Worried about going to school across the country, if I even get in...

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Hi everyone! I'm currently in the process of figuring out where I'm going to apply to college. I'm planning on majoring in either aerospace engineering or mechanical engineering.</p>

<p>I'm hesitant about applying to Berkeley for two reasons: I don't know if I'll get in, and I don't know if I'll like it. Hopefully someone will be able to answer a few questions about this for me.</p>

<p>First: whether or not I'll get in. Here's some background info on me.</p>

<p>Test Scores:
* SAT - 670 reading, 670 math, 710 writing --> 2050; waiting on most recent scores
* ACT - registered for the Oct. 25th test
* SAT Subject Tests - registered for the Math II and Biology tests on Nov. 8th
* APs - U.S. History (3), Chemistry (1), Lang & Comp (4); currently taking Calculus AB and Lit & Comp</p>

<p>Classes:
* 9th-11th - mostly CPs (A's), 3 honors (1 A, 1 B, 1 C), 3 APs (1 A, 2 B's)
* Currently - a bunch of CPs (A's), 2 honors (A's), 2 APs (B's)
* GPA - 4.13 (weighted)
* Class rank - 21/167 (might improve a little this year)</p>

<p>Everything else:
* Extracurriculars - cross country, track, orchestra, honor guard, volunteer pit orchestra, stage crew, chess club, gifted
program, National Honor Society, student council
* Great letters of recommendation
* A handful of awards and honors
* 50+ hours of community service</p>

<p>Based on this, does it seem like I would get in? (I'm OOS, btw.)</p>

<p>Second: whether or not I'll like Berkeley.</p>

<p>There are a few things I know I want in a university:
* Lots of majors and strong programs (so I have options)
* Medium or large size student body
* Co-ed
* No religious affiliation
* Beautiful, defined campus that isn't too big or too small
* Located in a nice college town
* A lovely autumn, a snowy winter, and a pleasant spring
* A gorgeous library (not absolutely necessary, but the closer to Hogwarts, the better)</p>

<p>Based on this, does it seem like I would be happy at Berkeley? Obviously there isn't any snow, but I'm sure I'd love California weather too. I'm a little hesitant about going all the way to California, though. What's the surrounding city like? I live in a small town in Pennsylvania, so I'd be all the way across the country. Travel would be expensive, and I'm worried I would feel lonely/homesick.</p>

<p>Thanks so much for any input! </p>

2

<p>** Lots of majors and strong programs (so I have options)*
Sure, there’s lots of options. Many of them (especially STEM) are ranked very high.
** Medium or large size student body*
36,000 students.
** Co-ed, No religious affiliation*
Yup.
** Beautiful, defined campus that isn’t too big or too small*
It takes about 20 minutes to walk from one corner of campus to the other, I’d say it’s pretty big but it’s not too bad.</p>

<p>** Located in a nice college town*
There’s lots of things around Berkeley, most of them are food. In terms of sights to see and exciting stuff to do there’s not much right around campus. The good news is that public transit is great, and BART can take you straight to San Fransisco. The surrounding area feels pretty urban, there’s not a whole lot of trees, and there’s a fairly large (and generally harmless) homeless population. I grew up in a suburban area so it was pretty different for me. The campus itself is well kept, it has some trees and grassy fields, but it still feels a lot more city than somewhere like UCSC.</p>

<p>** A lovely autumn, a snowy winter, and a pleasant spring*
Spring and fall will be nice, okay weather, usually sunny but not too warm. There’s a couple days in Spring where you’ll be melting from the heat. Around winter it’ll start to feel like Fall on the east coast… chilly, rainy, bring a sweater weather. I really miss the rain, and I definitely miss having snow. If you go back home for winter break that’ll give you a month of east coast weather, so you’ll still get some snow. The seasons feel really muted here. I moved here from Maryland a few years ago, personally I liked east coast weather a lot more, but I don’t like sunny weather that much.</p>

<p>** A gorgeous library (not absolutely necessary, but the closer to Hogwarts, the better)*
There are 20+ libraries on campus, they all look different. I’ll admit I haven’t been in all of them, but I’m sure you can find one that you like. Some are depressing, some are really nice, some are modern, some feel old, you just have to explore. :)</p>

<p>As for chances, I’ll let someone with more freshman experience answer that one. I’d say apply and see anyways, if you think you’d like to come to school here. I didn’t expect to get in when I applied, but I got lucky and I’m glad I went to school here. If you’re interested in the school but you’re not sure you’ll like the campus, it might be worth it to take a trip out here and visit, then you can see the campus for yourself.</p>

<p>One thing you do need to consider is the cost. OOS tuition is expensive (~$35,000 per year) and housing isn’t cheap either (tiny triple is ~$9,000 per year). Can you afford that for four years?</p>