University of California-Berkeley Top Questions

I love Berkeley because it feels like the cliques have disappeared (no more popular group, nerdy group... etc). Although there are certain majors that have certain stereotypes (EECS = nerdy) all students seem to be genuinely interested in each other and the atmosphere seems much less hostile than high school. There are many students whose parents didn't attend college or come from a poor background. Although there are often political events going on in Sproul, many students are not politically aware (including me...).

i'll be honest - i hate how many asians are on campus. i don't have anything against asians, but i wish for every asian person i saw, i also saw a latino or black or native american or SOMETHING person. berkeley has a strong history of diversity and agency, but the current student population does not reflect this past.

it seems like a lot of UC Berkeley students are from Southern California. a lot of students are interested in politics and the welfare of our communities. it's great to see students fighting for good causes and for the preservation of what they really believe in. it's great to see them voicing their opinions and suggestions.

In theory, I don't think any student should feel out of place at Berkeley. I would hesitate to say that a wealthier student, used to the spoils of growing up in a very rich house, might be uncomfortable with the housing accommodations at UC and in the city of Berkeley. I don't think students are as politically active or aware as they used to be.

The student body is too diverse to describe in a few words. Of course, there are the standard hippie-esque liberals you come to Berkeley expecting, but there are also Republicans and very academically-focused people and sorority girls and everyone else. Simply because of the sheer number of students who congregate here, I think anyone can find a crowd of people to fit in with.

Students tend to be politically aware. The most vocal ones are left. The school is mostly asian and white, but there are a few other races.

Berkeley's campus is large enough such that everyone will find some sort of place, but will constantly feel alone. Most Berkeley students come from California; I don't know if that's a good thing. It is so difficult to get into Cal from out of state that it seems out-of-state students are automatically of a higher caliber than California students. If only Berkeley would admit students based on merit and not where their parents pay taxes, I feel like we would have a more intellectually equal campus. Most Cal students are pretty liberal, but I've heard rumors about a strong conservative uprising. I've found that depending on major, students don't really talk about how much they will earn one day. The only exceptions are Haas douchebags.

There are a lot of people. Honestly, most of them are total assholes. Most people at Berkeley were socially awkward losers in high school. A lot of them try to compensate and turn into cool people in college. A lot of them do this by joining frats. This is a failing strategy. In general I would recommend staying away from people in frats because they're generally losers and assholes. A lot of people are anti-social, too. There are a large group of very social cool people though. Give me a call and I'll tell you where the party's at.

There's a little something for everyone at Berkeley, I feel. We're just a big, diverse jumble. We're suspiciously short on black students, given that the Bay area has a pretty high population of African Americans. But we have yellow students aplenty, which makes sense given that the Bay area has a pretty high population of Asian Americans. I should probably note here that I've become more free with my racism since coming to Cal. The liberal bent to humanities and social science classes here can have that effect on people. If they keep telling you that society is whack, and has been since forever, you start to feel like nothing you do really matters in the end. Racism, war, whatever. there will always be hate. And then you start getting loose with your racial slurs and stereotypes...you start to accept war as part of human nature, and maybe even support it because it helps keep our population in check...you start to think that maybe all you can hope to do is look out for your own self interests. Well, if you choose to take the jaded route instead of the blind idealist route. But you have to pick one or the other, or else life'll just start getting to you. The world will just start to get to you. That's the thing I had so much trouble with initially. Berkeley forces you to think long and hard about things, forces you to think really critically about them. If you're not careful, it can get you down. Wow, didn't mean to digress quite so far... Nutshell answer: if you're the sort of person who can get into Berkeley, and who wants to go to Berekeley, you'll find people to hang with.

-I have many male gay friends and I feel like there is a large gay presence here at Berkeley that I hardly even take notice of anymore. I have noticed that I can walk around Berkeley and hear people speaking 10 different languages within the course of a day. I feel like a lot of students here are from middle to upper middle class background, but I do know a very small few that are from poorer homes. -I honestly really cannot think of anyone that would feel out of place here. I think there is something for everyone here and that everyone has a niche. There are people from all backgrounds, nationalities, with all different tastes and personalities that I cannot imagine someone not finding a group they fit into or a class they didn't like. I guess the type of person who wouldn't fit in is someone intolerant of diversity or someone who does not like to study hard! -Wear: Jeans plus a Berkeley/Cal sweatshirt or north face jacket and some Rainbow sandals or running shoes or ugg boots, with a north face backpack, no joke. - Different types of students interact all the time, it is impossible not to. -Four tables: well, i guess that there are the athletics who sort of give me the impression like they feel somewhat superior to us regular students. there are the business majors who all they think about is how they can get into Haas school of business (or recruit you into their club). There are the radicals. And then there is everyone else. really, the first three are minorities though. -Most Berkeley students are from California. -Financial backgrounds most prevalent are middle to upper middle class. -Yes, we are politically aware. Definitely left. I was conservative before I came here and now I consider myself very liberal. -Earn one day: I am a history major, so we mostly talk about how poor we are going to be!