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I’m from the Bay Area and I can tell you that as far as “status” goes, USC and UCLA don’t carry much status at all, if any. Berkeley is considered far more pres

I’m from the Bay Area and I can tell you that as far as “status” goes, USC and UCLA don’t carry much status at all, if any. Berkeley is considered far more prestigious here. And of course, Stanford.

gnicholas 7y ago
I grew up in norcal and live in the bay area. Plenty of my high school classmates chose UCLA over Berkeley because they wanted to get farther away from home. Some of them are now med school professors. The difference between these two UCs is not as great as you might think. Neither has the elite status of ivy league schools, but most people I've run across on hiring committees viewed the two ad fairly comparable. Note: I went to UCLA for grad school and have many family members that have gone to Cal.
- ikeyany 7y ago
  I think they meant that Berkeley and Stanford are the hardest to get into, not that they are necessarily the 'best'. I would assume that anyone who got into Stanford or Berkeley could get into any other school in California.
- lawnchair_larry 7y ago
  Most people I’ve run into on hiring committees do not know or care what school the applicant went to, or if they even went to school. That data isn’t provided. Interview performance is the only factor. What industry do you work in?
  - gnicholas 7y ago
    This was in law, and I observed it with regard to both undergrad and law degrees.
    - lawnchair_larry 7y ago
      Did that only apply to new grads with no experience to judge? Or does degree still trump a successful 5-15 year track record?
      - gnicholas 7y ago
        Big firms care about what schools an associate went to. For partners (10+ years out), they care more about the book of business you'll bring. But there's definitely elitism that lasts well beyond your first few years. I recall being asked by a visiting partner who was considering having me work on his case where I went to undergrad. At the time, I was a senior associate, so I had a decade of schooling and experience since undergrad.

gnicholas 7y ago

I grew up in norcal and live in the bay area. Plenty of my high school classmates chose UCLA over Berkeley because they wanted to get farther away from home. Some of them are now med school professors. The difference between these two UCs is not as great as you might think. Neither has the elite status of ivy league schools, but most people I've run across on hiring committees viewed the two ad fairly comparable. Note: I went to UCLA for grad school and have many family members that have gone to Cal.

ikeyany 7y ago
I think they meant that Berkeley and Stanford are the hardest to get into, not that they are necessarily the 'best'. I would assume that anyone who got into Stanford or Berkeley could get into any other school in California.
lawnchair_larry 7y ago
Most people I’ve run into on hiring committees do not know or care what school the applicant went to, or if they even went to school. That data isn’t provided. Interview performance is the only factor. What industry do you work in?
- gnicholas 7y ago
  This was in law, and I observed it with regard to both undergrad and law degrees.
  - lawnchair_larry 7y ago
    Did that only apply to new grads with no experience to judge? Or does degree still trump a successful 5-15 year track record?
    - gnicholas 7y ago
      Big firms care about what schools an associate went to. For partners (10+ years out), they care more about the book of business you'll bring. But there's definitely elitism that lasts well beyond your first few years. I recall being asked by a visiting partner who was considering having me work on his case where I went to undergrad. At the time, I was a senior associate, so I had a decade of schooling and experience since undergrad.