<p>Honestly, I don't... Is it just me? Usually only the basic examples are explained in lecture, then they leave the hard ones for you to read and figure out. I feel like the only difference really with going to Berkeley are the difficult homework and exams. You learn alot from doing these challenging homework. Other than that, I really don't feel like the classes here differ that much from the classes at other schools. What exactly do people mean when they say "top-notch instruction"? A lot of the professors here can't even teach. They probably only got hired due to their Ivy League background, being a publisher, etc. The only real good reason to go here would be for the better employment and research opportunities...</p>
<p>This is true at any major research university. I was an undergrad at Harvard and PhD student at Berkeley. At Harvard, the quality of the teaching was dreadfully bad in the lower level courses and the courses for non-majors. At a research university, the quality of teaching is generally better in upper-level courses within the major. At places like Harvard and Berkeley, a significant portion of your education just comes from being surrounded by and challenged by incredible peers. The other advantage of a big research university is the zillions of opportunities to get involved in research projects… I was able to join a lab, contribute to research… my advisor encouraged me to try some of my own ideas out, and I actually got a paper published in a scientific journal. That was an amazing experience for an undergrad.</p>
<p>At a big research university, the sad truth is, the professors see classroom teaching as a nuisance. It barely even factors into their promotion and tenure. All that matters is research output. But if you find a mentor and get involved in a research project, you will have a much better academic experience.</p>
<p>I have had some astonishingly awesome professors here at Berkeley. Matt Francis, Martin Head-Gordon, Susan Muller, Alex Bell, Denis Auroux, Enrique Iglesia, Steve Stahler,…the list could go on, and only a couple of bad ones. I learn so much from lectures that I rarely ever have to read the textbooks for any of my classes (I can just glance through my notes), which is fantastic.</p>
<p>Another strength at Berkeley is the quality of graduate students. I am continually impressed by them. For example, today one of my professors could not make the lecture so he had a grad student teach. He did such a great job that I would be very satisfied with him teaching the class for the entire semester. I doubt many schools in the country have GSIs like ours.</p>
<p>^ My experience too, singh. Have you ever encountered any GSIs that were difficult to understand due to English being a second language? It seems like a common complaint but I didn’t encounter it during my tenure at Berkeley. Curious what others have experienced…</p>
<p>When you get to classes that actually matter, the difference in level of understanding between Berkeley professors and HS or CC teachers becomes very very very very very apparent.</p>
<p>I’m an upstart freshman, and the only difference apparent to me so far between high school and college is that in high school, I could actually see the teachers without the use of binoculars.</p>
<p>Let me reiterate this, as I interpret this thread to be insulting to many Berkeley professors.</p>
<p>When you get to classes that actually matter, the difference in level of understanding between Berkeley professors and HS or CC teachers becomes very very very very very apparent.</p>
<p>you didnt reiterate anything…</p>
<p>Look, if you’re not convinced upper division (or even most major-specific lower division, for that matter) classes will be any different from HS, just go watch a few lectures from webcast.berkeley.edu and see for yourself. End of debate.</p>
<p>I have to agree with caiacs and Astrophel – Berkeley lectures are quite disimilar from high school ones. I think one of the biggest differences is that Berkeley professors won’t coddle you. Yes, like in hs lectures, some professors are open to questions and mini-discussions during lecture. However, if you ask a stupid question or make a stupid comment, the professors here aren’t afraid to let you know what they really think about your input. And as sgtbrecht pointed out, they treat you like adults and expect you to find answers/explanations/etc. on your own – the days of acing your papers by just paying attention to lecture and not reading the book are over. </p>
<p>And, as Lucyan alluded to, lectures here, particularly in certain areas, are much more lecture based (hence the separation between lectures and discussions). </p>
<p>I think by the time you get to upper div, the difference may be more apparent.</p>