I got accepted but...

<p>Hey everybody,</p>

<p>Well I got accepted into Berkeley with a full ride. I am not sure I want to go though, partly due to the competition everybody talks about.</p>

<p>Here are the schools that accepted me:
USC, Cal, SD, SB, I, OXY
Rejected(uggg)
Stanford, harvey mudd, pomona, cornell, ucla, rice
Waitlisted
JHU</p>

<p>I feel very sad that I am unable to attend some of the more prestigeous schools that provide more intimate atmospheres. I got in as a math major because the acceptance rate is around 33%(I have proof). I am thinking about engineering now because I am not doing very well in Calculus. I am really scared and do not know what I will do and how I will do whatever I will eventually want to do. I heard that it is extremely hard to switch into Engineering (I want to do Operations Research). What is the point of going to a school that won't allow you pursue your interest? However, I think that I would not have gotten in if I applied as an Engineering major. </p>

<p>My ACT: 29 math 35
GPA: 3.9</p>

<p>My record is not impressive at all. I will be flying to Berkeley on the 7th of March to visit for 3 days. If you have any tip or suggestion, please do not hessitate. I know Berkeley is a prestigeous universities, but how can there be 24000 undergraduates and remain as an overall excellent school? </p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

<p>Berkeley with a full ride seems like a pretty hard offer to pass up… I wouldn’t make the decision until you see the campus… If it feels like a fit, go for it; if it doesn’t you have awesome options lined up in USC and Cal. </p>

<p>Good Luck!</p>

<p>definitely did not mean to put Cal again… You do have a great alternative in USC though!</p>

<p>Do it. That’s an offer that’s too good to pass up.</p>

<p>uuuummmm cal</p>

<p>how the heck did you get a free ride at berkeley?
i would trade you my cornell acceptance and grant for that any day…</p>

<p>What’s this proof you speak of?</p>

<p>I too am wondering how you managed a full ride to berkeley??</p>

<p>Hahahaha I just found out that I only received $20000, the other $7000 are loans… LAME!!!</p>

<p>Mine’s the other way around :o</p>

<p>How did you get a full ride?!</p>

<p>There’s a considerable amount of calculus in engineering, I believe, but I’d research more into engineering if I were you. </p>

<p>Cal may not give you the luxuries of a small, private institution, but it does provide you with the education that you need to succeed. What you do with it is ultimately up to you. It is highly competitive, however; I have friends who got into the Berkeley Engineering program and rejected it for a lesser school because the competition was just too much.</p>

<p>IEOR (Industrial Engineering and Operations Research) is one of the most mathematically intensive majors, especially among engineering majors. Most upper div IEOR classes are based on mathematical modeling. If you want to do IEOR, then I really suggest that you master calculus. </p>

<p>I can say though that Berkeley’s math department is amazing, tough but amazing. And I really feel that the math department does a good job of taking care of students through office hours. Office hours for professors and GSIs are where you can get that intimate feel you want. There plenty of opportunities to get personal attention but you need to seek these opportunities yourself.</p>