UC Berk Regents vs Northwestern!? Ahhh helpppp

College Search & Selection
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<p>I'm incredibly torn which school to go to, especially since many have told me they're on par academically/prestige wise (if you think otherwise please tell me so), but here are my pros and cons for both:</p>

<p>I was literally 99% SET on going to NU before Cal day...now I'm totally lost what to do.</p>

<p>-Cost isn't really an issue; my parents told me to make the right college decision for myself without thinking of the financial part (yes even though NU is nearly double the cost)</p>

<p>-Academically: I have NO idea what I want to major in/have as a career, etc, but will probably double major (maybe econ and a science? again, NO idea) and am MAYBE thinking of doing premed. However, I want the time and flexibility to explore various random classes fields to see what might interest me, which I feel NU's quarter system and distribution requirements gives me more than Cal's semester system. However at Cal since I have regents, getting classes will not be a problem.
-Parents think that since Cal is bigger and a more "intense, competitive" environment, I may be able to shine/excel more at NU with slightly less "competition"
-Regents scholar at Cal is a good thing to have for internships/research opportunities, but getting those shouldn't be a problem at NU either</p>

<p>-Socially: I've always dreamed of going away to a smaller private school OOS for college, but now that I actually have the chance I'm doubting myself...
-I thought NU's campus was GORGEOUS but since it's smaller (student wise) it just felt a little bit quieter/low-key/lonely to me walking around campus :/ I mean that was just my impression during wildcat days compared to the UCs and I'm sure theres tons to do always, but it just struck me a bit
-I've heard NU is cliquey and has a terrible dating scene/not too stellar social scene :/ Social scene/friends is really important to my happiness lol (I will prob party/maybe go greek)
-Though I think Cal's campus is super ugly, whenever I visited I LOVED how much bustling activity and liveliness there was going around, it just fit my ideal schema of what a "college environment" should be like. I just get the impression I would be happier socially there (downside-no spring rush unlike NU). This is the main thing drawing me to Cal when previously I was set on going to NU</p>

<p>Misc: -I've never really been afraid of going OOS/freezing weather, but now that decision time is here I'm second guessing myself and whether I'll be miserable if I go to NU when I have Berk close to home and its gorgeous weather...however before a week ago this wasn't even worrying me and I'm pretty adaptable so maybe it's just my last minute nerves? I've always hated the idea of sticking to my comfort zone with Berk so idk why I'm changing my mind last minute...</p>

<p>-The main reason I never wanted to go to Berk before was that college for me REALLY needs to be a completely fresh, new start, which Berk wouldn't really be with the same norcal culture, tons of people I already know from school/around the bay area/CA, etc...i'm not sure if its ideal to "reinvent myself" if I'm limited by all these people from my past who I really want to escape from so I can start fresh
(people have told me Berk is still big enough to do this but it's a gamble...)</p>

<p>PLEASE ADVISE ME ON WHAT TO DO! :( Thanks!!!</p>

2

<p>In summary: my most important things
-Academic flexibility
-Social happiness (Cal better for this? I’m just not familiar enough with NU’s scene)
-Fresh start</p>

3

<p>All other factors aside, does UC Berkeley or Northwestern hold more prestige in its name? (Just overall, not department-wise or US region-wise)</p>

<p>I’m not basing my decision off of this (I have a whole huge post on other things I’m looking at lol) but was just curious!</p>

4

<p>If NWU is double the cost, does that mean you are full-pay at NWU and full-in-state-pay minus Regents at Berkeley? If you are planning to go to medical school, would your parents contribute the savings of going to Berkeley to your (expensive) medical school costs?</p>

<p>Being on the quarter system like at NWU (or other non-Merced UCs or Stanford) would give you more chances to “sample” courses, since each course is “smaller”.</p>

<p>You can do pre-med with any major, but you need to include the pre-med course work.</p>

<p>If you are considering economics with a goal of going on to a PhD program in economics, check how math-intensive the intermediate micro/macro economics courses and econometrics courses are (i.e. what are their math prerequisites). Economics PhD programs like students with strong math and statistics and more math-intensive economics.</p>

5

<p>How many students from your high school ends up with Berk? Most likely less than 5-10 out of 22,000+.</p>

6

<p>On the east coast and Midwest, Northwestern is largely considered more prestigious simply because there are more east coasters who graduated from NU. Cal is great and has some of the best grad programs but has largely a California alum base at the undergrad level. I’d go to Northwestern. Remember - Cal takes a lot of in state transfers from community colleges. NU has a stronger undergrad student body based on stats.</p>