Academics

Cal is a winning formula. Here is a school with the education quality that is at the same level of the Ivy leagues, but with nowhere near the ammount of stress, competition, and suicide rates. The cold temperature in the winter here means that students will have less incentive for going out in the 40 degree night weather and study instead, while the lack of snow means that students won't be discouraged from walking to class. People here are alot more open to seeking help, should they not understand something, and the fact that there are dedicated Facebook groups for such matters means that in some cases, students won't even need to go to the dedicated Student Learning Center for a free tutoring session. Cal is by no means a walk in the park however. Students should still maintain an active learing mindset and a can-do attitude for there time here.

I went almost immediately to my major upper division courses and it certainly was tough. I can only really speak to the linguistic department on a very informed basis, but if I were judging there alone, I would say we have the absolute best department. There is a lot of work for even the easiest class--remember that most people are coming in as the top of their class--but you get the hang of it all.

Berkeley academics are pretty rigorous depending on you major and field(s) of study. I would suggest developing a loosely regimented routine for studying and enjoying free time. I say loosely because having such a strict routine isn't always healthy for your academic life either!

Cal is a rigorous university, but it's also big enough that it's hard to make generalizations about the difficulty of the classes, as all of the departments are different. There is a student tutoring center, and it's not hard to find help, especially for the bigger and more difficult classes.