<p>I know there are about a billion threads on this topic, sorry. This is kind of different because I'm just so unsure about what I want to do with my life--I think this will dramatically change the perspective because if I wanted to do something like EECS, I would just go to UCB or if I wanted to do Hotel, I'd go to Cornell.</p>
<p>I am thinking of pre-med and majoring in Chemistry right now. However, I am only about 60% sure for both of these. I like chemistry, but a bachelor's degree in Chemistry is pretty worthless if I don't attend graduate school. I really don't know how to choose between the two.</p>
<p>Comment/advice on the following would be appreciated! I'm actually on the Cornell campus right now (my 2nd day) on a visit and I live about 30 miles away from UCB.</p>
<p>Cornell:</p>
<p>-Unknown financial aid package (even if I get something this year, I know the next couple of years I will probably get nothing)
-The weather is kind of a problem... but I'd be willing to deal with this if I truly believe Cornell's other aspects are truly way better than UCB's
-I don't like the area directly outside of Cornell's little bubble -- middle of nowhere
-Easier to find jobs? Better connections, Ivy League privileges??
-better for pre-med?</p>
<p>Berkeley:</p>
<p>-In-state tuition with Regents Scholarship -- only $1k a year (would be more if I had financial need), but that's still only $25K/year vs. Cornell's potential full-price sticker of $52K/year
-College of Chemistry's graduate program is #1 in the country -- but that is the graduate school, so how does this benefit undergrads?
-Good weather/outer community is better
-Research is not bad either; nonexistent advising for pre-med though
-Equally prestigious as Cornell?</p>
<p>Money is not THAT much of an issue, though an extra $100K over the course of 4 years is kind of a concern.
blueducky is online now</p>
<p>From reading your post, I think you have a preference for Cornell over Berkeley. I’m just wondering if that is worth an extra 100k. I’m guessing that your earning potential will not differ that much depending on which school you decide to attend. I think you have to decide for yourself if you think the experience of going to Cornell and being a part of the Cornell network is worth 100k.</p>
<p>I had to make a similar decision between two schools, but the cost difference wasn’t 100k. My thinking was that unless money was an important factor, you might as well go where you want to go.</p>
<p>What’s the value of an Ivy League education to you?</p>
<p>What is the value of an education that involves new geographic horizons – a great introduction to the east coast?</p>
<p>What is the value of studying with fellow students whose intellect you respect (I address this specifically to you, blueducky, since in several of your earlier posts you give the impression that you Berkeley is somehow not good enough since some 30 + kids from your high school got in and also the fact that you think Berkeley admits people who you feel do not belong)?</p>
<p>What is the value of new experiences?</p>
<p>What is the value of selecting a place that’s a good fit for you?</p>
<p>No, I never said I didn’t entirely respect Berkeley–I do. It’s just I have a hard time respecting some of the people Berkeley admitted from our school precisely because they don’t care for learning for the sake of learning AT ALL. I have no respect for people like that admitted to other colleges too, not just Berkeley. With a school like Berkeley, I guess I was just too naive in my assumption that most of the people admitted actually like engaging in intellectual endeavors in order to learn more, not to earn good grades and decent salaries. That erroneous assumption led to my seeming “disrespect” i suppose.</p>
<p>I like UCB a lot though–the weather, location, Chemistry department are all by far better than Cornell’s.</p>
<p>The questions you asked brassring, are tough. I’m just 18 years old–my parents actually told me I have to make this decision myself–they are willing to give me about $25k every year (enough to cover UCB’s instate tuition) and I have to come up with the rest (pay them back or take out loans) if i choose Cornell.</p>
<p>What does an Ivy League education really mean? Be honest though–it’s Cornell, not Harvard. Plus, Ivy League really is a sports league–does this really hold any meaning for a person like myself?</p>
<p>On the other hand, I do want to try something new–UCB will not provide that, for sure.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t say the chemistry department at UCB is better</p>
<p>Our chemistry department is absolutely fantastic.
and lol @ “What does an Ivy League education really mean? Be honest though–it’s Cornell, not Harvard.”</p>
<p>The fact is, UCB graduates are mostly confined to the west coast regions. Therefore your network will be limited to mostly the west coast. Cornell networks (especially if you branch out and befriend people in other colleges) extend from west coast to east coast, north to south, and all around the world (albeit most likely concentrated in the Northeast).</p>
<p>The professors are knowledgeable, helpful, and approachable. The courses are informative and instructive but push you to think for yourself. Faculty research is cutting edge. The facilities here are amazing. The chemistry community is very tight knit, enough so that anyone who wants to do research can.</p>
<p>The amazing professors aren’t only there for grad students, and they don’t only teach graduate classes. My current freshmen chemistry teacher is one of the people just recently awarded by the American Chemical Society:</p>
<p>For his work developing new methods in quantum chemistry, Chan received the society’s 2009 Award in Pure Chemistry, an award Hoffmann, received 41 years ago.</p>
<p>An assistant professor of chemistry and chemical biology, Chan is described by Hoffmann as “the leader and driver of this field.” A theorist, he is interested in the description of complex quantum processes that involve the correlated motions of electrons. A key feature of Chan’s work has been the incorporation of renormalization group theory – an idea that originated with Ken Wilson (a Cornell alumnus and Nobel laureate) and was developed into quantum chemistry.</p>
<p>Chan’s current interests include energy transfer in conjugated organic systems, in particular organic photovoltaics; the electronic structure of multi-center transition metal compounds; and strongly correlated quantum lattice models.</p>
<p>I like both schools, actually. I applied to both way back about 10 years ago. I was accepted to Cornell, but not at Berkeley. But then again, I’m an international student. </p>
<p>The truth is, both schools are peer schools. For undergrad education, there really isn’t much difference between the two in terms of academic quality and prestige. It’s only for grad education that Berkeley’s Chem would trounce Cornell’s, because Berkeley’s Chem is the best in the world. But you did not know, it was at Berkeley where the periodic table was arranged. Almost 20 elements were discovered there. In fact, one element was named after the school. Not even Harvard, MIT, Stanford and Caltech can touch Berkeley Chem. But then again, that’s mostly for grad school education. For undergrad, it’s lead over other per schools isn’t that huge. </p>
<p>Now, having said that, Cornell isn’t worth $100k more than Berkeley. In fact, it’s not worth a penny over Berkeley for Chem. Not even Harvard isn’t worth $100k over Berkeley for Chem. </p>
<p>I would say, if you’re not Asian, go to Berkeley. It is a fantastic university and it’s also cheaper. Even if you say you can afford the extra cost to attend Cornell, it still isn’t worth $100k more. No school is worth extra cost that much to Berkeley. </p>
<p>Now, if you’re Asian, I guess you’d thrive more at Cornell. </p>
<p>There are lots and lots of smart Asians at Berkeley and going there as an Asian would not mean anything for your personal welfare that much. You’re going to be just another smart Asian at Berkeley.</p>
<p>if you want to do chemistry, you should go to berkeley.
if you want to do pre-med, you should go to Cornell.
if you are undecided–decide!! jk, i would say undecided should go to Cornell but not if the debt is too much
Cornell is much less restrictive on taking classes out of your college, majoring across cornell’s different colleges while berkeley is kind of the opposite</p>
<p>ps im becoming a little biased toward cornell now that I’m probably going there, but the freedom across schools is something that the alumni stressed during the interviews before admissions decisions came out sometime in late january</p>
<p>Norcalguy, a frequent poster on these boards, turned down Cal for Cornell because he wanted to get out of California. While Cornell might carry a little bit more cachet on the East Coast, I suspect that the difference between the two schools will mostly boil down to the additional resources that Cornell can provide to its undergrads.</p>
<p>Whether or not that is worth 100k is up to you.</p>
<p>I’m obviously admitting my ignorance by making a thread like this, so it’d be great if you guys could give me your own opinions on the “extra” things Cornell offers, so I can better decide if it is worth the extra $100K. </p>
<p>At this point, I’m 85% for Cal. I still have to wait for Cornell’s package though.</p>