrible as people talk about it.</p>