Hey guys,
I’ve been stressing a lot over this. I can’t pick between these top public schools. Any input would be greatly appreciated.
I would like to know about the campus life differences and experiences. Here is some information about myself:
-I live in Los Angeles, CA (yes I know, student tuition. I am still not sure about grants/financial aid for UMich so let’s ignore that for now)
-I cannot stand extreme liberalism. I don’t know if berkeley is just politically inclined or just close-minded, insanely liberal (I attend a high school that is extremely liberal)
- I am not sure what I want to major in. I got into berkeley as undecided and into UMich as a mechanical engineer but I dont know if I even want to be an engineer anymore. Yes I know its hard to transfer to the engineering college in Berkeley.
-I love music. A music scene would be great.
-I REALLY care for cultural, political, and talent-driven diversity. Considering that both these schools have over 40,000 students, I am assuming that there will be many different students.
-I want a healthy balance between having fun/social life and an academic life. I didn’t enjoy high school, unfortunately, and want to make up for it.
As you could probably tell, I don’t know much about UMich. Berkeley was my top choice but after getting in, I’ve been chickening out. I hear a lot from the stereotypes of it being a “super difficult school that is work work work and no social life.” I know that I have to work hard but with all this in mind, I need some validation as to which school I am going to pick. I will be visiting both but, in the meantime, any input would be fantastic.
To put in great emphasis, I really care about a great social diversity and campus life. I can’t see myself drowning in stress anymore. I don’t want to fall back and burn out, that’s my biggest fear.
First of all, have you checked the NPC at UMich? That would give you a pretty good idea how your financial aid would look like in most cases. Nevertheless, it is going to be ugly when compared to your in-state CoA at CAL in most cases for OOS students unless your family has lower income or if you have won one of the large scholarship (which would have been announced a couple months ago). At the end, it is not likely to be a tough choice unless your family has a very deep pocket. The CoA there is around $65k.
Second, you are not accepted into the mechanical engineering at UMich but the CoE. You declare major later on.
UMich is also very liberal but at an extreme level. It has less than 40,000 undergraduates (~6500 freshmen each year) but it is certainly a big school. UMich also has an excellent music school and there are always free music performance program all year long. Indeed, the school district also benefit from it that one of the high school has one of the best music education program in the country.
As the school is very diverse in many aspect, you may choose the lifestyle you want with people alike. There are students party all the time, while there are also very hard working ones. However, CoE is pretty competitive in all majors that you will not be able to party all the time.
@billcsho Thanks for your response. Is there also free music performance programs in Berkeley?
I am also thinking about attending UC Berkeley. As a moderate conservative, I am also a bit worried about the extreme liberalism at the campus. But after meeting a lot of people attending next year, they don’t seem like the protesters we see on the news. Its important to keep in mind Berkeley has the largest republican club in CA as well. In terms of hard work, I don’t think any top school is going to be easy. A balance between work and play depends on how well you plan your time.