<p>Anyone feeling like this? Gahh I feel so anxious. I know so many people who go to Cal...I just don't want to be the next "Asian" in our community going to Cal.
:(</p>
<p>I know Berkeley alumni who’ve been much more successful than Stanford alumni. Stanford may sound nicer on your resume, but at the end, it all boils down to who you are and what you do as an individual.</p>
<p>ditto whay silverfang said. you have to make your own opportunities. undergrad doesn’t even seem to mean too much these days anymore. lots of people are getting advanced degrees now</p>
<p>Berkeley is a really good school too!</p>
<p>Berkeley is easily tied for my top choice alongside Stanford. Now, I’m out-of-state, which probably decreases my chances right off the bat for Cal (or not, if they’re looking for the OOS kids to pay more for the tuition), but I have a feeling my chances are better to get into Berkeley despite that. </p>
<p>They’re both great schools. If I recall correctly, Berkeley has the most Nobel Laureates? Or at least the most periodic elements named from people at their university. 
I think Berkeley and the surronding area is good for volunteer work and diversity - not as affluent as Palo Alto. </p>
<p>A lot of my friends are saying I’m “settling” for Berkeley, but I hardly see it that way. They’re both great schools, and while I feel like my chances of getting into Cal are slightly higher, I would be honored to be accepted to either.</p>
<p>I totally understand you QuantumArbiter!!! There’s like no middle ground between the two schools!!! Especially you live in CA and you want to go to a university not liberal arts college then Stanford, CAL ( other UCs) , and possibly USC are the only top schools. On the East coast they have such a variety HYP, and lower ivies, but also Boston College and NYU.</p>
<p>Haha I wish I could say that, but as an international student my chances at both schools are very slim.</p>
<p>Berkeley and Stanford obviously look for very different qualities in their applicants. Berkeley doesn’t care nearly as much about essays/passion/EC’s as Stanford does; they care more about numbers (but their overall numbers are still lower than Stanford, iirc.) So it depends on the individual. If someone’s numbers are above average for Berkeley, they have a really good shot of getting in. Not true for Stanford, as we see that many 2200+ applicants get rejected in favor of applicants with lower scores. However, if someone has demonstrated extreme passion for something, they’re chances for Stanford are pretty good. Not true for Berkeley. </p>
<p>Of course, people with passion and decent numbers get into Berkeley all the time, but it’s not as safe as a bet as someone with high numbers (even if they don’t demonstrate passion anywhere). Vice versa with Stanford. </p>
<p>Personally, I think my chances at both are about equal. My numbers are higher than Berkeley’s averages, and I think (and hope) my long-term passion for screenwriting and creative essays will stand out to Stanford. Even if I’m accepted at Berkeley, I wouldn’t attend…I’m actually surprised that so many people interested in Stanford are interested in Berkeley. Yes, they are both the two most prestigious colleges in Cali, but they are vastly different institutions, IMO.</p>
<p>I think the reason behind Berkeley’s greater number of Nobel Laureates and what not is based more so on the size. With 25,000 undergrads rather than 4,000, you’d undoubtedly have more ‘successes.’</p>
<p>Just a thought.</p>
<p>Ohio State has 60,000+ undergrads and only 2 Nobel Laureates. Population is clearly not everything.</p>
<p>yeah number is definitely not correlated to number of nobel laureates. Stanford is way more selective than berkeley and should therefore have more students with better talents. ( of course I’m not saying stanford students are better than berkeley students) I also don’t think the chances of getting into berkeley and stanford are the same or equal at all!! You just said that berkeley only looks at numbers ( which MANY people have), stanford looks for the unique person who will contribute the most!</p>
<p>Last 2 valedictorians at our school were rejected from Stanford, both were 2200+, "well-rounded ECs, etc. My other friend, who had a perfect gpa, 800s on all his subject tests, a 2200+ SAT I, 5s and science/math clubs officer got rejected. He’s now at MIT. (deferred ea, accepted ed)</p>
<p>
Are we talking about nobel laureates on staff or undergrads who have gone on to win nobel prizes? I believe the statistic is about the former.</p>
<p>I’m not sure why, but I get the feeling that Californians don’t consider Cal an elite school the same way that out-of-staters do.</p>
<p>I think we consider Berkeley to be the top of the UC system, a system where mid to high achieving students usually are accepted at. At my school we have ~10-15 Berkeley admits each year, and 1-2 Stanford. However, they’re both equally strong in CS/Cog Sci (both top in the country) which is my prospective major, so it doesn’t really matter for me. Like I said, the Stanford name may be more impressive, but you’ll be just as prepared after school coming out of school from Berkeley compared to Stanford (Especially in the sciences, engineering, etc…in some majors Berkeley actually beats Stanford).</p>
<p>if you’re Asian, go to Berkeley. Stanford is not right for you. Ppl here are hella racist especially the rich, white kids and there are plenty of them.</p>
<p>^is that really the case asian75? What about other minorities?</p>
<p>@asian75: Are you a Cal student previously rejected by Stanford?
Because I can totally understand why you got rejected…I wouldn’t want racially insecure fools in my college either.</p>
<p>asian75 looks like a ■■■■■ to me.</p>
<p>asian75 claims to be part of the admission committee at Stanford, and all his posts reflect that.
Perhaps not a ■■■■■ just a cynic?</p>
<p>@jimmyeatworld you are right, as a californian, I think most people believe Cal is just another school which is different from out of staters. Of course Its harder to get into if you are from out of state ( I think?) and you have to pay a lot more. But normally if you are top 5% in the class and have a SAT of 2200+ you will pretty much get in. AT least that’s the case at my school. I’ve heard of people with top 20 and 1700 SATs getting in.</p>