Thank You 
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Sorry, this posted weirdly on its own – it was meant as a reply to @huncho question above re: safety. It’s really fine! Just be smart like you would be in any other urban or semi-urban area. There’s so much to love about Berkeley, not the least of which is its proximity to Oakland and San Francisco. And contrary to what someone posted above, Oakland is awesome and not some sort of hell-hole lol.
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The campus is gorgeous
And the student vibe is impressive
My D is definitely going to Cal after her shocking acceptance yesterday but campus safety is definitely a concern. My son is a big guy, and graduated from Cal in 2021, and he was very cautious and always “aware” of his surroundings. There is a lot of campus area crime, and not all of it is petty. Campus security is sparse. This could improve with the expected demolition of People’s Park (I don’t know timing / status) where drugs/homeless are rampant, but i think it prudent to be very liberal in allowing kids to take ubers and walk in groups at night. I wouldn’t pass on Cal because of the security issue, but it is a legitimate consideration from our family’s experience.
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Thank you. Totally agree. No different than most other cities. Yes there are homeless but for the most part they don’t create a safety issue.
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Construction at People’s Park is scheduled to start this summer.
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Need advice—We would be flying in from out of town for Cal Day…any advice on best areas to look to stay? Will we need a rental car or are Ubers sufficient if staying nearby.
That’s a game changer!!!
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There is a new Residence Inn that I already booked. Best on campus option for the $. You could also go to Emeryville if need be but that’s like a 15 minute drive with no traffic.
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Berkeley is such a fun place to be. My wife and I went there in the 90s. My oldest is there now. We live in San Francisco, and we go over to Berkeley all the time for lunch, frozen yogurt (Yogurt Park) or just to walk around campus. The weather is just about the best in the entire Bay Area, and it is always alive and energetic.
Having lived there, worked there and visited there for years, I can understand the issues that people have with safety concerns, especially if you are coming from a suburban or rural environment. Berkeley is a city. It is connected to two other very big cities, and if you have spent time in an urban environment, you know that there are going to be issues. But like anywhere, you adapt to your surroundings.
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We normally fly into Oakland, Lyft to Berkeley, and stay at Hotel Shattuck. Tough to get reservations on busy weekends though (we will be staying there for son’s graduation in May)
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If you can get yourself to campus (which you can easily do by BART if flying into OAK or SFO), no car necessary. There’s a new Residence Inn in downtown Berkeley, directly across from campus. I’d recommend checking that out. It’s very tall (especially compared to other buildings in downtown Berkeley, which have until recently been restricted in terms of height), so I bet there are lots of rooms. Public transit is right there, less than a block away.
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I second the recommendation for Residence Inn on Center St. in Berkeley. The location is perfect. There is a very early (7:30 AM) registration and comments by the chancellor at Memorial Stadium which will be well worth your time, if for nothing else, the views of the Bay from the stadium.
HEADS UP: plan ahead if you plan on walking to the stadium from downtown Berkeley. It;s a solid 3/4 mile gradual uphill walk.
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Very well said. I grew up in San Francisco, and just as I learned how to keep my eyes and ears open when taking MUNI everywhere or walking around Civic Center, we teach our kids to do the same in downtown Berkeley (which is nowhere NEAR as tricky as Civic Center in SF which my high school daughter has to navigate 2x per week (with friends) to get to a rehearsal in the city by BART) or on the south side of campus. Pay attention, walk with purpose, be with friends, don’t be out late at night on your own in areas that aren’t well lit or populated. It’s good stuff to learn if you are going to ever live in an urban area.
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I completely understand it’s a big problem and not trying to down play it. However, it’s not isolated to Berkeley. One should practice common sense and precautions.
I live in a quiet suburb 20 mins of Los Angeles. We have homeless problems here as well. businesses, cars and houses broken into, and my city made safest top 100 city in US list. My daughter lives next to LA lives in a high rise and her building is surrounded by homeless encampments. As my daughter puts it… it’s LA for you.
I’m only saying this to let the new admits know that safety at Berkeley isn’t any worse than a regular big city.
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I was interested to come to find that at UCLA, Westwood definitely has its share of homeless people. Has been fine for my son who is a first-year there as he grew up in Berkeley and so is very familiar with homelessness. It’s a mental health/public health/public policy challenge in most urban areas in California. I hope we as a society can make headway on it. 
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I 100% agree with you that knowing all the details is important; I’m concerned that these details are unsubstantiated rumors. I hope any student who reads these rumors speaks directly with the admissions office before making any decision regarding their attendance.
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(deleted) so as not to offend
Since I do not follow all the the social media apps, I did not know what the OP was originally referring to in their post.
I agree that on some sites, you really have to be careful and take posts with a grain of salt. Anytime there is a question about school policy, the student should go to the source and check directly with the school to confirm. Hearsay is just that and it does no good to get everyone upset until they have the full story. Other than the post I linked in 2021, I have not heard anything official from UCB about changing their CS admit policy.
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