<p>@ RML: I used to think the same thing. Well, I knew Berkeley wasn’t, but until 6 months ago I thought Stanford was lol. </p>
<p>I would also have to agree with you. Berkeley is internationally renowned. I think this is probably the case due to its research output, professor/faculty accolades, and considering that it’s the best public school in the world. </p>
<p>I do believe that Berkeley is one of the top 5 or 6 most internationally recognized schools in America…and possibly even the world.</p>
<p>I attended Cornell as an undergraduate and Berkeley as a graduate student (engineering). Cornell’s program is superior: smaller size, more flexibility (you don’t choose a major until end of Sophomore Year, and transferring between UG colleges is fairly easy) and more opportunities (internships, research, etc.) at all levels. Cornell’s student population is also more diverse (Berkeley’s UG population consisting of 80-85% California residents).</p>
<p>I would also add that Berkeley is now living off its reputation from the last century. The UC system as a whole is going through a downturn (partly financial, partly political) that might last for decades. Finally, Cornell students do noticably better than Berkeley at the top grad schools in terms of placement. Do a search for the Wall Street Journal for “Top Feeder Colleges to Graduate School” and look at the data.</p>
<p>Unless your reasons are financial, I would tell most students in your situation to go to Cornell.</p>
<p>It really depends on WHAT UR MAJOR IS. Both schools are very prestigious for their engineering schools, but if u want to major chemical engineering, definitely berkeley because unlike the other engineering classes, berkeley’s chemical engineering is part of college of chemistry not college of engineering. berkeley only picks approximately 220 ppl max for college of chemistry so if u r doing chemical engineering, classes would be MUCH smaller. plus, chemical engineering at berkeley is ranked 2 in the world. so decide what u want to major in. do ur research. it really depends on what major</p>