<p>I need help deciding between these two! I'm not
a huge fan of the beach so idk if the beach is a big part of sb. I am currently an undecided major as well. I want to be able to take dance classes, go Greek, and do community service in college. Any advice on how to choice would be helpful.</p>
<p>Well, if the beach is a big factor in your decision, SB might be the better choice. it has beach on 50% of the main campus’s edge. Its a stone throw away from many of the freshmen dorms.</p>
<p>@Fieralds, she said ‘not a huge fan’ haha. </p>
<p>A few things made me choose UCSB over UC Berkeley, as a newly admitted freshman to the class of 2014.</p>
<ul>
<li>The campus is much nicer, there aren’t hobos ■■■■■■■■ the streets and around the campus. Along with the campus being nicer, the people overall are also happier and are much better looking.</li>
<li>The people, students and staff, are more willing to help you out. (This has been my experience when calling up administration, and talking to multiple students from both schools.)</li>
<li>The academics are top notch, and it isn’t as hard to get As in your classes, especially in L&S. This is very important if you are looking to go on to grad, med, or law school.</li>
<li>You can be in year long wait lists to get into required courses at UC Berkeley. This makes things difficult to graduate in 4 years.</li>
</ul>
<p>Just my thoughts, good luck.</p>
<p>Haha UC Berkeley is among the TOP 10 BEST COLLEGES IN THE US. A degree from there is much more highly valued than from any other UC. </p>
<p>I love UCSB but Berkeley is just plain awesome. Not to talk about the fact that you are 20 min from SF, Berkeley has the most beautiful campus and the smartest crowd.</p>
<p>Dont believe me. Take a trip to both schools and then decide. </p>
<p>Good luck and congratulations for being admitted to these great schools!</p>
<p>@Randolph
Yeah, just think twice before you leave campus. It’s between two of the most notorious cities in the world for murder, gang violence and drug trafficking, Richmond and Oakland.</p>
<p>Also: Berkeley is not “among the TOP 10 BEST COLLEGES IN THE US.”
[National</a> Universities Rankings - Best Colleges - Education - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-universities-rankings]National”>http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-universities-rankings)</p>
<p>It’s the best public one, though. Personally, I would say just visit both campuses and see which one you like the most. Being admitted for spring is not a bad thing, especially for Cal so make sure you think about this carefully.</p>
<p>dont just look at the rankings, they are both very different schools.</p>
<p>@ my own earlier post: My Bad. The text wrapping on my netbook cut off “not”</p>
<p>You already know the two schools are very different. What prompted you to select these two? Your variables: Dance, Greek system, and community outreach-all can be met at both schools. So…I go back to my original question…</p>
<p>It sounds like you want to have a good amount of free time, since you note that you want to do activities such as “take dance classes, go Greek, and do community service in college.”</p>
<p>At Berkeley you will get free time, just very little because you will be constantly fighting to keep your gpa above a B+ average. At UCSB you will get more free time to pursue non academic activities that you actually like, not to say though that UCSB classes are a walk in the park.</p>
<p>I recommend UCSB for you.</p>
<p>Why would anybody ever turn down Berkley? That could be the difference of making $15,000 more a year after college is over, not to mention a better chance of making it to graduate school. </p>
<p>Berkley is the way to go 100%.</p>
<p>@SoccerFlocks17
You won’t be making $15k or more if u cant get into a good grad school because Berk owned your undergrad GPA.</p>
<p>Berkeley is academically better, culturally more interesting (the whole Bay area is alive with new music, classical concerts, film, theatre, art in all forms…), and very safe. I lived there for 10 years and I still visit several times a year. I am a woman but I walk home alone at night - no problem in the downtown area (I wouldn’t go through parks on the campus after midnight, though). If you are interested in sound education, there is no comparison between UCB and UCSB. Community service is a true passion at Berkeley - one of the few still very much socially aware places. Santa Barbara is a lovely town but it feels like a holiday spot. Many students behave as if that’s what it was. If you like that kind of relaxed atmosphere, Berkeley will be too intense.</p>
<p>@ponornica
I’m not trying to ■■■■■ on you, but you invited this response.
Berkeley isn’t somewhere you want to walk alone around, especially not at night. It is just way too close to west oakland. My friends at berkeley know this, because they’ve been robbed before, multiple times, by bums, gangsters, and cocaine addicts.</p>
<p>“one of the few still very much socially aware places.”
If by this, you mean a place where the city residents camp 40 feet up trees in order to prevent their being cut down to make room for sports facilities, then yes, it’s socially aware. I don’t want to be studying in my dorm with cotton in my ears, trying to block out the anti-war, or anti-prop 8 chanting from nearby protesters. </p>
<p>/rant</p>
<p>If you feel like you’re academically ready for Berkeley (you can keep your GPA up among some of the best and brightest), go for it. A Berkeley degree is definitely worth more than a UCSB degree… unless you screw up your GPA.</p>
<p>Mockpointe, were you able to visit both places? If not, will you be able to do so before you make the decision? Really, there is no better way to find out about all non-academic aspects of the university. My experience at UCB and my life in Berkeley have been wonderful, but obviously this is not true for everyone - there is no campus or town that would be perfect for every potential student. If you cannot visit, maybe you can get in touch with a number of current students at each institution and ask the questions that matter to you.</p>
<p>Oh wow well thanks everyone for your opinions. I keep on going back and forth on my decision. Though I am going to try to visit Berkeley this weekend, so that I can see what I would be missing if I don’t go there after all, more than anything Im worried about the transition as spring admit, as I’ve heard its hard to meet people and get adjusted more so than fall. </p>
<p>@ APOL Well I actully chose many of the UCs to apply to. Though I have liked Cal since my sophmore year, as it seemed a really active college, and yes haha i would actually be out there with the protesters against things like prop 8. As for SB i chose it because it seemed a pretty chill college, where I could join lots of activities and still keep my head aflot with my gpa. As for the beach, ya its pretty, but no i dont really want to go into the water, or even on the beach much if at all.</p>
<p>Aside from things like prop 8, the protesters at Berkeley also advocate for things which, to me, seem illogical. For example, the ideologues advocate bike safety by blocking as much traffic as possible in the streets by riding their bikes between the cars and such.</p>
<p>I find these types of people to be very annoying. I would hate to hear them chatting their slogans outside my dorm room in the middle of the night.</p>