University of California-Berkeley Top Questions

The thing I consider worst about the school I am attending is its size. Although it is a beautiful school and it attempts to accomodate for its students, the classes tend to be too compacted. Withing your freshman year you may find yourself in classes with firve-hundred students. I feel like this takes away from the learning because you can not interact with the professor and other students as well as in a small classroom setting.

It can be dangerous. We are perceived as a place full of hippies and druggies. I've seen some odd people around, shouting or doing strange things, and students often warn each other in our Facebook group about predators they encounter. We also have a whole park where homeless people live, and one of my classmates was robbed near there. One of my friends visited me and was terrified just walking around. This place isn't for delicate people, but it's manageable.

Probably the preasure how time-consuming the work and studying is.

The worst thing about my school is the cost of attendance. I come from a low income family living in a single parent household, so it is very challenging for me to afford to pay 30,000 a year for my schooling. I have talked to my peers, and most of them come from a similar background as mine, or middle class, and they also agree that the cost of attendence is expensive. As a low income student in order to attend such a prestigious school I need finacial aid, work study, and loans.

lack of free tutoring

It is relatively impersonal and very decentralized.

The cost of living and the financial aid process. The cost of living on campus per month was approximatlely $700 per person and this rate did not include food. When food was added to the cost I paid close to $1000 at least for my undergraduate education. This added to my student debt of over $25,000. In addition, the financial aid process was stressful. I felt like financial aid advisors were ineffiecient in providing resources for students funds and instead directed me towards loans and financial packages that increased my debt.

Though there are many good aspects of Berkeley, it can be hard for a student who commutes and works while attending school. They are known to purposley make it difficult for students who do, like me. I cannot afford to live in the area so I commute about an hour and a half each way and I work to support myself, while going full time and participating in an unpaid Research project with one of the faculty. It is hard to find classes at a reasonable hour and only go 2-3 days a week.

The housing is extremely expensive. You can pick from the Units, Clark Kerr, Bowles (all-male), Stern (all-female), or Foothill. Since I'm an bioengineering major, I chose Foothill - it's closest to all the buildings affiliated with engineering. The Units are the cheapest option available. Clark Kerr probably has the best living accomodations. Singles are reserved for the disabled and upperclassmen. I'd recommend going off-campus after freshman year if you can find someone to split rent with.

The only bad thing about my school is that there is too much to do! Students can get overinvolved and have time-management issues if they aren't careful!