<p>I’m sick of people saying that Berkeley’s world class. I live in CA, and all people talk about is “Berkeley BerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeley.” I’m sick of it. Will someone PLEASE explain to me how Berkeley is a world class university? Berkeley treats undergrads like crap, has a crazy curve, is overrated, makes kids work harder than dogs, 90ish % of people are instate, they’re exclusionist, cliquish, and Asians outnumber caucasians.</p>
<p>Your posts are always so very enlightening, ihateCA/futurenyustudent.</p>
<p>I do hope your maturity level improves before next year, though I suppose you still have some time as a high school student.</p>
<p>In any case, you are entitled to your own personal opinion–I believe it has been firmly established that you do not wish to go to a California university.</p>
<p>Academically, UC Berkeley is extremely strong with many research breakthroughs, patents, etc. Just looking at how much it contributes to science and academia, UC Berkeley can be considered a world class institution.</p>
<p>The topic discussed here isn’t even necessarily undergraduate education. It is broader than what a prospective college student, such as yourself, would be looking for in a college. The treatment of undergraduates, “crazy curve”, etc. is inaccurate, and for the most part irrelevant in a discussion of the entire institution and how it is “world-class”, not just the undergraduate. Most research universities are more focused on their graduate programs, and difficult in their own ways.</p>
<p>I understand that you yourself are Asian, but to specifically attribute a characteristic to a group of people is narrow minded. Stereotypes are there for a reason, but it doesn’t make describing a university as negative due to a race of people there correct.</p>
<p>If anything, I would be tempted to call you exclusionist.
I’ve read many of your posts and this point feel a need to respond.</p>
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<p>And this somehow precludes a university from being world class?</p>
<p>So I guess that screws over any universities in Asia…</p>
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<p>I never said that. I’m simply stating my opinion. All I’m saying is that Asians severely overrate Berkeley. People consider it like the god of universities. I’m also not questioning the fact that Berkeley’s an excellent school. But all I’m saying is that Berkeley severely lacks undergraduate focus.</p>
<p>So why don’t you try to say that in the first place?</p>
<p>Well I was frustrated.</p>
<p>When are you ever not frustrated with some perceived slight on the part of evil ol’ California and the dastardly UC system? ;)</p>
<p>I’m surprised no one has mentioned BERKELEY. Have you heard of BERKELEY, futurenyustudent? World class university, as a matter of fact…</p>
<p>I’ve heard about Berkeley so many times the next time I hear about Berkeley I’ll explode. And I quote “I live in CA, and all people talk about is “Berkeley BerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBe rkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerk eleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkel eyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeley BerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBe rkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerk eleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkel eyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeleyBerkeley .” I’m sick of it.”…maybe you should read some of my previous posts.</p>
<p>world class in the eyes of academia.</p>
<p>i could care less what the average layperson knows of my school.</p>
<p>berkeley…</p>
<p>Hahahahaha dont even try it Scom…</p>
<p>Sarcasm clearly isnt one of futurenyustudents strong points…</p>
<p>Maturity isn’t one of his stronger points either. Obviously, he seems annoyed that with large amount of asians at any college it severely damages the school. Please do keep in mind that every student at Berkeley deserves their spot. They worked hard to fight in-state, with what is obviously the most competitive state.</p>
<p>I’d like to make my point about what makes a university first class. Every factor plays an importance, but, I consider the alumni the most important aspect of every college. In those four years, what did the alumni take and move on to life? We see Georgetown’s success in International Relations and Politics, must as we see school’s with strong engineering programs develop much of today’s technology. What makes an university world-class is the alumni that is creates for the future. How will the alumni change the world? How will they improve upon it? How will they affect the daily interactions of every individual of everyone living in this world? </p>
<p>That is a world class university. This attributes as to why schools select only the brightest and most ambitious. These students paired with the best education in the world will the leaders who shape the future. It does not matter if everyone can spell the college name backwards, every other letter, or have even heard of it. It is, how much has the university have affected the world of today? </p>
<p>Think about it. Why is college so important for you? Many of you imagine a great social time, but you all know that you can get that at any state college. Many of you picked a college because you realized that it would open doors that were previously behind unmovable mountains. Oh sure, the social scene may have helped, but deep down, all of the ambitious desire to invoke serious change and direction in our lives.</p>
<p>Just wanted to explain what LSE does. A few people on this forum did not know much about it. LSE teaches Social Sciences only, although a a bigger version of them than would usualy be expected (Law, Management and others).</p>
<p>LSE would have many world class departments and academics in the SS. A few of the fields it is very famous for are: Sociology, International Relations, Politics and obviously Economics. It also holds the biggest social science related collection in the world. </p>
<p>It also has as far as I know the largest percentage of international students of any major world university. Maybe NUS beats it. But not that sure about that.</p>
<p>Although it probably would not be very famous for someone that is really into science or engineering it should be well known by those in the social science world.</p>
<p>This thread is ridiculous. It throws Cal and michigan up in bright lights and only throws wisconsin into the mix because of social scene. The average ACT @ UM and UW is the same. All of the schools see each other as a peer institution and they are some of the best research universities in the world. Wisconsin along with Michigan, Cal, UCLA are three of the most prominent publics in the world because of that research component.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/undergraduateProspectus2006/subjectsAndCourses.htm[/url]”>http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/undergraduateProspectus2006/subjectsAndCourses.htm</a></p>
<p>LSE subjects available. Wittgenstein said, at least in the the 40s, at least the philosophy was rigorous- something he didn’t’ think of Cambridge. <em>shrug</em></p>
<p>and UIUC…</p>
<p>I think what makes a world class university are its embellishments in high social circles and the media.
In reality I don’t believe the definition can be pinned down; I think it is one of those “catch phrases” so widely used in advertising.</p>
<p>As I am really bored right now I will give you my list of world class universities in no order (only sorted by country):</p>
<p>UK:
Oxford
Cambridge
London School of Economics (LSE)
Imperial College London</p>
<p>USA: </p>
<p>Harvard
Brown
Penn
Columbia
Cornell
Yale
Princeton
Darthmouth
Stanford
MIT
Cal Tech
UC Berkley
John Hopkins
University of Chicago</p>
<p>Switzerland:</p>
<p>ETH Zurich</p>
<p>India:</p>
<p>Indian Institute of Technology</p>
<p>Japan:</p>
<p>University of Tokyo</p>
<p>If I was US News these would be my second tier of World class unis:</p>
<p>Duke
Emory
Rice
Northwestern
UCLA
UCSD
University of Michigan
Georgetown
Notre Dame
University of Toronto
Mcgill University
University College London
University of Edinburgh
Trinity College Dublin
University of Melbourne
University of Beijing
Sciences Pol</p>
<p>Arjun Shankar Prakash, you gotta be kidding me: IIT is the best for science/engineering in the world? Any Asian countries got top schools with selectivity on par with IIT! Let it be Tokyo U, PKU, THU, Seoul National U, National Taiwan U … whatever you name it. Just because IIT’s the hardest school to get into in India doesn’t qualify it as “world class” university!</p>
<p>IIT has ZERO Nobel Laureates defined by Nobel committee. That says a lot about this school. Even Arizona State’s got ONE!</p>
<p>Source: Nobel Prize Committee [Nobel</a> Laureates and Universities](<a href=“http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/lists/universities.html]Nobel”>http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/lists/universities.html)</p>
<p>On the other hand, Berkeley is truly a “world class” university judging by the number of Nobel laureates. So are Harvard, Princeton, MIT, UChicago, Columbia, Stanford and CalTech.</p>