@tmcl24 Don’t be negative! Just because you didn’t fit the mold for a certain UC, doesn’t mean you’ll be rejected to all of them. Don’t lose hope because you never know. Some of the best things happen when you least expect it…
@alwayswonderines People have told me that UCB is in a “bad” area and that it’s one of the most dangerous campuses out there. But they have also said it’s a wonderful campus and a great place to learn and thrive. I was wondering what your opinion is about UCB? Both the good stuff and the bad stuff?
*not trying to sound like a killjoy or pretentious but I just truly want to know the real pros and cons about the school. Thank you!
How are yall gonna tour UC’s far away from your current location? Like I wanna tour UC Davis but I dont feel like driving 7 hours up there just to take a 45 minute tour uknowwhatimean??
@alwayswonderines what is your major? And is it true that people at Berkeley are so competitive that they manipulate people or don’t help each other?
What time will decisions be released? 3 or 5 pst?
@ashinthecut Well, they dont manipulate people.
The famous saying is that “People will not try to hurt you, but when you fall down, they will keep going" for Ivies and other academically rigorous schools.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQ1ajpiy09E
Very Interesting Video. I suggest yall watch it.
@alwayswonderines How do you feel about campus safety? Do you feel like the budget problems have affected you in any way, and if so, how? I really like Cal and believe that it’s a top-notch school with amazing people and amazing opportunities, but those are my two biggest hesitations about it…
made a new account bc i think my old one got banned lmao… anyways anxiety is already kicking in 4 tomorrow
@IBGuy101 HAHA SAME but for UCLA. I hella wanna go to Bruin Day but I’m from bay area and I have school the day before and going by plane is just not worth it to me haha
No hope of this coming out at 12am like UCR did, right?
What time will they be released?!!! please and thank you lol sorry if this has been answered
@imvegetarian2016 I do not believe it is one of the most dangerous campuses out there. Recently it has been getting a lot of scary rep because of a few incidents but like most campuses, as long as you stay away from dark parts of campus, the sketchy parts of the city, and walk in groups you will be fine. In recent years administration has implemented a number of great resources like Bearwalk (call designated student workers to walk with you home) or take the campus night bus, Bear Transit (which runs from 7pm i think to 2am) and if you happen to catch one past 2am they will drive you home. I would say though that it might not be as safe as let’s say a small town college because Berkeley is so close to other large cities (Richmond, Oakland, SF).
As far as pros and cons I’ll keep it simple
Pros:
- Bay Area resources (proximity to Silicon Valley, a lot of big name research companies are up here, SF, Oakland, South Bay)
- Transportation (BART, AC Transit which both aren’t top notch but work OK)
- Weather (er not during El Niño), especially if you like a temperate climate
- wide array of classes and majors
- quirkiness/culture
- Cal brand name (even if you don’t do much at Cal, having a degree from here will put your foot in the door for many opportunities)
- Connections (if you work hard and try hard enough you can get a lot of great experience from a number of awesome professors + grad students)
Cons:
- Housing is limited and expensive
- Competitive peers (depends on your major)
- Difficult lower division classes
- Hard to get classes if you’re not Regents and don’t have a ton of units/ap credits
- Berkeley bubble (I am from the Bay Area but many of my peers don’t realize that there is more to the Bay than just Berkeley and tend to overgeneralize what they can do here because of the student-oriented culture in Berkeley.
I will admit that Berkeley is difficult, frustrating, and sometimes suffocating. However, I have had many great experiences with my peers, professors, grad student instructors, and really, the material I’ve studied so far. Because of the size of Cal, there will be no personalized experience like at a private school and it will feel at times like you’re drowning in work, school, friends, life. I have done a lot of growing up since I’ve came here. Despite all that, I really and genuinely enjoy my time here at Cal. Coming here will give you and your peers a platform to explore and it will be easy to if you utilize the resources here.
@brendalil 3-5pm pacific time, but no one knows for sure, it seems
@Ko113g3B0und From what I could tell scrolling through the UCLA thread (since they’re similar applicant numbers), probably not. I wish, though lol
@ashinthecut I’m microbial biology in CNR (woot CNR!). No, I don’t think and haven’t encountered people who manipulate others to get ahead. The competition here is more like people study hard and if they have useful resources/answers they will likely not help you. AKA most people in competitive majors will not want to share golden opportunities with you. That sort of makes sense though since there’s a lot of students pursuing similar and sometimes capped majors.
Does anyone know definitively when decisions will be released, and if not, does anyone know at what time decisions were released last year? Thanks!
@maa4343 Someone said some pages back that they were released around 8:30pm pst, but UCLA released around 5pm this year, and the general consensus (since someone asks practically once on every page) is that it will be between 3-5pm. Though if someone knows for sure please do so.
@GingerTea12 Generally Cal is safe, I think. Especially since there’s things like BearWalk and BearTransit which work late hours at night to help people get home safely. As long as you’re walking with friends at night and are always prepared for any scenario at night you’ll be fine.
In terms of budget problems, it is of many students’ concern. Berkeley is already expensive and recently administration is considering dissolving College of Chemistry, combining some smaller majors, and moving some majors into different colleges within Cal. There was a lot of out anger coming from students who believe the budget cuts should not interfere with their education (I agree with that). There is a general consensus among students that there are too many administrative positions on campus so a lot of students ask why those positions aren’t the first to go when budget cuts arise. Systemwide, UC is not as affordable as is used to be and considering the cost of housing financial aid does not consider that much how fast the cost of living is increasing. As for me, I’m in CNR so there are a little more resources in my college so the budget cuts aren’t really affecting me as of late. But a lot of my friends who basically get a lot of aid find that what they do get is not enough to cover cost of living especially if you live off campus.
@lalabeach22 Thanks for your reply. Her weighted GPA is 4.31. I got it wrong. She corrected me this morning and she’s annoyed I’m having these exchanges. 
She is also an AP scholar with distinction. Another poster suggested it might be her statements. Very well might be. Cheers!
@alwayswonderines Thank you!