<p>I think someone needs to bravely create a survivals guide for incoming freshmen like me. In order to be successful, we all have to act nicer and smarter around our peers and professors. Some people are so professional that they don't even know they are faking it, just like everybody else.</p>
<p>So come on. One of you brave hard-headed CAL kids. Tell us the truth. Type as long as you want. Tell us how to approach our GSIs, professors, peers, and academic advisers. Tell us how scary Cal really is and how you still wake up feeling like you are lost and sad. Tell us how to maintain a 3.0. Tell us how you survived the competition and how we can too.</p>
<p>Let's admit it, UC Berkeley isn't everybody's cup of tea.</p>
<p>Keep one eye over your shoulders at one time when wearing a backpack. Never lose sight of your backpack. You might find that someone has emptied the contents of their drink inside. I suggest modifying the zipper toggle to accommodate the fit of a combination lock so people can’t mess with your stuff or take your notes. You might be standing in line at a cafe and the people behind you will try and steal your books and notes or try and dirty them up. Best keep that stuff sealed shut.</p>
<p>haha… might as well come to class in a space suit too. fira, your comment made me laugh :D… but yeah montel’s right, it shouldn’t take over your life like that…</p>
<p>dang…i really dont think people are that mean here. there’s competition but i see people leave notes and books around all the time and no one’s dumping coffee and stuff. there’s only theft, which can be at any college, normally for profitable reasons.
but yes you can feel like a failure a lot and i’ve come to appreciate the hard work that goes into a 3.0!</p>
<p>What is your intended major? You will get more relevant replies if you provide that information. Personally, I’m in engineering. I can tell you that my experience thus far is that it’s not competitive; it’s just hard. My roommate is on the pre-Haas/econ track, and she says that it’s competitive in the sense that everyone studies really hard and gets 100% on exams. Engineering is not like that. C+/B- on an exam = very impressive. At the end of the semester, that 80% overall could very likely end up as an A.</p>
<p>You’re not exactly competing against other students, more like you’re scrambling to understand the material which is hard for everyone (except for a select few…damn those geniuses). Find a group of friends to study with so you can help each other out mutually.</p>
<p>Don’t be afraid of GSI’s–not too long ago they were undergraduates too. As for professors, my limited interaction with them has shown them to be friendly and helpful. And your peers, remember, are just like you. Stop thinking so much, smile, and just say hello. </p>
<p>Of course, you don’t need to worry about this for nearly a year. Go enjoy your last year of high school. Unless you’re a spring admit?</p>
<p>You should buy a .75 cubic feet sentry safe to store your notes, laptop, and textbooks. They aren’t that expensive and are fairly light, but quite durable at the same time. Your notes are as valuable as gold and people will mess with them if they know they aren’t secure. I usually keep it in the bathroom because that’s usually the last place thieves look for valuable things. If they see your notes they will trash them.</p>
<p>Encrypt your hard drive. Nothing short of 256-bit AES. There are ninjas living in your apartment complex/reshall with the sole purpose of sabotaging your work.</p>