<p>Just finished my first semester after transferring as well. As someone mentioned earlier, it’s a lot more intense but nothing you can’t handle if you made it in. It doesn’t seem difficult to me but it is a lot more demanding. Classes might seem a bit more impersonal, but as long as you see GSI’s or Professors during office hours, you can have the same type of relationship as in a cc. </p>
<p>I haven’t had any issues with being a transfer at all either. If you’re a social person, you can easily make friends at Berkeley. There are a lot of talented and bright individuals with different backgrounds so its always neat to meet new people. I live in Unit 2 dorms, so I got to meet a bunch of new people through that. One of my roommates turned out to be pretty cool (Unbeknownst to us, we lived one city away from each other before transferring there) . Now we are pretty good buddies and hang out a lot when we decide to go out.</p>
<p>It’s also not all about adjusting to academics, but to life in a new city as well. Life in Berkeley has been interesting so far. It’s very fast paced near where I live at which is on the South-side near Telegraph. There are a multitude of shops and restaurants so there is always activity at all times of the day/night. There’s always something going on and can get hectic at times. For example, this semester we had multiple protests (Some even with riot police on hand), earthquakes, a shooting, and even a huge blaze down the street from me. Then there are also many “characters” on the streets. If you’re from the suburbs, then this environment might be a little harsh on your senses, but you do eventually get used to it. There are never any dull days/nights at Berkeley. </p>
<p>One more thing that comes to mind is getting around. As a Southern California native I have relied on my car since I was 16 to get me around. After driving everywhere for 8 years and never taking public transportation, I came to a city that was not car friendly so I decided to leave my car at home. The city/school is on a hill so it was hard for me to get used all the walking/hills and sometimes I still get winded (vlsb to pimentel :[ ). The public transportation is almost always reliable and pretty easy to get around in. Although it was a little intimidating at first, I can now get to San Francisco with no problem. </p>
<p>That’s a small gist of what I have encountered. I’ll be happy to answer any more questions too.</p>