<p>A month ago, I was completely set on going to UCB. But now that I got in to both and have to decide, I am completely torn and it has turned in to a 50/50 situation...
My major is Political Science... Does anyone know which is ranked better for PoliSci..? (i think berkeley, or is it close?).. Also, I am afraid of switching from my current beloved quarter system to a semester system by going to Berkeley... it reminds me of High School... when my grades were practically in the gutter (I kind of "gave up" one semester when I was taking 6 AP classes)!... but oh the prestige of Berkeley...
Another thing is that I live in San Jose, and would prefer to be further away from here (Berkeley's only an hour away)... My brain is saying Berkeley but my heart is undecided...</p>
<p>So back to my original question, before the ranting started. Does anyone know the ranking for these schools' polisci programs? and what about psychology? Is there a link or anything to it too?</p>
<p>Thanks a lot!</p>
<p>hey you have the same concerns as my friend ariel whos also a polisci major</p>
<p>@higherhopes: Hey how’s it going? I just want to let you know I am in the exact same situation as you. I was set on UCB myself through this past school year, but when I got admitted into UCLA first, I became really excited at the opportunity and really just didn’t care if I got into Berkeley or not. Now that I found out I was admitted to Berkeley as well, I have become completely torn apart between the two, yet I want to be somewhere for the quality of the political science major. Im guessing that UCLA’s political science department is extremely great since the major is so impacted and was also very selective and tough to get admitted into this school year, yet I know Berkeley is also famous for political science as well so I don’t know. Is Berkeley political science all that better than UCLA’s?</p>
<p>i would’ve instantly gone to berkeley if i got in
and it sounds like berkeley is the better option in your circumstance</p>
<p>good to know i’m not the only one…
@justice:</p>
<p>i did a little research (regarding the rankings), and both ucla and berkeley are consistently on the top 10 schools nationally for political science. berkeley is a little higher on the list though. i never thought this decision would end up being so tough!
i’m going to fly out to ucla sometime over the next couples weeks to check it out before i make a decision. i was in LA last week for other reasons, wish i could have gone to ucla while i was there!</p>
<p>Because you are an undergraduate and the rankings are so close, it really shouldn’t make an ounce of difference in where you decide to go. I think departmental rankings are absolutely stupid ways to select the school you want to attend.</p>
<p>With that said, focus on other things: location, price, housing, work opportunities, social ambience etc. Those are the aspects that will really have an impact on the quality of your next two years of college. I hope that the ranking of your poli sci department isn’t something that will preoccupy your mind while you are attending either school.</p>
<p>Even if you told me you were planning to apply to grad or law school afterward, I would tell you the same thing: F uck the rankings, look at the other influencing factors, and enjoy your time at whichever school you choose to go to. I’m sure that either way you go, you’ll have made the right decision :)</p>