University: University of California Berkeley
City: Berkeley
Country: United States
Continent: North America
Field of study: Business Administration, Law
Study type: Summer Sessions
Early on I was looking for a way to study in the USA. My search led me to MicroEdu’s website, after which I decided to do a summer session at UC Berkeley. The good reputation of the university and the proximity to the cosmopolitan city of San Francisco with its beautiful Bay Area were, in addition to the large selection of courses, the decisive criteria for my decision. Visit mcat-test-centers.com to get information about University of Technology, Sydney.
I. Studying at UC Berkeley
I then decided on 2 courses from session D: “Legal Aspects of Management” and “American Legal Terminology”. These two courses also turned out to be real hits. “Legal Aspects” was held by a San Francisco attorney. Your way of conveying the admittedly very extensive material to us was unique. She really made it that, despite the bright sunshine, people enjoyed going to class and worked through an 800-page book during the 6 weeks without losing interest. This course gave you a great overview of the American legal system with all its peculiarities in relation to companies.
The “Legal Terminology” course was a great success insofar as there was a lot of interactive work in this course. We had lively discussions about a wide variety of legal topics and even played through our own court hearing at the end. The visit to the Oakland Criminal Court, where we watched a “murder trial”, was the highlight of the course, along with a visit to a guest speaker. All in all, after 6 weeks of studying at UC Berkeley, I have to say that I wish the course here in Germany was structured in the same way as there.
The UC Berkeley campus is one of the most beautiful in the United States. When I walked across the campus for the first time, I immediately noticed the beautiful nature on campus in addition to the great old buildings and large libraries. There are countless lawns, trees and streams that invite you to study in the open air.
During my stay I lived in Unit 2 of the Residence Hall. I decided against the I-House on the grounds that the rooms in the Residence Hall should be better and, most importantly, the food options should be significantly better than the I-House. And both were confirmed in retrospect. I had shared my room with an Austrian. Each room was furnished with a bed, a desk and a wardrobe. So everything you need for the 6 weeks. The bathroom took some getting used to at first, with 4 showers, 6 toilets and 4 sinks for the whole floor. But after a short time this was no longer a problem. We could eat by redeeming Meal Points either in Crossroads.
All in all, the only negative thing I can say about the Residence Hall is that there were clearly too many Asians there, which also generally applied to the summer in Berkeley. Not that I don’t like Asians, but unfortunately they always kept to themselves and often treated others a little disrespectfully.
III. Berkeley and surrounding areas
Unfortunately, the city of Berkeley didn’t quite live up to my expectations. I was expecting a pretty little Californian town, but unfortunately that quickly turned out to be a mistake. A surprising number of homeless people live in Berkeley, and below the Residence Hall is the so-called “People Park”, the meeting place and above all sleeping place for most homeless people. There is also really nothing to go out and party in Berkeley. Only the “Blakes” on Telegraph Avenue was often the meeting place for all international students in the evening. In any case, you have to take a look at the famous “Frat parties”. The American Pie films have already prepared us a bit for this and really haven’t exaggerated.;-)
With the BART, a kind of subway, it takes about 25 minutes from downtown Berkeley to San Francisco, definitely the most beautiful city in the world. There is also a bus that goes to San Francisco and is FREE, but unfortunately it takes 45 minutes. In any case, we went to San Francisco every chance we got to enjoy this great city with its attractions like the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, Union Square, etc.
On the weekends, we usually rented a car from Enterprise, which offered special rates for UC Berkeley students. IMPORTANT TIP: The Enterprise Station on Shattuck Avenue (Shattuck with Ashby) is a lot cheaper than the one on Oxford Street. So we drove to Yosemite National Park, Highway 1 to Los Angeles and Las Vegas. These trips made this summer just perfect.
And so I can only advise anyone who is toying with the idea of doing a summer session in the USA to just do it! You have already taken an important step in the right direction by choosing MicroEdu. Overall, this summer was unique and unforgettable. I now feel part of UC Berkeley (which is just called CAL) and I will definitely be returning to the Bay Area because there is nowhere better! GO BEARS!!!
