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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]My DS is a math and humanities major. The math classes were brutally tough and like another person mentioned DS was shocked to get his first C+ but has now learned to do better. The choices in math classes are amazing. The history classes are also a lot of work but getting As is not as difficult. Overall, he has learned to adapt and hustle and has had great internships every summer through friend referrals. He even found a 5-week internship at a startup for winter break. He is a very adaptable kid and is fine with large settings so that may have helped. After freshman year, he found his own housing. [/quote]

It sounds like your child is the type of self-starter who can do well there. Congrats, they should do well wherever they go. There are many very bright people there and the very self-reliant can learn alot. But, that is very different from receiving an 'elite' education. It is making the most of a fast-paced factory education. [/quote]

Not PP. Pretty sure the history proseminars or [b]taking econ classes with Bates Clark/Nobel winners[/b] aren’t a “factory education.”[/quote]

The point is those opportunities don't really happen though people like to tell themselves otherwise.

A Nobel winning economist at UCB (or anywhere else) will rarely (read virtually never) teach an undergraduate course. It is a waste of their time which is a valuable resource.

I have a close friend who is a full professor at Stanford who very matter of factly states that he hasn't taught an undergraduate class in over 20 years and that it would be a waste of his time and Stanford's money for him to do so. The same factors come into play at any top research university. UCB is a great grad school but nothing special for undergraduate studies.[/quote]

Except David Card taught undergrads up until the point he went into emeritus status.

Emmanuel Saez and Emi Nakamura regularly have undergrad teaching responsibilities.

Not to mention other professors without the awards that are still notable (Eichengreen, Delong).

They all teach undergrads there. That’s hardly a factory education.

We’ve seen your posts before about your one friend that is a professor at Stanford, but it’s a sample of one and isn’t particularly useful.[/quote]

True, but if you've seen my posts you would also know that I taught at UCB while in grad school.
You’re not the only one with access to a course catalog at Berkeley.[/quote]

No idea what you are trying to say, none at all.

PP: I enjoyed my time at UCB, it's a great grad school. I learned a lot and I went on to have a very lucrative and fulfilling career. But, based on my observations and experiences while I was there as a grad student it is not a particularly great option for most for undergraduate education. People will keep on saying otherwise but most full professors do not teach undergrads, they do not want to teach undergrads, and it is a waste of their time if they are.[/quote]
You’re a disingenuous liar for the most part. There are full professors teaching undergrads all the time at Berkeley.[/quote]
How can you call them a liar when you won't even refute their statement? They said most, you tacitly agreed with them by not saying most do teach undergrads, and instead saying profs teach undergrads all the time, which is fully compatible with most profs not teaching undergrads[/quote]

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