Does it matter what school you graduated from?

[12345a]

I just transferred into UC Berkeley from CC and Eddie is the same as 70% of all those douche bags who think they're better than everyone else because they were fortunate enough to get rejected by Stanford and go to their backup



thank you come again!

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[armorshell]

I don't really have the time or energy right now to read all of the comments posted here, but I did glance through some of it and I want you guys to hear what I have to say.

I went to both a CC and also a 4year prestigious university. I took community college classes in high school and I thought I was the smartest kid ever, because I got top scores in all of my college classes, and I didn't even try that hard. Then after graduating from high school, I went to my prestigious four year university. My first semester there I took a full course load with lots of science classes, because I had done so well in both high school and at CC that I thought it should be a piece of cake for me. Well let me tell you guys that after the first semester I was about to drop out, because I could not understand why my 80% on a physics exam was equivalent to a 2.7 after the curve. Now for some of you a 2.7 might be a good grade, but for someone like me who had done so well in CC(3.9GPA), this was a big FAIL. At a CC I was just competing with myself and I was so proud to do so well, but at my known 4year uni, I was COMPARED to all of the 300 students that wanted to go to medical/dental/pharmacy/or some other health profession. My study habits that helped me get a 4.0 in CC didn't even help me get a 3.0 at my 4year.

I do also agree that students at a no name college will probably have the same advantage as those who take CC credits. Why? because not all of the students in their classes want to get into harvard dental school/medical/etc school. So those students can get a 3.7 on their physics exam with an 80% when someone like me will be getting a 2.6, because the smartest kids from all around the US got into my school and are taking a class with me.

I'm not really trying to convince anyone of anything here, just giving my opinion about this whole issue. Now you guys don't really need to argue about it either! None of us are adcoms and trying to convince each other who is right will only waste precious time. Instead of posting more comments here I suggest we all go do something productive! please...

Not to pry dude, but how did the DAT go for you? I'd expect with that big of a differential that you destroyed it, and your score on that would definitely validate some of what you're saying.

 

[denner]

Not to pry dude, but how did the DAT go for you? I'd expect with that big of a differential that you destroyed it, and your score on that would definitely validate some of what you're saying.

Gen chem-18
ochem-23
bio-19
RC-19
QR-16
PAT-20
TS-20
AA-19

I have a 3.5 GPA with a science of 3.39.

there you go

 

[yuppers]

Even that .2 bump makes no sense to me. Why would an admissions officer need to bother with that when the have the Pigknuckle Arkansas State and Harvard kid's DAT scores right there.

If the PASguy has a 4.0 and 22, and the Harvard guy has a 3.6 and 22, I see no difference between those students. This is not because I'm giving imaginary points to the Harvard guy, but because they've managed to achieve the same outcome, albeit through different pathways.

I almost agree except for the slight difference in the GPA (emphasis on slight). I would agree completely if DAT was the only factor.
The way I see it Ivy league school: prestigious name, big bucks, and heavy competition.
What if a student doesn't care about the name of their school, doesn't have the money (or doesn't want mommy and daddy to dish it out), and doesn't like heavy competition?
I, for one, like to help out fellow classmates and work in teams when appropriate; therefore, I would hate being in the ultra-competitive environment of an Ivy league school.

 

[UCB05]

You really do have to take into consideration the state of the institution the student comes out of. Personally, I graduated high school valedictorian and came out of Berkeley with a 3.3 and consequently a 3.7 in a Boston U grad program. There's more to it than just the numbers, but I don't think I got significantly dumber, then smarter over the 6-year stretch. Sure I was one of the best in high school, but then going into Berkeley meant I now came up against a slew of people who were the best at their high schools too. I ended up with a degree majoring in a subject shared by the gamut of pre-health profession matriculants and future bio-chemists/engineers, lab techs, and PhD's. Is it fair to say I am inferior to a 3.7 student coming out of a smaller university? No, but I absolutely agree that is why standardized tests like the MCAT and DAT exist - simply comparing the GPA out of college does not adequately indicate who has a better mastery of the material.

The debate between a small school and prestigious school can't be so generalized anyway. What makes a school great? A larger school might have greater budget with which to attract better academic and research professors. That's not to say a smaller school can't have great faculty. A more prestigious school might foster a more competitive environment and attract "smarter" students. That's not to say a smaller school can't also have smart students. I can't say that the fact that you go to x prestigious school instead of y small state school means you get a .2-.5 gpa boost in front of adcoms, but they must make the difference a consideration. Conversely, it is unfair to say a 4.0 student at y small state school is less competent than a 3.6 student from x prestigious school. Again, the fact that the DAT exists is a testament to the fact that adcoms understand there is a difference between small schools and large, prestigious schools, and even between different prestigious schools (word on the street is that even Harvard undergrad has some grade inflation, regardless of the nature of student ability). Standardized tests let applicants from all different backgrounds and educational environments to play on the same field for a moment.

By no means am I making any excuses for myself. I believe I got a great education in the UC system, and I'm never going to complain about how I did, and despite what may be a low GPA, I know that number correlates with an education that will carry me through whatever. Any committee/employer who ignores this and tunnel-visions on the number misses out on an opportunity, not me. When I was looking for a lab to work in at Boston, I was nervous about my lack of prior research experience, but my future supervisor looked at my CV and said something along the lines of "wow, you went to Berkeley. That's already great"

Sweeping generalizations aside, in response to 12345a, noone from Cal ever wants to go to Stanfurd.

 

[sajjy]

I almost agree except for the slight difference in the GPA (emphasis on slight). I would agree completely if DAT was the only factor.
The way I see it Ivy league school: prestigious name, big bucks, and heavy competition.
What if a student doesn't care about the name of their school, doesn't have the money (or doesn't want mommy and daddy to dish it out), and doesn't like heavy competition?
I, for one, like to help out fellow classmates and work in teams when appropriate; therefore, I would hate being in the ultra-competitive environment of an Ivy league school.

Surprise surprise- I have yet to find the competition in my class here at Harvard.

 

[armorshell]

Surprise surprise- I have yet to find the competition in my class here at Harvard.

No, no, no, that would make this whole imaginary discussion break down. The fact that you're a Harvard student makes no difference, because you simply must be wrong.

 

[sajjy]

No, no, no, that would make this whole imaginary discussion break down. The fact that you're a Harvard student makes no difference, because you simply must be wrong.

...Oh god, your post cracked me up.

 

[UCB05]

No, no, no, that would make this whole imaginary discussion break down. The fact that you're a Harvard student makes no difference, because you simply must be wrong.

Really, it makes me wonder: what does it matter what the answer is? What difference will it make to any of us ds hopefuls? Most should be 3rd/4th years and GPA is pretty much set (and obviously, choice of school, too). Does some epiphany from this thread change our application? Is anyone really going to read this and go "hey, I need to try harder and raise my grade" or "hm, I can screw around my last year and/or not take my DAT seriously cuz I have a little boost in my weighted GPA." The former should be a given and the latter is just plain unbefitting a health professional. The only people this discussion might help are high school seniors deciding on undergrad institutions.

 

[Atu14]

Really, it makes me wonder: what does it matter what the answer is? What difference will it make to any of us ds hopefuls? Most should be 3rd/4th years and GPA is pretty much set (and obviously, choice of school, too). Does some epiphany from this thread change our application? Is anyone really going to read this and go "hey, I need to try harder and raise my grade" or "hm, I can screw around my last year and/or not take my DAT seriously cuz I have a little boost in my weighted GPA." The former should be a given and the latter is just plain unbefitting a health professional. The only people this discussion might help are high school seniors deciding on undergrad institutions.

It might feed the ego of Berkley kids. LOL

 

[UCB05]

It might feed the ego of Berkley kids. LOL

Hey now -_-

 

[yuppers]

Surprise surprise- I have yet to find the competition in my class here at Harvard.

Harvard may be an exception because of the P/F. But seriously you can't tell me there is no competition. I bet the first semester the freshmen were flexing their egos by proclaiming their SATs and whatnot.

 

[yuppers]

The fact that you're a Harvard student makes no difference, because you simply must be wrong.

I never said that it doesn't make a difference.
I feel as if you and sajjy are just overlooking that fact that not all HSers can just pick up things and go to an ivy league school (even if they have all the stats.) There are many factors that weigh in on the undergrad you attend and I think adcoms understand that.
BTW, you guys remind me of...

"I went to Cornell, you ever heard of it?"....

 

[sajjy]

I never said that it doesn't make a difference.
I feel as if you and sajjy are just overlooking that fact that not all HSers can just pick up things and go to an ivy league school (even if they have all the stats.) There are many factors that weigh in on the undergrad you attend and I think adcoms understand that.
BTW, you guys remind me of...

"I went to Cornell, you ever heard of it?"....

 

[armorshell]

I never said that it doesn't make a difference.
I feel as if you and sajjy are just overlooking that fact that not all HSers can just pick up things and go to an ivy league school (even if they have all the stats.) There are many factors that weigh in on the undergrad you attend and I think adcoms understand that.
BTW, you guys remind me of...

"I went to Cornell, you ever heard of it?"....

Wait, I don't really think you understand where my stance is on this issue. Read a few of my previous posts in this thread. I'm pretty much on the absolute opposite end of the spectrum of where you think I am.

Love the Andy (Drew) reference though. In my mind whenever I get into one of these threads, that's exactly what pops into my head.

 

[urghurgh]

SHOW me PROOF that the courseload in my community college is worse than the courseload at your small college. Is your physics class at your small college "harder" than the one at my college? how do you know this. is your education "better' becuase you paid for it at your small college while i paid for it at my community college, even if we learn the same thing. Isn't learning that r=d/t at your small college mean the same thing as at my college?

I worked just as hard as you did to get my degree, I put in just as much effort to get my 4.0 as you could at your college. What makes your college that much harder than mine? How do you make such an assertion that your small colleg is better than my community college if I worked just as hard as you did?

If I wanted to, I could have gotten a 4.0 at harvard, instead i went to a community college. I had to learn just as much things as you did, work just as hard as you did. Nothing was handed to me.


How is a 4.0 in PHY101 at a small college = to a 4.0 in PHY101 at Harvard, while a 4.0 in PHY101 at a small college NOT equal to a 4.0 in PHY101 at a community college? Theyre the same subject. You learn the same stuff. Physics is Physics.You jsut cant admit that people at community colleges are as smart as people at small colleges. You are hypocritical.
I'm done with this arguement.

Oh please... If money was the issue why you didn't go to Harvard, dental school sure as hell aint for you.

 

[sajjy]

Oh please... If money was the issue why you didn't go to Harvard, dental school sure as hell aint for you.

 

[DLC9647]

Quick comment on the bias' theme....I'm a biased against my own background

I went to a top private university and I feel it doesn't matter all that much even though I want it to....and it cost a friggin fortune

Top Schools get a very slight consideration....but only after the initial cut. Dental schools don't have time to reason and compare school A vs school B vs School X etc.....for thousands of applicants...Even if they did...what would they base it on? What some whiners on SDN think? In the end our "prestigious" school don't mean as much as we'd like....I know, I'm sorry too....bottom line, if anyone think they could have got a 4.0 at their "state school" but instead got a 3.0 at at an Ivy League.....well, should have gone to your state school smarty pants.....maybe I should have too......I used to feel the same way about "prestige"....then I taught at a state school and found there are many brilliant students there for many different reasons......and professional schools know not to bias them out......by the way, some of those brilliant students started at community college......for many different reasons.....this will really infuriate the snobbies...ha....again, I'm reformed snob. Our prestigious schools don't make us any better than anyone state schooler, small school, CC, or any other background....

 

[doc3232]

Quick comment on the bias' theme....I'm a biased against my own background

I went to a top private university and I feel it doesn't matter all that much even though I want it to....and it cost a friggin fortune

Top Schools get a very slight consideration....but only after the initial cut. Dental schools don't have time to reason and compare school A vs school B vs School X etc.....for thousands of applicants...Even if they did...what would they base it on? What some whiners on SDN think? In the end our "prestigious" school don't mean as much as we'd like....I know, I'm sorry too....bottom line, if anyone think they could have got a 4.0 at their "state school" but instead got a 3.0 at at an Ivy League.....well, should have gone to your state school smarty pants.....maybe I should have too......I used to feel the same way about "prestige"....then I taught at a state school and found there are many brilliant students there for many different reasons......and professional schools know not to bias them out......by the way, some of those brilliant students started at community college......for many different reasons.....this will really infuriate the snobbies...ha....again, I'm reformed snob. Our prestigious schools don't make us any better than anyone state schooler, small school, CC, or any other background....

I did claim that there will be bias. But there are always exceptions. For every one of you who argues against what benefits himself/herself, there are 50 others who are affected by bias.

 

[yuppers]

Wait, I don't really think you understand where my stance is on this issue. Read a few of my previous posts in this thread. I'm pretty much on the absolute opposite end of the spectrum of where you think I am.

My bad, there was so much flaming going on there that I just skimmed through the posts. I guess I was just responding to your sarcasm in the last post.

 

[yuppers]

Oh please... If money was the issue why you didn't go to Harvard, dental school sure as hell aint for you.

Not true... there are thousands of undergrads to attend with varying cost that all give you a similar education (excluding CCs), but dental schools is a different story. Yes, you will get a similar education at all of them, but you're going to have to dish out massive bucks no matter what DS you go to.

 

[mueladeljuicio]

everyone just calm down! its not like our opinions matter anyway. at the end of the day its the adcom committee's opinion, not ours!

 

[yuppers]

everyone just calm down! its not like our opinions matter anyway. at the end of the day its the adcom committee's opinion, not ours!

I agree this is a futile argument, but we are just discussing what we think.

 

[DLC9647]

I have a question.....because this post cracks me up. I don't know why I get involved.

Let's say there's some wiggle room given to the top 5% of prestigious schools...Ivy Leagues, Stanford, MIT, etc....that's fine in my opinion...but how would an adcom differentiate and compare the other 95% of schools? And do they have time to do that?

I think school name doesn't matter for the initial cut...all numbers. I think it matters a bit in an interview when the interviewers glance at your info. I also have a theory that recommendation letters, etc....make zero difference...everybody has good ones....different post so I'll stick with the senseless subject at hand.

 

[UIC]

If you had two kids, one who got a 4.0 from a small college in the middle of nowhere, and a kid who got a 3.7 from stanford, which one would u say would have the better chance of becoming a top 10% student in his class and scoring a 91+ on the board?? Sure they may both be just as smart, but on average, the kid from stanford will be much more prepared for the rigors and competitiveness of dental schoool, especially among those students who are fighting for the few spots available to ortho.


Sure, taking shortcuts in college and picking the "easy" route might get you into dental school much easier, but if you're planning on specializing, it will only hurt you in the long run when you're competing against kids who worked their butt off in ivy schools and already learned stuff you've never even covered. When your success if based on a generous curve bcause of the lack of intelligence of others, get ready for a real shock when everyone else is as smart if not much smarter than you. Now, if all you want to do is become a DDS, then yes, the smartest choice you will ever make is to attend the easiest 4 year accredited college you can find.

I guarantee you, if there are any statistics available detailing which undergrad current ortho residents went to, probably 9 out of every 10, would be from top 100 universities.

Now what if the guy that got 3.7 in stanford got a low DAT but the guy with the 4.0 GPA got a high DAT? Its all about the person and not the school he gets into.

 

[Eddie17]

I just transferred into UC Berkeley from CC and Eddie is the same as 70% of all those douche bags who think they're better than everyone else because they were fortunate enough to get rejected by Stanford and go to their backup



thank you come again!

I never planned on going to Stanford you idiot, never applied...Cal was the school I wanted to go to...Cal will always be something I'm proud of...I love that school...probably the 4 greatest years of my life...but I guess you'll only be able to experience 2 years due to your lack of performance in high school, and now coming out of a CC...welcome to the big boys league!

 

[ucla2134]

I never planned on going to Stanford you idiot, never applied...Cal was the school I wanted to go to...Cal will always be something I'm proud of...I love that school...probably the 4 greatest years of my life...but I guess you'll only be able to experience 2 years due to your lack of performance in high school, and now coming out of a CC...welcome to the big boys league!

Is Cal that tough?? 4 year of undergrad, you made it sound like 4 year of rocket science

 

[yeodent]

Just thought I'd add that I went to the same undergrad school this guy went to (in real life)!

 

[sajjy]

Is Cal that tough?? 4 year of undergrad, you made it sound like 4 year of rocket science

He hasn't tasted the life of dental school yet...LOL

 

[Vicviper]

He hasn't tasted the life of dental school yet...LOL

Haha, yeah, it definitely gets turned up to 11 once you start DS, this first semester seems to be as difficult as much of my undergrad combined. Haha, it's been like the longest month ever! And I've still got another midterm tomorrow, boo for histology.

 

[alanan84]

I never planned on going to Stanford you idiot, never applied...Cal was the school I wanted to go to...Cal will always be something I'm proud of...I love that school...probably the 4 greatest years of my life...but I guess you'll only be able to experience 2 years due to your lack of performance in high school, and now coming out of a CC...welcome to the big boys league!

Your response only confirmed 12345a's post to be true.

 

[DLC9647]

I'm from the East Coast....aren't Cal and UCLA just state schools as well? What gave these characters such high opinions of themselves?

Sorry, I couldn't resist...........

 

[achilles2]

well I'm sure if you graduated from a top tier school the difference in your abilities would be demonstrated with a super elite DAT score...

Of course if you graduated from a top tier school and bombed the DAT that would also speak volumes about your abilities...no pressure

 

[armorshell]

Hmm, I wonder where americanpieg went?

 

[DLC9647]

I keep coming back to this thread for shear entertainment....it is so funny and classic......I may start compiling a list of quotes for laughs. everyone on it is a little bit right and a little bit wrong..but all entertaining

Here's one of my favorite parts:....Eddie (a pre-dental student) telling Navy (an actual dental student) that he would get eaten alive at Berkely....classic.

If Berkeley's grading policy sucks so bad, why would anyone go there? What a terrible system...How does this system equate to a better education? Because this I know...the rest of the world doesn't think as highly of Berkely as you guys do.....I'm not saying Cal isn't a great school I'm sure it is....but it's one of many great schools out there and the rest of them don't seem to have such a terrible grading policy.

The only person this thread could benefit is a high school kid....If I were a high school kid, I would take one point: DON'T GO TO BERKELY....you'll just be an angry upperclassman trying to get into professional school and then convince the world the berkely's harder than everywhere else........good luck selling that story

 

[DLC9647]

Second favorite part......I think it was Eddie again saying that if you want to know what a great school Cal-Berkeley is "Check Wikipedia".........ahhhh, this one is classic...."Check wikipedia"....awesome argument. (sorry Eddie if it wasn't you...I lost track of names)

 

[sajjy]

Hmm, I wonder where americanpieg went?

May be he is finally "DONE"....lol

 

[NumbaOneStunna]

Lol @ the person wondering what separates Berkeley from the rest of the public schools. Its up there with the best schools in the world (moreso at the grad lvl than at the undergrad).

 

[cyrano]

.

 

[Berkeley83]

Sure it matters which schools you come from. Anyone who says/thinks the competition is irrelevant is in complete denial. Just look at the admissions stats for undergrads to get a good feel of where the average is at. The average is very important to determine where in the curve you will fall, so better not find yourself in a room full of 1350+/1600 SAT kids.

I looked at all 5 years on predents (for lack of a bigger,better, accurate source- maybe doc has something?) and queried two sets of data: AA<=19, Sci GPA >=3.8 and AA>=21, Sci GPA <=3.3

Note: I only looked up California for state residence (and blanks) to identify UC students. This does not imply that other schools do not have a similar or an even more skewed distribution or that there were no OOS students at the UC schools (just impossible to locate)

Out of 122 results for Sci GPA >=3.8 and AA <=19, I found: 1-UCR (3.9/19), 1-UCI (3.83/19), 1-UCLA (3.84/19), 1-UCSD (3.8/18). This represents 3.3% of the "high GPA/ low DAT" group.

Out of 270 results for SciGPA<=3.3 and AA >=21, I found:: 2-UCR (3.07/22 average), 4-UCSB (3.25/21.5 average), 14-UCLA (3.07/21.43 average), 7-UCD (3.02/21.86 average), 9-UCB (2.99/ 22.44 average), 7-UCI (3.05/22.14 average), 3-UCSD (2.77/ 22 average). This represents 17% of the entire "low GPA/ high DAT" group.

A cursory look into Sci GPA<=3.3 and AA <=18 ("low GPA/ low DAT") group shows only 2 UCB entries out of 300: an Environmental Earth Studies major(2.99/17) and a Anthropology major (3.08/17). There were more from the other UC schools in this group as well.

I may have missed a few in there but not enough to change the averages by much. There was a single CSUs, SDSU, Cal Poly SLO, UOP here and there. Anyone interested in finding their school's representation in these two groups, be my guest.

 

[Tommy43087]

Sure it matters which schools you come from. Anyone who says/thinks the competition is irrelevant is in complete denial. Just look at the admissions stats for undergrads to get a good feel of where the average is at. The average is very important to determine where in the curve you will fall, so better not find yourself in a room full of 1350+/1600 SAT kids.

I looked at all 5 years on predents (for lack of a bigger,better, accurate source- maybe doc has something?) and queried two sets of data: AA<=19, Sci GPA >=3.8 and AA>=21, Sci GPA <=3.3

Note: I only looked up California for state residence (and blanks) to identify UC students. This does not imply that other schools do not have a similar or an even more skewed distribution or that there were no OOS students at the UC schools (just impossible to locate)

Out of 122 results for Sci GPA >=3.8 and AA <=19, I found: 1-UCR (3.9/19), 1-UCI (3.83/19), 1-UCLA (3.84/19), 1-UCSD (3.8/18). This represents 3.3% of the "high GPA/ low DAT" group.

Out of 270 results for SciGPA<=3.3 and AA >=21, I found:: 2-UCR (3.07/22 average), 4-UCSB (3.25/21.5 average), 14-UCLA (3.07/21.43 average), 7-UCD (3.02/21.86 average), 9-UCB (2.99/ 22.44 average), 7-UCI (3.05/22.14 average), 3-UCSD (2.77/ 22 average). This represents 17% of the entire "low GPA/ high DAT" group.

A cursory look into Sci GPA<=3.3 and AA <=18 ("low GPA/ low DAT") group shows only 2 UCB entries out of 300: an Environmental Earth Studies major(2.99/17) and a Anthropology major (3.08/17). There were more from the other UC schools in this group as well.

I may have missed a few in there but not enough to change the averages by much. There was a single CSUs, SDSU, Cal Poly SLO, UOP here and there. Anyone interested in finding their school's representation in these two groups, be my guest.

you have too much time on your hands, go study or sumthin......and this thread is pointless its funny how some of you are getting so worked up.

 

[bigjohnnywad]

ALL of you students are spending your parents hard earned money and slumping your way through school ond will have $100,000 + debts to pay back..your salary will be MUCH lower now with the socialized medicine LOL LOL LOL Should have picked a different career LOL LOL LOL

 

[alanan84]

Sure it matters which schools you come from. Anyone who says/thinks the competition is irrelevant is in complete denial.

Not meaning to speak for anyone else here but I think the general consensus in response to the OP was that your undergrad institution does factor in, just probably not as much as you'd like to think. That's what the DAT is for.

And then the Berkeley people started to get really defensive.

 

[DLC9647]

Lol @ the person wondering what separates Berkeley from the rest of the public schools. Its up there with the best schools in the world (moreso at the grad lvl than at the undergrad).

I know I saw that on wikipedia....ha ha

I seriously need an email alert for anytime someone from Berkeley contributes to a forum......they are hysterically funny.

Seriously, the rest of the world aint drinking the Cal Kool Aid...you should realize that before leaving the Berkeley bubble. Just another really good school....there are many. You're not getting any special treatment outside of Berkeley....guaranteed. But keep updating, you guys are thoroughly entertaining.......

 

[Berkeley83]

Not meaning to speak for anyone else here but I think the general consensus in response to the OP was that your undergrad institution does factor in, just probably not as much as you'd like to think. That's what the DAT is for.

And then the Berkeley people started to get really defensive.

Only in response to the post calling 70% of Berkeley students "douche-bags" and Stanford rejects. OP has a very valid point as the numbers above prove.

 

[Berkeley83]

I know I saw that on wikipedia....ha ha

I seriously need an email alert for anytime someone from Berkeley contributes to a forum......they are hysterically funny.

Seriously, the rest of the world aint drinking the Cal Kool Aid...you should realize that before leaving the Berkeley bubble. Just another really good school....there are many. You're not getting any special treatment outside of Berkeley....guaranteed. But keep updating, you guys are thoroughly entertaining.......

Never got any special treatment in Berkeley. No Cal Kool Aid here, just look at the numbers above. I'm sure the adcoms have this info already. Where did you earn your 3.2? Keep on laughing.

 

[NumbaOneStunna]

I know I saw that on wikipedia....ha ha

I seriously need an email alert for anytime someone from Berkeley contributes to a forum......they are hysterically funny.

Seriously, the rest of the world aint drinking the Cal Kool Aid...you should realize that before leaving the Berkeley bubble. Just another really good school....there are many. You're not getting any special treatment outside of Berkeley....guaranteed. But keep updating, you guys are thoroughly entertaining.......

Except I never went to Berkeley and have no affliation with it whatsoever. As far as science goes (which is what I know best), Berkeley is straight up dominant in Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Engineering at the grad level. It's undergrad population is not too shabby either. Last time I checked they had the best numbers hands down for a public school. The school is in a class of its own as far as public schools are concerned, others are good too but Berkeley's influence in science can only be compared to a few schools overall and almost no other public schools.

Domination in a nutshell. Also I'm willing to bet that the reason why people in this thread are so defensive and unwilling to admit the HUGE differences in how smart student bodies are because:
a) They have nothing to compare it against (As someone who has taken legit classes at 4 different colleges- i have seen the differences first hand)
b) They wont because to do so would belittle their gpa

 

[Eddie17]

To follow-up on NumbaOneStunna's post, check out these links for more achievements:

http://berkeley.edu/about/hist/timeline.shtml

http://berkeley.edu/about/rank.shtml

"In 2009, U.S. News & World Report ranked Berkeley as the top public university among "National Universities" in the United States.
According to the National Research Council, 35 of 36 Berkeley graduate programs rank in the top 10 in their respective fields. Berkeley is the only university in the nation to achieve top 5 rankings for all of its PhD programs in those disciplines covered by the US News and World Report graduate school survey.
Berkeley's undergraduate program is ranked 21st among National Universities by U.S. News & World Report and 3rd (1st in 2009) by The Washington Monthly.U.S. News ranked the undergraduate programs in engineering and business second in the nation .Berkeley ranks 9th among universities that have produced the largest number of living billionaires.
The Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Academic Ranking of World Universities ranked Berkeley third in 2008.In the 2006 international edition of Newsweek, Berkeley was the fifth-ranked global university,and the Center for Measuring University Performance placed Berkeley seventh among national research universities."

"62 Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the university as faculty, researchers, or alumni."

"Hans Albert, the first son of Albert Einstein, worked in Berkeley as professor for hydraulics at the University of California from 1947 to 1971. He gained international fame through his work."

Not saying it's the best school ever, but it's pretty damn good, and it's unfortunate 12345a doesn't acknowledge that.

 

[DLC9647]

Cal is a damn good school, but seriously you guys are killing me...I feel like it's bordering on you're all just kidding around

it keeps getting better....One guy quotes wikipedia, another finds quotes on what a great school Cal is, and another one.....drum roll...and this is my favorite...lists a group of elements discovered there....I can't take it anymore.....I couldn't make this stuff up....you guys are the best! I have got to get up to Berkeley to see this circus act for myself....

 

[DLC9647]

"Berkeley is straight up dominant in Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Engineering at the grad level."

I can't take it anymore, I'm laughing so hard....this is the dorkiest trash talking I've ever heard.....I can't believe you actually said this....thank you.

Numbaonestunna = Numba One Dork