I applied to Cal because it was easy. There was a box on the (paper) application, and I checked it. After looking at all the options each school I applied to had to offer, Berkeley became my top choice for a number of reasons. I heard that Berkeley was really prestigious--sounded good to me. I knew nothing about academia, except that I was going to jump into it and come out prepared to save the world. Cal has a whole college that prepares people to save the world through the environment. That really impressed me. I had visited Cal through a UC outreach program for high school students. I was impressed by the Campanile, the view of the Bay, the pedistrians and bicyclists everywhere instead of driving around in cars like drones, the green open space on campus, and most of all: the school spirit. GO BEARS!

To all you new Cal students, welcome. Now I'm interested in hearing your stories. Send me an e-mail at pal@berkeley.edu.