UCB vs Imperial college london?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
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<p>@RML, regardless of you amazing qualifications, as far as I’m concerned Princeton has a better reputation and is better known than UCB. My experience is concentrated in South Asia, the Middle East and China.</p>

<p>The reason I see Imperial as being more famous than Berkeley is because I go to a British school, in fact most schools in my area are British, hence people know of more English unis rather US unis. On an international scale those I’ve spoken still consider Imperial as being more prestigious, these people being family and friends.</p>

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<p>However if you are right it would suit me since I was rejected at Princeton early and accepted to Berkeley :).</p>

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<p>I don’t think I was purely talking about undergraduate level or admissions selectivity. I was talking about the general pedigree of the school.</p>

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<p>The World’s Most Reputable Universities
[The</a> World’s Most Reputable Universities - Forbes](<a href=“http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/03/14/the-worlds-most-reputable-universities/]The”>The World's Most Reputable Universities)</p>

<p>[The</a> World’s Most Reputable Universities - Forbes](<a href=“http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/03/14/the-worlds-most-reputable-universities/2/]The”>http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2012/03/14/the-worlds-most-reputable-universities/2/)</p>

<p>Harvard is the world’s most reputable university, according to a new ranking just released by Times Higher Education, a London-based magazine.</p>

<p>“Reputation is subjective, nebulous and difficult to pin down–but it really matters,” … It both reflects success and also drives success.”</p>

<p>The universities with the best reputations enjoy great rewards. They can hand-pick the best students, attract all the finest brains in academe, and forge important new collaborations with similarly regarded institutions and leading business partners…</p>

<p>Harvard, the prestigious Ivy League university located in the heart of Cambridge, Massachusetts, tops the list of the 100 most reputable universities for the second consecutive year.</p>

<p>Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Cambridge enjoy the No. 2 and No. 3 spots, respectively.</p>

<p>Rounding out the top five are Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley.</p>

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<p>Another source:</p>

<p>[World’s</a> top 100 universities 2012: their reputations ranked by Times Higher Education | News | guardian.co.uk](<a href=“http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2012/mar/15/top-100-universities-times-higher-education]World’s”>World's top 100 universities 2012: their reputations ranked by Times Higher Education | News | theguardian.com)</p>

<p>I have yet to see an evidence, that on a global stage, Princeton > Berkeley. </p>

<p>So, please let’s now leave that issue behind us now.</p>

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<p>I am in this exact situation too. I recommend connecting with Facebook to the UC Berkeley app to get a feel for what the students are like. Hope this helps!</p>

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<p>Imperial is good, so is Berkeley. I have close family who go to both.</p>

<p>It comes down to this:</p>

<p>At Imperial (or any other UK university) it is very focused study. You applied for math, you study almost completely math. You graduate in 3 years. You go on vacations so often it’ll appear to most that you’re not even in school. The summer break in the UK system is 3 months – the length of every single break in the US system combined. And they get another month or two off for winter and other stuff if I’m not wrong. It’s almost like spending half a year out of school.</p>

<p>At Berkeley, you’ll be getting a more “well rounded” education for sure. That, and a brand name that is recognized the world over. Imperial, not so much. Its better known in Asia, but tell anybody in the US that and you’ll probably get a blank stare.</p>

<p>So in terms of job prospects in the US, Berkeley will be a leg up. In terms of getting the “college experience”, once again, Berkeley. In terms of quality of education – Imperial is more focused, Berkeley more well rounded.</p>

<p>If it were me, I’d pick Berkeley a hundred times over. London is gloomy. I can’t stand the gloom and doom of London weather. Its something to think about.</p>

<p>p.s. rankings are ********. both family members, the one at berk and the one at imperial, are having trouble landing internships. i don’t want to scare you, but the one at imperial is studying math just like you.</p>

<p>just like in business, the market is the most important thing. if you’re in a huge market like software engineering where demand ALWAYS exceeds supply, you don’t even need a degree to find work. if you’re going to study math, you’ll find your options to be much more limited. indeed, my cousin at imperial is now looking at doubling in another major because the job prospects for a math major don’t look too good. not that he isn’t brilliant at it – its just the way the world works. you could be a master basketweaver and be out of work for decades. do math + econs. or math + CS. pure math is risky.</p>

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<p>I don’t have any tangible sources save perhaps the us news ranking which I’m sure everyone here as seen. I guess my supposition that Princeton is more prestigious than Berkeley is based more on intuition and the way in which people react to hearing the name “Princeton” than on any real rankings.</p>

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<p>I’m not sure how widely read US News is outside of the US. It also focuses on undergraduate programs. Here’s yet another ranking by a university in Shanghai. The rankings were created to gauge Chinese universities with their peers worldwide. It is apparently one of the top three most refereneced in the world. For 2011, Cal comes in at 4, Princeton 7, and Imperial at 24. Regardless of these rankings, you have two fine schools to choose from. Congrats.</p>

<p>[Academic</a> Ranking of World Universities - 2011| Top 500 universities | Shanghai Ranking - 2011 | World University Ranking - 2011](<a href=“http://www.shanghairanking.com/ARWU2011.html]Academic”>http://www.shanghairanking.com/ARWU2011.html)</p>

50

<p>Berkeley is one of the few universities that literally every reasonably educated person in the world has heard of. Along with probably Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Oxbridge. The faculty, their research and the grad programs are truly among the handful of the elite in the world. Whoever says ICL is better known in Asia is clowning.</p>

<p>With that said, at the undergraduate level Berkeley is still a large, state school. It is not particularly hard to get into, its general student body not particularly strong, and while somewhat ‘prestigious’ in America, a Berkeley undergrad is not “elite” by any means.</p>

<p>Now with THAT said, ICL is a great school and its really hard to go wrong with either.</p>

51

<p>How long does it take to finish an undergraduate in Applied Math at UCB? Because at Imperial, or any other universities in UK, Australia and NZ, Applied Math takes 3 years to complete. (Same as other degrees such as pure math, physics, chemistry; but degrees such as engineering does take 4 years).</p>

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<p>Just want to chip in here; I was born and raised in Singapore and among most top-overseas-university applicants here (who obviously have done their homework and are very qualified), Imperial trumps Berkeley. Especially in Math and Science, but not in Engineering.</p>

<p>From MY own experience, my family and friends know what Imperial is and not Berkeley. In fact, my own parents and many other people I talked to almost forbade/discouraged me from coming here because they thought it was a crappy university. Others simply did not know what Berkeley is (as compared to Imperial.) This sentiment is pretty common among Singaporeans in recent years (so, RML, your Singaporean info might be a little out of date).</p>

<p>Can’t speak for other countries though.</p>

<p>I also agree with several other posters that if you’re in search of a more holistic environment, choose Berkeley. If you want to focus and specialise, go for Imperial.</p>

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<p>I don’t appreciate being called ‘clowning’ when, first of all, I am actually from Asia, and Imperial is really more well known there, and secondly… nobody says “ICL”. I’m sorry.</p>

<p>But that’s not the point – and I think that basing university choice solely on reputation alone is a bad idea. Both universities are incredibly good at math (I know people who have turned down Cambridge math for Imperial math), generally very well-respected, and have degrees that can be completed in three years. You can’t necessarily make a huge generalization “X is better than Y” because it’s bound to vary from country to country and even from discipline to discipline.</p>

<p>Eventually it boils down to your learning style, as Eloriel mentions. Berkeley lets you try more things. Imperial doesn’t. But if you are absolutely sure you want to specialize and not have to bother with humanities courses or the like, then Imperial might be for you. Also keep in mind that Berkeley uses a GPA system – so every class/final/midterm/assignment counts. Imperial, in contrast, only has a series of large examinations at the end of every year. Both systems have their benefits and drawbacks, and it’s just up to which one you prefer.</p>

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<p>Nobody doubts that Imperial is a great university. It might even be “better” than Berkeley at the undergraduate level if you are specializing, I totally admit that. However, it’s basically a fact that Berkeley has a much better reputation worldwide because of it’s graduate programs and research. That someone is from “some country in Asia” doesn’t mean anything. You can’t generalize onto other Asian countries because they are significantly different. Saying “I’m from Asia, and it’s like that in Asia” is nothing but stupid.</p>

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<p>I agree with the second sentence.</p>

<p>But I disagree with the first; it does mean something. It means that in that particular country, so-and-so college is viewed as better than another. Sure, if your unit of analysis is the whole world or region, maybe that might be insignificant. But know at least that a part of Asia has a certain opinion, and that matters.</p>

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<p>@Eloriel</p>

<p>You can’t generalize your singular experiences and make such broad claims regarding the prestige/reputation of Imperial and Berkeley for an entire country. Your interactions are obviously with a very limited subset of the population and I highly doubt they are representative of the country as a whole. It’s ignorant of you to just extrapolate from what limited experience you have talking to family and friends and claim that this is in fact representative of the general sentiment among Singaporeans. For what it’s worth, I’m from Singapore as well, and my personal experiences do not corroborate with yours.</p>

<p>Besides, when it comes to the reputation of a college, all that matters (imo) is the views of companies, i.e. the hiring managers etc, since these are the people who you want to impress the most. If we are even going to consider anecdotal evidence, I’m more inclined to believe RML’s assessment since he works for a large Asian bank and the people he comes into contact with are obviously in a better position to pass judgement on a college’s reputation.</p>

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<p>^true. But that also means all the others arguing on behalf of their experience with Berkeley > Imperial are also making the same mistake.</p>

<p>And you are, but that only represents the climate at that particular bank, no?</p>

<p>Seriously there’s a point where this discussion becomes too specific to be useful for the OP, so I shall shut up now, but yes, my experiences apply to my circle, others’ apply to their circles, etc.</p>

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<p>My understanding has also been that Berkeley is far more prestigious in Asia, similar to MIT and Stanford, largely because of its reputation in the sciences and engineering. In all my time on CC, that’s been one point that’s never contentious, so it’s news to me that Imperial is up there as well. [This</a> ranking](<a href=“http://www.worldbrandlab.com/world/2009/top500_7.htm]This”>2009年《世界品牌500强》排行榜-世界品牌实验室独家编制) of global brand power from an Asian organization puts Berkeley at #234; I don’t see ICL anywhere in the top 500, but perhaps I missed it. In both the THE reputation surveys - the first one being 13,000 respondents, the second one 17,000 - Berkeley came out far ahead of ICL (72-74 vs. 22-23, i.e. more than 3x the prestige).</p>

<p>The QS rankings lost all credibility when they fluctuated wildly from one year to the next. Berkeley and Stanford, among others, were in the top 10, then the next year they dropped 10+ spots, etc. That’s probably why QS and THE now do their own rankings; QS booted Stanford and MIT in favor of putting ICL in the top 5-6, which I think demonstrates the credibility of the ranking. THE’s is definitely more well-known/respected. It’s also supported by similar rankings like Shanghai.</p>

<p>Anyway, to the OP, don’t base your decision on any world ranking. Your decision should depend more on where you want to work after graduating, which one has greater strength in your field of study, and which one you feel more “fit” with.</p>

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<p>

The only reason I called you out was because you insisted that your experience “mean[t] that in that particular country, so-and-so college is viewed as better than another” even after Thomas_ made his point about the folly of generalization. </p>

<p>

Like I said, I don’t hold much stock in anecdotal evidence, but the point I was making which you seem to have missed was that “IF we are even going to consider anecdotal evidence,” whose experience (yours or RML’s) do you think is more relevant? </p>

<p>[url=<a href=“http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2011/indicator-rankings/employer-review]QS[/url”>http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2011/indicator-rankings/employer-review]QS[/url</a>] and [url=<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2011-2012/reputation-rankings.html]THE[/url”>http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2011-2012/reputation-rankings.html]THE[/url</a>] offer somewhat more objective measures of reputation.</p>

<p>THE has Berkeley at #5 and Imperial at #13 in terms of reputation.
QS has Berkeley and Imperial tied at #4 in terms of employer reputation
and Berkeley at #4 and Imperial at #15 in terms of academic reputation.</p>

<p>EDIT: I agree with phantasmagoric regarding the QS rankings</p>

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<p>I have not met a well-off student in Asia who got admitted to both Berkeley and Imperial but chose Imperial over Berkeley. Every single one of them chose Berkeley over Imperial. I even know off 3 students who chose Berkeley over Oxford and Cambridge. I went to Cambridge because I wan’t admitted to Berkeley for CS.</p>