This year was the same with our school, which is neither of the ones you mentioned but also in EGUSD. A few acceptances but more rejections than acceptances among the top 10 kids in the class, a couple of waitlists, and a lot of hearbreak. Was your school’s prior experience the same this year?
Congratulations on your son’s admission to Cal! Our son is there now and we share a lot of similarities with your family. We are also from So Cal and our son was initially envisioning a college experience like UCSB where he would be surrounded by the sun and surf of SoCal. His acceptance to Cal came as a bit of a surprise.
When we toured the campus, I could sense the mixture of excitement and apprehension on his face. He heard all the rumors about the schools competitive nature, the level of academic competition etc… and he almost let that sway him but instead he said, “Mom…I need to go here…the fact that I feel uncomfortable is a sign that there is the biggest opportunity for me to grow.” As it turns out…much of the rumors he had heard was just that…rumors.
Now, as he prepares to graduate this May, it’s evident that attending Cal has been a transformative journey for him. While the university’s academic reputation precedes it, it’s the experiences outside the classroom that have truly enriched his education. He has made a ton of new friends both in the classroom and through his fraternity. The connections he’s formed with students from around the world have broadened his horizons in ways we could have never imagined. He has met friends from every country and has been invited to spend his breaks and holidays with those friends and their families all around the globe.
As I reflect on his time at Cal, I’m struck by the invaluable lessons he’s learned and the profound impact they’ll have on his future. The friendships forged, the cultural exchanges experienced—they’re treasures that will stay with him long after he receives his degree. Indeed, the level of cultural diversity and global consciousness he’s been exposed to is just as significant as the academic accolades he’ll attain.
I am so glad you are considering Cal and promise, if your son should chose Cal, he will not regret it!
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I love this attitude.
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As long as you get the housing application in by the housing application deadline, housing chances are the same. It was May 2 though last year so it helps to look at options sooner so it’s not a rush to fill it out. Guaranteed to get housing as a freshman but not necessarily any of your preferred choices.
Congratulations!!!
Which city are you from? What field of engineering he applied?
It was my post that started this debate. My child spent time, then had 5 friends, 5 teachers, two counselors at school and both her parents and her sister read them and give feedback. All for free. Her public school is amazing and the teachers genuinely want to help the students. I don’t feel she did anything that gave her an advantage over any other kid at her school who could have done the same and many did. The counselor said she didn’t want them to submit applications without letting her read them bc once you submit you can’t fix anything. .
D24 accepted at CNR Berkeley, UNC and UVA Echols Scholars. She is a premed student, and we are not sure what to do. She really liked Berkeley but as many here said we are also concerned about grade deflation as she would need a solid GPA to apply to medical school. Any help is be appreciated.
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Where are you from? UVA has an excellent Medical School so there would be those opportunities. As well as it is such a great combination of fun and great academics and it’s such a beautiful campus. Of course I’m biased, I’m a Hoo. I still go to the alumni reunions they have. It’s the perfect sized school in my opinion too. Not too big and not too small. But if you are from CA it is far away.
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This is just my opinion so you are free to disregard it.
The reality is that kids change their minds. Many students who intend pre-med don’t end up completing pre-med.
In addition, many students who do complete pre-med, don’t end up going to med school for a variety of reasons.
I don’t know the percentages, but I’d wager that it is a relatively small minority of students who go to undergrad thinking of med school who actually end up going to med school.
All of this is to say: do undergrad where you want to do undergrad, where you think you’d be happiest, where it feels like the best overall fit.
My son was also concerned about grades before he started at Berkeley last fall. He was feeling a bit of imposter syndrome, especially since he was admitted from the wait list.
He approached this concern by looking up the courses that he would be taking in his first year, and searching for previous year syllabi, grading policies, textbooks and other sources used, midterms, and final exams. (For example, by using sources like Tau Beta Pi, or the courses’ own web pages, or just a google search.) He also looked at grade distributions for specific courses on Berkeleytime. Looking in depth at each course helped my son to decide that the courses looked manageable for him. He is doing great at Cal right now with a high GPA.
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Suburbs of Chicago
I have a senior at Berkeley, also in CNR. I think grade deflation is overstated. The large stem classes are tough, but manageable. The one downside to premed at Berkeley is the lack of affiliated hospital. There are many research opportunities at Berkeley, but clinical work takes more effort to find. Most premed kids change their minds and CNR offers
some excellent majors. Changing majors within CNR is simple. Changing to a different college is possible - depending on the college, switching to Engineering isn’t happening, for example. Berkeley is better than other schools for changing majors.
UVA and UNC are great options, too. UVA is a very different campus than Berkeley. I haven’t been to UNC. They are all excellent schools. I would look seriously at cost. Med school is expensive and you want to minimize undergrad costs.
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Thank you
Thank you for your advises. My son received the invitation to apply but is the SEED program requirement based on need based or merit based as we don’t qualify for financial aid and have not applied for FAFSA.
The SEED scholar application process that @Gumbymom linked above does require you to submit FAFSA (listed under eligibility).
SEED provides a need based scholarship, but that is only one of its benefits. I do not know for sure if you can be named a SEED scholar without need, but need is not mentioned under the selection process in the FAQ.
The SEED Scholars Selection Committee considers students’ completed University of California admissions application, academic performance, and commitment to community service. Scholars are selected for their interests in the sciences, technology, engineering, or mathematics, as well as their plans to pursue a graduate degree in such fields.
@tamagotchi beat me do it but there is a Research stipend that you apply for as a Seed Scholar after your 1st year and this does not appear to be Need-based.
https://seedscholars.berkeley.edu/scholar-funding-1
If you have specific questions, I would contact the program seedscholars@berkeley.edu
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Following up on this, I just searched last year’s thread, and several people were talking about SEED who did not have financial need. Need does not seem to be a requirement, but the web site does state you must submit FAFSA.
For those who have been invited to apply, there are many benefits listed on the SEED scholars program page; your student can look over the potential benefits, but the most impactful benefit (other than scholarships for those with need) would probably be priority class enrollment which is a HUGE benefit at any UC.
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Thank you so much for the follow up. I also appreciate your advice regarding your son’s imposter syndrome experience and how he went about prepping himself to succeed. Your links are great sources, thank you! My son also worries how he will thrive based what he’s heard from friends about Berkeley( grade deflation ) and I am mainly concerned about housing and safety issues.
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From what I’ve seen with my son and his friends, a student can really do a LOT to help themselves thrive by simply doing common sense things, such as:
- attending office hours, talking to advisor(s)
- attending the actual lectures and discussions and labs…
- thinking ahead with your planning
- getting help right away when you need it
- study groups, networking with fellow students studying similar things
- getting enough sleep, eating right
- getting outside and having some balance in your life too…
Of course these are important things for any college student. But because UC Berkeley is a very big place, it’s important for a student to stay on top of things and take care of themselves, compared to smaller schools where there is more hand holding. If a student needs help, there is help available, but they have to seek it out.
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Foodiemom: Sounds like our sons have similar choices and both want a social life along with a great academic program. We are from SoCal too. We are going to Cal Day, visiting UT Austin, and looking at Cal Poly SLO before making a final decision. He was slightly leaning toward UT (engineering) before his acceptance to Berkeley. Now he’s not sure. I’ll be sure to check back in, so we can share experiences after college visits. Good luck!