UC Berkeley is less expensive. I can use my AP credits, etc. there. It also has a higher ranking for this particular major.
However, I like the environment at Caltech better, and it’s easier to get undergrad research.
So my choice comes down to future employment/grad school.
Is a BS from Caltech or Berkeley more “valuable”? Technically, all top schools are supposed to be “equal”, but I know for a fact that admissions/employers behind-the-scenes have certain biases/preferences.
I read on other forums about job recruiters paying more attention to CS majors from Caltech partly because they’re rarer (Caltech in general is a small school so any graduate from there is noticeable). Is this true?
Law school: Yes, Berkeley has a top law program and Caltech has none. Getting admitted into any law school from undergrad is a different matter. I know about LSAT and GPA, but I’m getting varying answers on if they pay attention to your undergrad school or not.
I am not using my school as a “means to an end” for law school. I highly care about my major, as well as math/science in general. Law is something that I find interesting and important, and something that I will make myself familiar with regardless of if I choose to become a lawyer or an engineer.
My understanding of law school is that GPA is the most important factor (unless your interest is patent law). So any hard major such as engineering at a school that does not have grade inflation will make it more difficult to be admitted.
What do you mean by “My understanding of law school is that GPA is the most important factor (unless your interest is patent law)”? Does patent law take something else into account? (Because if I do go into law, then that will probably be my specialty. Nothing’s set in stone, but it’s just highly likely.)
CS and law are very different majors. Do you list both because you are not sure which one to choose or you are thinking about future profession that will combine both? For pre-law you would need a good GPA to go to law school. It will be much more difficult to maintain a high GPA in Caltech.
Your point #3 is (Caltech does not have a law school) irrelevant. I think for intellectual property lawyers, going to a top tech school is more important.
That was kind of what I was wondering. I am aware that going to a school for undergrad doesn’t necessarily increase your chances of going to the same school for law.
What I was wondering was for (in your words) “a top tech school”, is there any difference between UC Berkeley and Caltech? They both have great rankings, but from the people I’ve asked, Caltech has the better recognizability factor.
They are such different schools. Small private in SoCal vs huge public in NorCal. You must have some preferences in these matters. Also cost?
If you are set on your major, I can’t imagine a better school than Caltech, although Cal is excellent also. But if you think you might change your mind - Cal will offer more majors and opportunities.
I’m afraid that for law school, GPA (and LSAT scores) trumps everything, including a hard major like CS and the fact that both Caltech and Cal do not practice grade inflation.