I got this question a lot. Literally a lot. I was fortunate enough to be accepted to quite a few good colleges. They were all good colleges for pre-med so the choice was rather difficult. So I decided to go with my heart rather than my brain. I visited the colleges that I got accepted to (most of them, not all) and my heart felt different when I visited Cal. The vibe, the environment, the people were different from what I imagined, from other colleges and I liked it. A lot. I knew the pre-med classes will be difficult and the competition is fierce but I like to challenge myself and if I cannot endure Cal, how will I do in med school? Now that I have finished 2 semesters at Cal. I don't regret my decision. There were surely many downs but I learned and got stronger. I did not do as good as I wanted my first semester but I learned. If you are looking to attend Cal as a pre-med, please equip yourself with the mentality to accept and overcome all the obstacles. Cal will expos...
For most freshmen entering Berkeley as pre-meds, Chem 1A (+1AL) is usually the first science class that most people take. This is because Chem 1A is a requirement for other pre-med courses such as Chem 3A or Bio 1A. I took Chem 1A fall 2016 during which the Head-Gordons were teaching. For those of you who aren't yet aware of the Head-Gordons, they are husband and wife that are known to make Chem 1A much harder than it should be. They spent a lot of time on quantum mechanics and went way deeper into this subject than the scope of Chem 1A. Thus, the class was difficult and I know many many people who failed this class. Chem 1A with Professor Stacy About the class: There was also professor Stacy teaching Chem 1A during fall 2016. She was such a sweet lady and very approachable both in class and in office hour. There were only 120 students in class and to be in the class, you had to email her for permission. She only wanted people who had very little knowledge of Chemistry an...