I just thought I’d start this discussion as the college application season begins.
You need first to provide some facts or statistics if you want to start a discussion.
U.S. News has Berkeley and UCLA tied at #21 for national universities and tied at 1st for public. Times Higher Education (world rankings) has UCLA at #15 and Berkeley at #18
I think UCLA will pass Berkeley permanently.
Check also demand and selectivity. UCLA is ahead
As long as UC Berkeley is connected to new and future Nobel Prize winners (UCLA has not had many), UCLA will not permanently displace UC Berkeley as the top public school in the country. In today’s announcement for the Nobel Prize in Physics, one of the three winners (Dr. Barish) received a PhD in physics from UC Berkeley. Generally, the undergraduate school “piggybacks” off the graduate departments.
I think UCLA becomes #1 public for a while. UC Berkeley has many problems at the present time, and the political climate currently makes it a divisive place constantly receiving bad press in front of the country.
I would agree. I’m a Berkeley grad and I wouldn’t want to be going there today. There’s just too much unrest, to the point where it is impacting the academic life. Students, no matter what their political views, may not feel safe. It’s a magnet for these kinds of issues and that isn’t going away anytime soon.
These Berkeley protests are just embarrassing. One shows a group of students “protesting” a midterm. The other shows Asian and Caucasian students being prevented from entering campus.
I always thought UCLA was under ranked. The school really has it all - a beautiful campus, world class research and academics, an abundance of opportunities and resources, a well rounded and happy student body that is bursting with school spirit, a great location, name recognition, and one of the best hospitals in the country right on campus.
The momentum UCLA has going for it is a powerful force. I and many others see this university staying on top for a long time.
As a UCLA grad, I’m ecstatic with this trend. I do hope prospective students continue to see both schools as true equals, with different things to offer different people.