<p>accepted by both Berkeley and Williams
Wait listed by MIT</p>
<p>I want to major in Physics/Astrophysics and Economics. In the future, I plan to get into a physics PhD program in either Princeton, MIT, or Caltech. I am really passionated about physics. I am wondering which place has the best undergraduate physics program that would benefit me the most.</p>
<p>Williams has a really small undergraduate Physics class(I think it contains only 14 students) But more than half of them got in to top PhD program in top universities four years later. And also, most of students there end up with double majors. And I like to study economics too.(Williams is really good at economics and math)</p>
<p>But I don't really know much about Berkeley's undergraduate program. I am well aware of the fact that there are three elements on the periodic table were named by Berkeley. But is it easy to get a research opportunity there for an undergraduate?</p>
<p>I am having a really hard time to figure out where to go...
Big UC vs small cute LAC :) :(</p>
<p>I don't think reputation means a lot for undergraduate study. I just want to find a compelling undergraduate program in Berkeley.</p>
<p>Williams is ranked No.1 in liberal arts. It is OK that People in the west or outside the country do not know it. But Williams is well known in the east. It is also well known in those graduate school.</p>
<p>I really need some hard evidence to choose Berkeley.....
What a dilemma...</p>
<p>I am not going to say you should choose Berkeley. However, Berkeley has some very strong positives:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Berkeley is one of the top research universities in the world and there is lots of physics/astrophysics research on campus as well as at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. You can get involved with that research as an undergraduate.</p></li>
<li><p>Berkeley has one of the top physics graduate programs in the world. As an undergraduate, once you advance enough, you can take graduate classes.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Williams is an excellent school with extremely bright students. You'll get a lot more personal attention there, for sure. It is reasonable to want that kind of undergraduate experience, and then later to go on to a research university for grad school.</p>
<p>My friend is a physics major at berkeley and loves it. He says the professors are amazing and the GSI's are really friendly and helpful.</p>
<p>I don't know much about Williams' program, so I can't actually say "berkeley is better, go there", but just know that Berkeley has an excellent physics program.</p>
<p>Thanks to both kenf1234 and JP_Omnipotence..</p>
<p>Both schools are kind of good in different ways.
What's the environment like around Berkeley? My friend told me that it is kinda messy around and living condition is kinda bad. Is that true??
Someone told me that if you go on a tour to Berkeley then you will hate that place.... Sounds not that good...</p>
<p>I can't say too much about the living conditions as I have only visited the dorms a couple times. However, I do know that they differ between residence halls. Some of the rooms are slightly more expensive but more spacious and nicer. If you don't mind paying a couple thousand extra, i'm sure you can secure for yourself a very comfortable living space (provided your roommate isn't a complete slob). Just don't get a triple room in one of the large Units (the cheapest option, but it will be pretty cramped).</p>
<p>I don't think the place is messy at all, and i've been to campus multiple times and find it quite pleasing, but it's your opinion that matters, not mine.</p>
<p>Williams is a great school, but it is boring, unknown, and isolated. I would never attend a school with those 3 factors.</p>
<p>Berkeley is the type of school that either you love it or you hate it. There is no in between. It is a big school, but the reputation is as high as an Ivy. If you check the peer assessment score on US News report's ranking, the score is higher than even some ivies. The town is a little bit crazy, but i think thats exciting. I would rather attend a crazy school than an isolated school any day. You have to ask yourself what matters to you most, personal attention or reputation?</p>
<p>In life you gotta do some sacrifices, and if you would like to feed your ego, you should attend berkeley over williams</p>
<p>The Berkeley campus itself is quite nice, actually. The area around campus varies. "South Side" (Telegraph Avenue) can get a bit "messy", and that is where most of the dorms are. But overall, I think it's a very nice area. The weather is excellent, it's an easy ride on the BART train to San Francisco, etc. </p>
<p>Certainly, a place like Williams is going to give you more "hand-holding" and individual attention. But it's a small school, and so has limitations. In Berkeley you don't have that hand-holding, since it is so large, but its size means it offers more breadth and depth in what you can study.</p>
