<p>Hi guys. So I know that Berkeley is well known for its engineering, science, etc majors.
however, I want to major in sociology or social justice-related things, and I was wondering if UCB is a good choice.
my parents are really unsupportive of my decision (they think that its not worth going all the way to Berkeley for a "useless" degree) and they would rather have me attend UCLA, which is much closer to home.</p>
<p>I know that this major is not something that future employers will be thrilled to see, but I enjoy it, and I feel like its taking me down the right path to help people.</p>
<p>the problem is that I don't really know if Berkeley offers a good program. for anyone who's currently studying this or knows anything about it, how is sociology/psych/humanities overall here?</p>
<p>At the Regent’s scholar interview that I went to, I got to talk to a current undergrad who is majoring in sociology, and she told me that it’s such a broad major that you can really branch off into many different areas with it. Also, you’ll probably end up switching majors (hopefully within the College of Letters and Science) anyway once you take several classes and realize what direction you really want to go toward. She also told me that Berkeley’s offered her many research and study abroad opportunities that pertain to her major. </p>
<p>A part of me wants to go down the pre-med route, with a degree in Sociology so that I have a unique perspective when applying to med school. But I mainly chose Soc because I’m sincerely interested in social studies. Even if you change your mind later and do something that’s not humanities, I believe that Berkeley’s programs are great.</p>
<p>My parents would rather have me go into something more math and science related, and are pushing really hard towards pharmaceutical studies.
but i’m terrible at that stuff, and I know it, and with the ridiculous competition and stress levels up there, I have this feeling that I shouldn’t major in it.</p>
<p>as for fin aid, UCLA and UCB are offering me similar financial aid (I think UCLA gives a bit less - but its insignificant amount) but when I think of the plane trips and etc. required to haul myself home, I think it’s gonna start adding up. also, my parents, at this point, refuse to pay for my education and can’t pay for it anyway, so im going to be pulling out tons of loans (*sobs) to get myself through higher education…</p>
<p>Being bad at math and science may be trouble for you in the pre-med courses (biology, chemistry, physics, math). However, there is no particular major required to do pre-med, so you can take the pre-med courses alongside a social studies or humanities major.</p>
<p>Note from the career survey that not all science majors do well in the job market. In particular, biology majors do not do so well.</p>
<p>If the loan amount you are considering is greater than the Stafford loan amount, then it is not a good idea to take on that debt. Also, you will likely need a co-signer for greater loans, and your parents probably won’t co-sign if they refuse to pay. And if they refuse to pay anyway, then why do they care what major you choose?</p>
<p>I studied political science and now am a tech worker in San Francisco. Employers are going to be more concerned with particular skills and experience unless you have a specialized engineering discipline, then that’s the starting point.</p>