Evan Schwartz

Review of UC Berkeley

Berkeley is a difficult place. There is undeniably...

Berkeley is a difficult place. There is undeniably an impersonal, cut-throat atmosphere in most classes, particularly the larger ones (so, again, most of them). Students are primarily preoccupied with their phones and laptops rather than with their peers and lecturers. Additionally, clubs are competitive to gain entrance into, so simply putting yourself "out there" isn't a guarantee of social acceptance. In humanities courses, B-grades are mostly manageable, whereas A's typically take effort; in STEM, it's probably more difficult to maintain a reasonable GPA. With all that said, having taken a handful of interesting courses so far, I do feel mentally stimulated here, and there are definitely lots of things to do, beyond the standard drinking/partying college culture (hiking, sailing, kayaking; going out to eat; going to the movies; going to the city; etc.). However, it is finding the people here to do them with, and the time to do them, that are the limiting factors.