UC San Diego Vs. UC Berkeley - Communications/Media Studies

I originally planned to go to SD and applied to Berkeley just because and surprisingly got in! I only have a 3.59 which is why I didn’t plan to go to Berkeley originally. I live in SoCal so going to SD would mean I would be closer to home and know the area a bit better but I recently went to Berkeley Transfer Weekend (for first-gen poc) and I fell in LOVE! However, Media Studies is impacted so I got accepted into the College of L&S and will have to apply to declare the major after taking MS 10. I worry about the quarter system at SD compared to the semester system which is what I am used to. Also, Berkeley has a reputation for being really cutthroat with grade deflation and also I’ve heard a lot about it being pretty unsafe and hard to find housing. San Diego offers me a direct transfer into the major but I feel like it lacks a lot of the social life I’m looking for in a college. Please help or leave any tips!!!

I don’t think you’ll find more of a social life at Berkeley over San Diego (or vice versa). You could get really involved in either school and take part in clubs, etc. UC Berkeley is known to have very fast-paced courses even though they have semesters. (I have no idea how it compares to quarters though because I haven’t gone to a school with quarters.)
Yes, Berkeley is unsafe. There are frequent emails sent out about people getting robbed, assaulted, etc. These things tend to happen more within the city of Berkeley than directly on campus (although they do happen near campus). Be careful with your stuff, be on alert and aware of your surroundings, and don’t walk alone at night. Almost everyone I know who goes there carries pepper spray with them wherever they go.
Housing is easy to find. Affordable housing is harder to find (but doable if you look early). I recommend living on campus the first year so that way you have people you know and can room with the next year. Also, it’s easier to make friends when you live on campus (regardless of where you go).
As for grade deflation, there’s berkeleytime.com which shows grade distributions for different courses (including MS 10). There are lots of resources available at both schools that you can use when you get there to help with the transition.

Berkeley is perfectly safe. Most of the city is beautiful and ultra expensive. There’s a small part on the south end that has a homeless presence which gives the appearance of being unsafe. There is crime just like in any other big city and almost all of it is laptop and cell phone snatching.

The National Council for Home Safety and Security ranked UCB close to last, at 209 out of 243.

I wouldn’t describe it as “perfectly safe”. There are definitely a lot of weird people around the area. I’m not a UCB student but am from the bay area. I think most students will be fine, but being honest about the higher crime rate will cause students to be a little more cautious, as they should be. Let’s not allow them to let their guard down.

Do still consider the school. It would be great to have on your resume.

There are way more “weird people” in San Francisco yet it’s the number one tourist attraction in the world and where the world’s highest salaries are. Everything is all relative.

Yes, there are and people take all of that into consideration before moving to SF. One professor that lives in SF was recently chatting with me about how she regularly has to choose the route she will take to get anywhere in SF…walk the faster route and risk safety or take longer routes to avoid certain areas.

It isn’t effective to mention that things are worse elsewhere…It doesn’t make the particular area of discussion any less dangerous. It’s telling a homeless person to feel lucky they aren’t homeless in Africa. Frankly, it isn’t all relative. Being homeless in the US surely isn’t easy.

Regardless, we are chatting about college campuses. There is certainly a difference between the safety of La Jolla and that of Berkeley.

Still, I might recommend UCB over UCSD. You can get by if you’re smart. Walk home with other people, carry mace, etc.

Thank you all! I plan to SIR to Berkeley very soon!