<p>Hey.</p>
<p>Current Berkeley (UC) student considering a transfer to Harvard for mechanical engineering for a couple of reasons, mostly because I'm into mechanical and Cal is pretty intensely CS (computer science)/BME (bio-med/pre-med/molecular cellular), Berkeley (city) itself is full of random homeless and Oakland/Richmond kids either imitating gangsters or being a part of actual gangs (something I'm familiar with being from the South and having spent time in New Orleans, particularly the warehouse district, and am tired of dealing with. I've already been in one fight here in Berkeley that left me with an injured jaw and having to resort to threatening with a gun I didn't have to end the encounter), and the UC system going broke Berkeley's tuition is increasing.</p>
<p>Also considering M.I.T., but they seem to be doing more green-oriented engineering as opposed to strictly mechanical engineering these days.</p>
<p>Not sure what I'd need to post for a transfer, but:</p>
<p>2030 SAT
Top 10% hs
Active leader at Cal (treasurer for Greek council/active in fraternity)
Decent GPA (took a limited course-load last semester as a disability student) at 2.8, expected to rise to 3.2 by end of this semester and another .3 to .4 from Fall '11 to Spring 12.
Starting business this semester and going to be running/managing it in Bay Area (SF/Oakland/Richmond/Berkeley/San Jose) - once it's set up I can manage it over the internet, so not physically being here wouldn't be an issue
Working on new engine design with decent set of preliminary plans, but no actual funding at Cal to work with</p>
<p>I'm pretty content to be here at Berkeley, but I'm an out-of-state admit and the increasing costs may not be justifiable in the long-run, Cal's mechanical engineering, while still top-notch, isn't what a lot of students come here for anymore, Cal is running a program called "Operation Excellence" where we're essentially cutting off non-essential/non-published/non-award winning staff + professors + personnel in the upcoming months/years, and Berkeley city, while unique and enjoyable, isn't as safe as I'd like it to be.</p>
<p>Any tips/advice?</p>