My son recently graduated from Cal and I attended and regularly visit Stanford, so I have a perspective on the student cultures of both universities.
There are many superficial similarities between Cal and Stanford. The universities are in the San Francisco Bay Area less than an hours drive from one another. Their sprawling campuses are dotted with palm trees, contain interesting architecture and buzz with student activity. Both universities are renowned for their world class engineering and computer science programs taught by Nobel prize winning professors. Big college sports are a significant part of the student experience. And job opportunities are plentiful upon graduation.
But, if you dig deeper, it would be hard to find two universities that are more dissimilar than Cal and Stanford. The differences relate to their missions; Cal as a public California university and Stanford as a private institution. Stanford is a heavy favorite with most incoming freshmen who are lucky enough to be admitted to both universities. Parchment estimates that 89% of those students would choose Stanford. In fact, Cal is sometimes cuttingly referred to as “the Stanford reject school.”
Compare Colleges: Side-by-side college comparisons
Why?
Stanford provides a highly enjoyable student experience. Stanford is the most selective university in the country with an undergraduate acceptance rate of less than 5%. It invests its large endowment (#3) in those few select students. The classes are small with an average of less than 20 students. There is a 4:1 student to professor ratio. The courses have just the right balance of academic rigor without being too challenging. The grading is on the lenient side. For example, I attended a foreign language course where every student in the class received an A. The students themselves are, well, nice. They are encouraged to cooperate with one another since grading isn’t particularly competitive. The idyllic campus is adjacent to Palo Alto, in the heart of the Silicon Valley and one of the most affluent communities in the country. The experience was so good for me that I considered getting my PhD so I didn’t have to leave.
In contrast, the best word I can use to describe the Berkeley student experience is gritty. Berkeley receives over 100,000 applications per year and accepts as many students as possible (approximately 20%) on its state constrained resources. They are particularly focused on accepting California students from middle class and lower income families. The student to professor ratio is 18:1, so classes are large. For example, the popular introductory programming class (CS61A) is taught in a concert hall to 1800 students. Every class is graded on a curve, so students compete head-to-head with one another. It is not unusual for a median test score in a given class to be around 40%, so even the top students may feel like they are failing. Berkeley is located next to Oakland, a diverse community that was economically distressed for many years but is now experiencing a boom. The Berkeley campus itself is a hot bed for social and political activism, much of which is led by non-students. My son sometimes needed to avoid certain parts of campus due to protests or riots.
Why not?
I understand based upon the information above why most students and families would choose Stanford. But, my son said something to me yesterday that I’ll leave with you. He told me he took two courses at Berkeley that changed his life. He then asked if I ever had the same experience. My answer was “no.”
