How would you compare UC Berkely and UCLA?

Question

[in specfic, with regards to the schools' medical program and academics...]

Answer 1

Berkeley calls their medical school "UCSF." There is no medical campus at Berkeley.

In terms of ranking, UC Berkeley is the best public university in the world (suck it, UVA!). UCLA is still elite, but ranked lower than Berkeley (according to most polls, including US News & World Report).

If you want to do pre-med at Berkeley, good luck. It's HIGHLY competitive, but they do graduate a lot of med school matriculants. MCB (molecular cell biology) is the pre-med major. I'd advise other who want to do pre-med to major in something else -- MCB is a BEAST!

If I must say something nice about UCLA, it's that they do have more biology majors (subjects, not students) than Cal.

Still, being at UCLA for undergrad does not increase your chance of getting into UCLA Med. It's just that UCLA and Cal are both excellent institutions, so they have higher med school matriculation rates than many other (lesser) colleges.

But in terms of campus life, I checked out both places. I like UCLA's campus, but I hated Westwood because it's such a snooty place. I'm geeky, not much for fashion, so I really didn't fit in at UCLA at all. Berkeley is great if you like to step out of the mainstream for a little while. It's grimier, but you will experience a whole lot more than you would stuck in a bubble in west LA.

As for other academics, you can't argue against the quality you'd get at Cal. Several Nobel laureates are on faculty. The university awards them by giving them prime parking spaces on campus (marked with blue signs that say "Reserved for NL"). The math department has a few Fields medalists. The statistics, chemistry and physics departments are all legendary. We have at least 4 elements on the periodic table named for Cal or its professors. There are statistical tests and adjustments named for Cal and its professors. And Cal has one of the first atom smashers.

Humanities are good, too. I think Cal offers courses in more languages than almost any other university. Regional and ethnic studies department offerings are the most varied in the US. The English department is highly regarded and ranked. I think UCLA only has the upper hand in subjects like FILM (duh!) and medieval studies.

Answer 2

In academia, you compare the accomplishments of the professors. The university with the more accomplished and world renown professors, the better that university is. It doesn't matter if the professors are good teachers. All that counts is the papers they have published. As far as those two top level universities, UC Berkely gets the edge as a better university. UC Berkley has been a high rated university for the last 40 years, and some education scholars place it in the top 10 Universities in the USA. Side by side with the Ivies and Stanford. Yet, as you mentioned you have to look at each specific department if you want to get a clearer picture in your research.

Answer 3

You seem very well off. UCLA is a little bit easier to get into than UCB but you seem good for both. I would consider you also apply to maybe even Stanford? Your PSAT scores are really good, but just try as hard as you can on the actual thing. Your GPA's are pretty good, not the best but I see that you took very difficult classes even freshman year, which most people don't! One last thing, try your hardest JUNIOR year. It will be very hard, but It will look really good. (If you do good) haha. Make sure you are in students clubs, and do extra curricular stuff, like sports, or something out of school. GOODLUCK. :)

Answer 4

UCLA definitly has better medical programs, but Berkeley is better in Computer Enginneering, like Electrical Engingeering and Computer Science stuff

Answer 5

I would stick them side by side and see which one was bigger.