I got into MIT EA and Berkeley EECS (Regents candidate), and I am unsure of which college I would rather prefer. While MIT sounds more prestigious, as it is much harder to get into, both schools are highly ranked (top 3) in Computer Science. It does seem like MIT has the better resources as a private school though. Having lived in NorCal for my entire life, I feel like I would definitely enjoy the Berkeley environment, but I am not too sure about MIT since I haven’t visited yet (I will in April). Also, will Regents have a big impact on my college life if I go to Berkeley? Does the faculty member help there? Can anyone tell me what they know about these schools to help me make my decision? I will be considering the following factors when choosing colleges:
Academics (MIT is a private school, generally stronger/better resources (research, smaller classes))
People/Community (is MIT as nerdy as people say it is? Berkeley seems more diverse)
Environment (activities to do near/on campus, restaurants nearby)
Weather (relatively sunny vs snowy)
Cost (~$35K at Berkeley vs ~$65K at MIT, although my parents tell me to not worry about the cost)
Finding internships (Berkeley has a good location, but do hirers prefer MIT students)
Ultimately, I want to find a college that will prepare me for the future and provide a supportive, diverse community that balances academics and fun
@ucbalumnus my parents say that they will be able to pay for either college, and I shouldn’t consider cost when deciding, although I personally do feel bad for spending so much of their money (also, I don’t have any younger siblings for them to worry about)
As for my major, I am pretty confident that I will do EECS/CS, so I don’t think how easy it is to change majors will affect me
But in my opinion, if $ isn’t a factor (also very fortunate for you!), then MIT is a no-brainer. As good as Cal is, it’s squeezed for resources and is enormous, and even Regents still won’t give you the opportunities you’ll get at MIT.
Again, though, it’s a win-win, and both options are tremendous.
No bad choices. One consideration is that at Berkeley classes can sometimes be hard to enroll in because of over-subscription. MIT will be a lot better that way, and you can cross-enroll at Harvard for classes that MIT may not have in other subject areas.
@TooOld4School Berkeley regents would give me priority registration, so I should be able to get into all my classes. Do you think that would still be a major factor to consider between these 2 schools then?
With priority registration and $120K PLUS travel cost differences, I’d go with Berkeley. In no way will going there limit your opportunities. Maybe you’ll want the $ for grad school or study abroad or both.
I think this will hopefully be obvious after visiting, and would wait til then. I would agree generally with @marvin100 but if you’re miserable in snow all those points really don’t matter. Again, win-win
The priority treatment and especially the additional faculty advising - which is a big deal at a public university because it can open a lot of doors - plus the $120K price difference would tip the choice to Cal IMO. You should have a heart to heart talk with your parents about why they favor MIT (they know you better than anyone).
Financially speaking, ask them if you accept the Regents if you could apply the money saved toward graduate school, starting a business, etc. You should also create some worse case scenarios financially - would you be able to complete school if your one of your parents lost their job, became ill or suffered another sort of setback with the higher tuition?
Assuming you are a CA resident, how important is it to be close to home? That could go both ways - your parents may become ill, or you might. It isn’t a likely event, but it does happen.
The priority registration with Regents at Cal will make scheduling a non-issue in general. One thing to find out is how extensive the faculty mentoring is that they say Regents scholars get. Is it strong or is it more a marketing item? (I don’t know) Congratulations, you have 2 great choices!
