Hello!
I’ve applied for EECS at berkeley, OOS. I was wondering what living in California is like right now, if I intend to stay there after college. I’ve read a lot of concerning things here and there (Horrible taxes, inefficient government, crime, etc) and was wondering what CC thought. thanks in advance!
You’ve applied, but you aren’t sure that you will be admitted. Hopefully, you can afford our OOS fees of $55K per year.
California is BIG. Most people don’t seem to understand that. You can’t get from San Diego to Mt. Shasta in a few hours.
I have been in California all of my life, so I’m used to the congestion on the freeways, the weather and the government. It’s a big culture shock for most incoming transplants because there are a lot of misconceptions about the state. It’s not all sandy beaches but, parts of California are stunning. People incorrectly budget their money and time for various activities.
The geography is as varied as are the temperatures. Northern California is vastly different from Southern California.
Mountain ranges, deserts, coastal towns, lakes (Tahoe), Napa is beautiful; central valley is farmland. Los Angeles County alone could be it’s own state. What do you want? The redwoods? Palm Springs? Big Bear? Arrowhead? The San Joaquin Valley is flat and big. The Sierras are majestic. Sonoma county is Sonoma. The Bay area is huge, busy and very congested. Lots of native American land. Baker California is on the way to Las Vegas; why do you suppose they call it Baker? Bay bridges and BART are prominent in the bay area. Every area is different. I’ve been fortunate enough to have traveled through some of the state San Diego to Oregon border, and still haven’t seen everything our state has to offer.
IT is very expensive to live in or near the major cities or anywhere near the coast. However, parts of Central California and the desert are affordable, but you will deal with weather issues.
You will be paying our expensive California taxes to help support the school you currently want to attend. If you visit Berkeley, you need to know that the rest of California doesn’t look like that.
I love the dry humor!
If you visit Berkeley, be sure to go to the track above the Clark Kerr campus, and the trails above (i.e. to the East of) that; and to the famed botanical gardens.
California is a huge and diverse place. Are you thinking Yuba river? Skid Row LA? Basic SEAL training on Coronado? The Tenderloin? Skiing at Mammoth? Yosemite? Fort Ord?
I had not heard about the inefficient government. Taxes are high, like Massachusetts, but you are not nickel-and-dimed (no toll booths every 2 miles or required town permit for your car), like Chicagoland.
There is crime in California, but not out of proportion to the rest of the country.
You will find what you are looking for, I think. If you are looking for the bad, you will find it. If you are looking for the good, you will find that, too.
Born and raised in California and raising my family here, too. Having said that, I just saw this article today: http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/6796544.
I was born and raised in CA, as were my parents, grandparents and great grandparents. As others note, CA’s geography is amazingly diverse. It is home to the tallest mountain (Mt Whitney) and the lowest point (Death Valley) in the continental US. We’ve even got an active volcano (Mt Lassen).
So, what’s it like living here? It depends where you are. Someplace like Arcata or Dunsmuir feels a different planet than San Jose.
Berkeley/Oakland and the whole Bay Area is crazy expensive and very crowded with lots of traffic most of the time. There is absurd wealth and abject poverty blended together in weird ways. The weather is great most of the time but the Bay and ocean are cold year round. There’s a lot to do outdoors and lots of great music/sports/entertainment venues. Just be ready for long lines, big bills and traffic.
I live on the east coast but have traveled to Berkeley every year to visit my in-laws for the past 32 years. It’s lovely, and it’s one reason my DD wants to attend the school. It’s also crazy expensive. It’s congested and the traffic is outrageous. The food and produce are wonderful - never really out of season anything. The weather is nice, but not warm enough in the summer for my tastes, but guess what? If you travel 20 miles inland, it’s 15 degrees warmer! The state is large and diverse in population, terrain and climate. Hike Yosemite, ski in Tahoe, beach comb anywhere, go to San Diego for the surf and heat. There is much to do and see in California and if we weren’t so fond of disposable income, we might have moved there decades ago.
Yep, California is nice, but we definitely pay for our “sun” tax via huge expenses, mortgages and taxes.
What part of the country are you coming from? I moved to Berkeley from the midwest for grad school and never left. Love it here. Cost of living is way high compared to the midwest, esp. housing prices, traffic can be bad in spots (but that’s true pretty much everywhere). Government… I don’t pay that close attention. It’s beautiful here, the weather is fantastic compared to almost anywhere. There’s so much to do outdoors. Crime… like everywhere, there are neighborhoods to avoid, but overall it’s fine.
Andrew: I forgot one important thing. Californian’s are generally very social. One of the things that affects that ability to mingle with the masses is your awareness that the state is mostly non-smoking. You will make a lot more friends if you are considerate about smoking.
California is HUGE. Look how big it is north to south and then try and compare that to an area of states along the east coast … then think how diverse all of those states within that area are.
Because it’s so big, as has been mentioned, there is just about every type of weather and terrain you can think of, whether that’s the High Sierras, any of its coastline, the desert, etc. If you live in LA, the Bay Area (and specifically Silicon Valley), you’re going to be a ton.
If you live somewhere more remote, your money goes a lot further.
I’m not native of CA, originally from WA and moved here after I was done with my military service in North Carolina, but I enjoy it here and have lived here for 5 years.
washugrad I’m coming from Maryland. The redder part of the state.
Another issue I have is that UMD might give me their full-ride for academics, so I’m very conflicted. California is obviously a rather nice place to live, especially for college, but it’s the finances that don’t work out.
Some of my friends tell me that I shouldn’t move to somewhere so expensive when I’m young, because I won’t save anything. That sounds more of an “adult” issue but it’s an issue for me none the less.
I also want to travel once I’m older, would I be able to afford that living in what is already a destination? haha
@AndrewJeska - are you going to pay full freight or did you get aid from berkeley?
I would argue that it makes more sense to move here when you are younger rather than older (maybe grad school, or your first job after college, though, if you can get a full ride locally). Reason is that it’s easier to put up with expensive, small apartments when you are already used to a dorm standard of life. If you wait, you might have a family and a house in Maryland, and it’s hard to trade down to a smaller house or apartment once you’ve owned something a little bigger.
Paying $55K per year is really tough. Go with undergrad in Maryland and go to grad school in California.
UMD is a legitimate school of its own. Go there, steamroll your classes, and apply anywhere for grad school of your choice. California can wait until the time is right. You’re still ‘young’ as a college grad and you always have the option to apply where you want to be.
I haven’t the slightest. Probably not based on their aid calculator.
You will never regret CA ever, especially if you are EECS in Berkeley. Silicon Valley loves EECS and Cal.
Take the full ride to MD, bank the COA for Berkeley, and use the savings to move to CA after you graduate.
Isn’t there a drought there right now? Apparently it’s serious.