University of California - Berkeley Summary

As stated before, I'm an English major. I've never had an internship but I have held quite a few on-campus jobs. The reason why I've never had an internship is because they are usually unpaid - I've paid for my schooling and my cost of living on my own (with help from financial aid) so spending time on an intership that doesn't pay was out of the question.

Financial aid (thankfully) gave me a workstudy award, which pretty much means you are placed in an exclusive club that employers pick from. If you have workstudy, it means that the government has agreed to pay half of your salary...thus endearing you to the hearts of most on-campus employers as a very cheap, high quality employee. So far, I've had a lot of luck with workstudy. I've had 4 really good jobs that gave me good experience, good pay, and good networking opportunities. In fact, my current job is so great that my current boss has decided to help me find a paid internship. Yes, folks, my boss is so kind that she has decided to find me a rare gem - a paid internship.

Moral of the story? If you can't get an intership due to lack of experience, lack of luck, lack of time, or because you need to pay the bills try and get an on-campus job!

Here's the thing. I came in as a transfer student, so I knew exactly what I wanted to major in. Therefore, I can't (unfortunately) comment on the difficulties and challenges of getting into my program.

I can, however, comment on the process of general admission and how my experience with my major has been so far.

Genaral admission: I'm not sure what kind of people read these things, but I'll assume there's a lesser amount of transfer students because that seems to be the general consensus. For those of you who want to go to university for 4 years there are some upsides and downsides. Upside: a) you get to be more involved in your campus. Usually the first year at university is an adjustment period...thus you don't involve yourself to heavily in campus activities because you're just trying to figure out how to survive. So, if you go to university for 4 years instead of 2 you have more opportunity and time to do that. b) You have more time and opportunity to network. CAL is a great place to meet and connect with amazing people. Having 4 years affords you the opportunity to establish strong bonds with good professors (who will hopefully give you shiny letters of recommendations) and to connect with high up people (via jobs or inernships). Downside: a) it costs a hell of a lot more. I went to community college first, and financially I'm glad I did. I barely scraped by in the 2 years I've been at CAL...and it looks like it is only going to get worse. b) Jobs and maturity. I've discovered that employers love transfer students. We are often perceived (and often rightly so) as mature, responsible, and dependable. People see transfer students as people who really want it, as go-getters, and self-reliant individuals. So, if you know that you'll want or need to have a job being a transfer student doesn't hurt. c) Maturity and appreciation. The older I get, the more I appreciate my education. I don't think I would have been able to get as much out of CAL or appreciated it as much if I had gone to university right away. Having to work for it at my community college made coming here so much sweeter and rewarding.

The actual application (aka what you wanted to read about from the beginning): All I can say is essay, essay, essay. I know it sucks to hear for those of you who hate to write, but the essay is extremely important. Of course, I can't say I actually know how they decide on admissions. But I can say that I had an average application (3.7 GPA, 3-4 extra curriculars, etc) and that I was completely surprised when I got in. However, I spent a lot of time on my essay. In my opinion, the essay says so much more about you than the rest of your application. In your essay you can show how you are different from the other applicants - share a personal story, triumph, or hardship. To show passion is to show you're worth having. Also on a more practical note, writing a good essay shows you can think logically, think out of the box, make connections, communicate eloquently, and be precise.

Finally, my major: I'm an English major. I declared as soon as I got in to CAL and have never looked back. The English department here is really good. The professors are brilliant and the topics are interesting. However, there are a few things you have to adjust to in order to really get the most out of your time. First, go, go ,go to office hours. Often, classes are so big that professors have 1-3 GSIs (grad student instructors). While these GSIs are themselves usually pretty brilliant, they are themselves learning to teach so they don't necessarily always know what's going on. Going to office hours will help you understand what's required of you and at the very least show them that you are trying. Second, you won't read everything. English classes here are (with no surprise) extremely reading heavy. When I first got here I was in a panic trying to read every single thing assigned. I finally came to realize that sometimes it just isn't possible. The best thing to do is go to class every day and read as much as you can - don't beat yourself up if you missed a few...you can be sure that you aren't the only one. And third, engage. Most English classes have a disussion section. For me, speaking up about an intellectual topic in front of 20-30 people who are supposedly some of the top brains in the country will make me quake in my boots. The good thing is, most people in the discussion section will feel exactly the same. Discussion is where the real learning takes place - talking with others stokes the intellectual fire. So break the ice and get ready to talk if you want to feel like you're really growing.

Every place has it's quirks. The best thing about the student population at Berkeley is it's diversity. Yes, there are a lot of stereotypes placed on the students of UC Berkeley, but in my short time here I've found that there's a lot more diversity than is usually expected. The reason I gave a B grade is because sometimes it's a little hard to connect with people. Because CAL is such a big school, people tend to break up into little groups. So, you usually have to be really outgoing or willing to join different groups and clubs in order to meet and make friends. As for the particulars pointed out in the question above - CAL is not the place to go for hot guys or girls. People here are average, with a sprinkling of random hot people that are usually taken, not a compatible sexual orientation, or douchebags. Student interests range, but I would have to say there is definitely a heavy number of people interested in politics. Student dress is fairly "hipster". Girls dress in boots, dresses with sweaters, leggins with oversized sweaters, army jackets, etc. Boys dress in boat shoes, pull over sweaters, skinny jeans, etc. Social life is what you make it. Most people drop out of the social scene right around midterm and finals time...but you can usually find a good party any other time. As for relationships - most guys (and perhaps girls?) are shy here so there isn't a lot of action.

Berkeley has plenty of apartments - finding apartments that are for rent is not the problem. There are two main problems with Berkeley apartments; one, pricing. Most students don't have cars, so we like to be within walking distance of campus. Problem is, management companies know this so they charge ridiculous amounts for small living spaces that are placed at a convenient distance from the university. Two, quality. Unless you're willing and able to pay a butt-load of money, most management companies here don't give a crap...and it shows. They're used to working with college students who have never lived on their own before, so the companies are used to getting away with a lot of things like - not making repairs in a timely manner or at all, not keeping common areas clean or nice, etc.

Everyone respects and accepts one another for the most part. There are of course the few exceptional intolerant individuals who have obviously been raised on closed minded ethnocentric ideas. Other than these people everyone else sees each other not as different races, and orientations, but as people who are made up of unique qualities and traits.