<p>I'm in a mad rush to figure out where I'm going to school next year, and I'm down to deciding between UCLA and Cal.</p>
<p>I'm from Southern California, and I've lived here all of my life, so a change in environment would be lovely. The first time I visited Cal, I was blown away, and told myself it would be where I ended up, but after a recent visit, I'm not so sure it would be the right place for me. I'm not a terribly competitive student, and that was sort of the vibe I was getting.</p>
<p>I'm not exactly sure what I want to do in school yet, I've been accepted as undeclared on both campuses, but I know it would be more along the English/History side of the scale, rather than taking the Math/Science route.</p>
<p>I've been awarded the Regents' and Chancellor's Scholarship at Berkeley, and while it doesn't provide much financially, it's nice to be wanted, but should that really be a deciding factor?</p>
<p>I'm lost. Please throw any advice you have my way.</p>
<p>English/History is not nearly as competitive as the math/science courses....and even in math/science courses UCLA is pretty close to being just as competitive as Berkeley. Go to Berkeley....especially when you got Regents...congrats on that by the way.</p>
<p>Go away for the experience. I'm not saying you'll love it like I did...but my Berkeley years were fantastic and I enjoyed them very much.</p>
<p>You say you aren't a competitive student which is perfectly fine...you're a very strong student to get the scholarships you did...and being a strong student is what matters.</p>
<p>Go where you will be happiest. Don't worry about "competition." You'll fall into a groove. If your first impression of Cal was great, I'd say you'll probably be happy there.</p>
<p>I appreciate the advice everyone, I'm pretty sure I'll end up at Berkeley, I just don't always want to think "Oh, well, I should have gone to UCLA."</p>
<p>English/History is not competitive at Berkeley. All this "competitive" talk is about science/engineering. Berkeley isn't actually competitive anyway, it's just hard.</p>
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English/History is not competitive at Berkeley. All this "competitive" talk is about science/engineering. Berkeley isn't actually competitive anyway, it's just hard
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<p>Hard, but you'll be fine being as UCBCE says a strong student. Kenf1234's post is spot-on. Remember, English/History are two areas where Berkeley ranks the number 1 departments in the country or close (I know, I know: what departments don't at Berkeley), so you will be challenged -- and should challenge yourself. But competitive is not how I'd describe these departments.</p>
<p>Well, that's good to hear.
When I went to an overnight program Cal, the Dean of Students made a point of saying that Berkeley was best if you use the faculty as "research assistants" rather than teachers. Does this mean that if I want a normal education I'm wasting my time at the school, or was he just trying to make it sound more prestigious?</p>
<p>I've read some other posts on here that say Berkeley is a real "sink or swim" type school, and I'm worried that, not just from an academic standpoint, but one where I'm happy overall, I might fall into the "sink" category.
This might be how it is anywhere, but does Berkeley really ONLY have these polar opposites? For that matter, are there any average, non-overachieving geniuses at the school, or will I just feel overwhelmed by the caliber of the other students?</p>
<p>You've all been really helpful so far, so thanks.</p>
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When I went to an overnight program Cal, the Dean of Students made a point of saying that Berkeley was best if you use the faculty as "research assistants" rather than teachers. Does this mean that if I want a normal education I'm wasting my time at the school, or was he just trying to make it sound more prestigious?
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<p>A research university Dean of Students would always say this. He's/she's pointing out a truism: when you go to college -- particularly upper division -- you need to stop viewing professors as people that spoon-feed you information and wisdom as was done in high school and you need to develop your own curiosity, sense of academic quality, and drive to achieve and learn. This is even more pronounced in grad school. It's a statement to stand on your own two feet.</p>