extracurriculars

Two Left Feet, One Big Leap: Learning Dance and Embracing Failure at Cal

July 22, 2024
Ritika K.

This is a story about a girl who went from sporting a lifelong aversion to dance, to participating in UC Berkeley’s oldest student-run dance organization for over half of her undergraduate career.

One thing about me? I’ve always loved risk aversion. It makes life feel safe, somewhat predictable, and within my control. I’ve mostly lived my life by assessing my personal strengths and playing into them, minimizing the level of risk in every decision I make.

Dance had never been my strength. Choreography rarely stuck in my head. I felt awkward moving my long limbs around and...

What I Read: For School vs For Fun (as an English major)

April 8, 2024
Madison K.

I love to read.

I loved reading when I was growing up, but it all stopped when I got to high school. In high school, reading became more of a chore than anything else really and that just sucked all the fun and joy out of it. Although during the covid years when we were all stuck indoors, I started reading again to pass the time and it reignited my love for it.

When I started college, I was originally a psychology major, but after that first year, I changed my major to English, when I realized psychology wasn’t for me.

So...

My Campus Involvements

October 27, 2023
Jordan S.

The University of California, Berkeley attracts students who follow their passions, participating in many activities that help them reach their goals while also maintaining a sense of fun and community. It is not uncommon for students to be very involved in campus organizations, clubs and activities at Berkeley. In this blog, I’ll go over some of my campus involvements to give a snapshot of the Berkeley experience.

Kaufer Lab

Research is a common endeavor that students focus on at Berkeley. Whether or not a student is...

Literature (from Berkeley English Courses) That Should be on Your “To Be Read” List

October 20, 2023
Holly Q.

As an English major, I read 7-8 books per English class per semester. (I know, it is a lot). Because of this, even as I am only in my third semester, I have read quite a large amount of books here at Berkeley. As a book lover, I love reading for school…But that doesn't mean that I enjoy everything we read in class. Some of the books I have loved, some I have hated, and then there are many in between. There are also a lot of short stories and poems included in the readings for these classes that I have loved (or hated). Today I want to share some of the literature that I have loved...

Let’s Talk About Cal Athletics

March 16, 2023
Jordan S.

Being a large public university, sports are a big part of our college experience. At Berkeley especially, sports bring a big sense of pride as we go by “California” within the athletic sphere, allowing us to represent our great state. Now, I know what you may be thinking, Berkeley is an academics-focused school, their sports are all bad. To that I respond, you could not be more wrong. Berkeley is a member of the Pac-12 Conference, a sports conference for Western schools, which plays in Division I. Our athletics are all top-tier and we play with...

What It's Like to Intern Abroad

March 14, 2023
Mikayla H.

I am an impulsive person. While some of my rash decisions have led to some little regrets, I can safely say that my decision to go abroad was one of the most rewarding experiences in my undergraduate career. In this article, I’ll walk you through my process of internships abroad as well as tips for your own study abroad journey!

When I got to college, I knew that I wanted to, at some point, go abroad. Up to this point in my life, the furthest I’d lived from home was in Berkeley (which isn’t that far from Los Angeles). I wanted a chance to...

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...

Top 5 Places to Sing in Berkeley

April 12, 2022
Mikayla Hwee

Enjoy singing in the shower and want to upgrade your singing experience? One of my favorite pastimes is finding places on campus that are great for singing, whether it be with your favorite a cappella group or just on your own for fun. After some extensive research and surveying, I’ve compiled a list of the top five places to sing on Berkeley’s campus. Go bears and happy music making!

5: Under Sather Gate

Coming in at number 5 is the beautiful Sather Gate. This is every a cappella group’s home once a week, where performances happen for the...

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%...

My Internship Search

March 2, 2021
Kaelyn Schlegel

I feel like my parents ask me at least twice a week what job I’ll be able to get with my major and what my career goals are. Both of my majors are incredibly broad and not something you see in a lot of fields. In a previous blog post I talked about my decision to become a geography major on top of my Society & Environment major. Truthfully, with a lot of things academic wise and career wise, I just don’t know what I want. I’m the type of person who gets excited about literally anything and everything but I also get bored easily. I chose my majors because I wanted something that would...