academics

Being Undecided is Okay!

April 20, 2023
Holly Q.

For most of my life I have known that I wanted to do something related to books later in life. I’ve almost always either wanted to be an author or work in publishing. So when applying to college, it was only natural for me to put English down for what I wanted to major in.

The summer before I came to college, I spent a lot of time talking to people about going to Berkeley and began doubting my choice of major. English made sense to me and what I wanted to do, but a lot of people seemed judgeful of it as my major. I worked in a small coastal...

Schedule Planning 101

March 21, 2023
Mikayla H.

Schedule planning can seem like a daunting and arduous task, but as a type A person, I love the idea of planning my classes. Here’s some advice from a soon-to-be-graduate on how to get the classes you want and plan out the perfect schedule for you!

Step #1: Make a Plan

Scary, I know. But having some semblance of a plan can really ease your stress when it comes down to actually choosing your classes. You don’t need to have every specific class laid out, and honestly, not even a four-year plan is necessary. Just...

Pre-Law to Pre-Social Work: And You Can Too!

March 9, 2023
Ethan C.

When I came to Cal, I came super *super* passionate about being a lawyer. Like, Pre-Law was all I could think about. I joined all the pre-law clubs, all my friends were pre-law, and I was really excited about going to law school. Then… I saw the costs, the practice LSATs, and got a little scared, in all honesty! However, I persevered and thought maybe, I could still go to law school. I became very interested in family law and education law. I was curious how the two intersected so, I visited the UC Berkeley Career Center (like any other curious undergraduate would)....

All About the Global Management Program (GMP) Experience

February 28, 2023
Jazzy J.

When I first visited UC Berkeley during college application season, I was sure that I would not be attending. Coming from a small high school with less than 60 people in my graduating class, I imagined Berkeley to be too large and lacking the specialized study abroad programs and major I was looking for. All of that changed when my campus tour guide introduced me to the Haas Global Management Program, which she was an inaugural member of. After being accepted into this special program, I am now one of its biggest advocates. It is a truly amazing opportunity that most...

How I Got Into Haas Without Joining a Business Club

March 10, 2022
Mikayla Hwee

Totally not clickbait! No, but seriously. My name is Mikayla, and I am a Business Administration major at the Haas School of Business. After hearing that, most people assume I’ve climbed the ladder through a Haas-sponsored consulting club or competed in finance case competitions for years when, in fact, none of that is true. I’m here to tell you about how I got into the Haas School of Business without joining a single business club.

To begin, I want to touch on a passion of mine: music. (I promise this all ties together in the end). I’ve been inspired by music...

My College Application Journey (Applying to Colleges, Receiving Admission Letters, and Getting Waitlisted at Cal)

April 5, 2022
Josephine Lee

Working at the campanile and meeting many of the newly admitted/waitlisted students, as well as many prospective students looking into colleges and deciding where to apply, I couldn’t help but reminisce back to when I was a high school senior doing the same, and reflecting on how those experiences led to where I currently am today. So that being said, I decided to use this opportunity to share my experiences as a high school junior and senior and how I found the right college for me. I know that not everyone will agree on what type of college they would want to attend, but hopefully, this...

Deciding the School That’s Right for You

April 19, 2022
Emily Conway

Congratulations, high school seniors! You’ve survived 4 years of hard work, a grueling college application season, and the agonizing waiting period before decisions are released in March. Whether you applied to Berkeley or elsewhere, pause and give yourself a pat on the back – taking the first step toward higher education is a huge accomplishment and you deserve to be proud of yourself.
Most people I knew had a decision to make at the end of their college admissions process. Some were lucky enough to have a clear choice. However many schools you’re choosing between, here are a few tips...

Reflecting Upon my Junior Year at Cal

June 6, 2022
Josephine Lee

Along with the passing of May came and went the last month of my junior year at Cal, and the realization that I had only a year before graduation left me nostalgic with so many mixed emotions, and even more self-growth to reflect upon. As someone who spent my first two years of college figuring out who I was and struggling to differentiate that from the ideal college self that I thought I would be, there was a lot that I had to come to accept, the most challenging being that I had to pursue my own career goals to gain my own happiness, even if it diverged from the pre-med student my...

The 20 Unit Spring: A Cautionary Tale

February 22, 2021
Bridget Bernet

I took 20 units this semester. That’s 5 classes total. The minimum amount of units I have to take in L&S is 13. Most students take 16 units. That’s 4 classes.

Before I get into my experiences, I should explain what units mean exactly. The number of units a class is assigned is based off of hours of work needed to put into each class outside of the predetermined lecture and section time. The reason students usually stick to around 16 is because more than that tends to start to be overwhelming and very time consuming, as I now know first hand.

Disclaimer: 20 units is 100%...

Brain Like Berkeley

March 2, 2021
Katia Gibson

If you’ve ever had the privilege to join us on a campus tour or online visit, you may have heard the abbreviated version of some of Berkeley’s best contributions to the world of science. Whether it’s the mention of our 16 elements on the periodic table or winning a Nobel prize for the discovery of CRISPR gene editing, we as campus ambassadors try to highlight our favorite scientific discoveries for our visitors. However, a regular tour doesn’t have enough time to get into all the facts because UC Berkeley has too rich of a history to even brush the surface. Here I try to outline some...