d "super brands."[62] Among world universities, Berkeley had the 2nd highest number of academic programs rated in the Top Ten in their field by QS.[63] In 2009 the Center for Measuring University Performance placed Berkeley 9th among national research universities.[64] In 2013 Kiplinger ranked Berkeley 8th out of the top 100 best-value public colleges and universities in the nation, and 2nd in California.[65] The Princeton Review ranks Berkeley as a "college with a conscience"[66] and the 5th best value in public colleges.[67] Berkeley was ranked as 1st for

 and sixth most of any university in the world.
Rankings and reputation[edit]
University rankings
National
ARWU[54]    3
Forbes[55]    22
U.S. News & World Report[56]    20
Washington Monthly[57]    5
Global
ARWU[58]    3
QS[59]    25
Times[60]    8
Berkeley was listed as a "Public Ivy" in Richard Mull's 1985 Public Ivies.[61] In the 2013 Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings Berkeley was ranked the world's 5th most prestigious university and one of six globally recognized "super brands."[62] Among world universities, Berkeley had the 2nd highest number of academic programs rated in the Top Ten in their field by QS.[63] In 2009 the Center for Measuring University Performance placed Berkeley 9th among national research universities.[64] In 2013 Kiplinger ranked Berkeley 8th out of the top 100 best-value public colleges and universities in the nation, and 2nd in California.[65] The Princeton Review ranks Berkeley as a "college with a conscience"[66] and the 5th best value in public colleges.[67] Berkeley was ranked as 1st for public universities by US News and World Report in 2013.
Campus[edit]

Main article: Campus of the University of California, Berkeley
The Berkeley campus encompasses approximately 1,232 acres (499 ha), though the "central campus" occupies only the low-lying western 178 acres (72 ha) of this area. Of the remaining 1,000 acres (400 ha), approximately 200 acres (81 ha) are occupied by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; other facilities above the main campus include the Lawrence Hall of Science and several research units, notably the Space Sciences Laboratory, the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, an undeveloped 800-acre (320 ha) ecological preserve, the University of California Botanical Garden and a recreation center in Strawberry Canyon. Portions of the mostly undeveloped eastern area of the campus is actually within the City of Oakland; the northernmost eastern corner of Oakland extends from the Claremont Resort north through the Panoramic Hill neighborhood to Tilden Park.
To the west of the central campus is the downtown business district of Berkeley; to the northwest is the neighborhood of North Berkeley, including the so-called Gourmet Ghetto, a commercial district known for high quality dining due to the presence of such world-renowned restaurants as Chez Panisse. Immediately to the north is a quiet residential neighborhood known as Northside with a large graduate student population;[68] situated north of that are the upscale resident

s in 2012.[51] Admission to graduate programs is decentralized; applicants apply directly to the department or degree program. Most graduate students are supported by fellowships, teach assistantships, or research assistantships.[51] The 2010 United States National Research Council Rankings identified UC Berkeley as having the highest number of top-ranked doctoral programs in the nation.[5

erican History and Institutions" before or after enrollment by taking an introductory class, passing an "American Cultures Breadth" class at Berkeley, as well as requirements for reading and composition and specific requirements declared by the department and school.[46] Three-hour final examinations are required in most undergraduate classes and take place over a week following the last day of instruction in mid-December for the Fall semester and in mid-May for the Spring semester.[47] Academic grades are reported on a five-letter scale (A,B,C,D,F) with grade points being modified by three-tenths of point for pluses and minuses.[48] Requirements for academic honors are specified by individual schools and colleges, scholarly prizes are typically awarded by departments, and students are elected to honor societies based on these organizations' criteria.[49]
Graduate and professional programs[edit]
Berkeley has a "comprehensive" graduate program with high coexistence with the programs offered to undergraduates, but no medical school.[40] The university offers graduate degrees in Master's of Art, Master's of Science, Master's of Fine Art, and Ph.D.s in addition to professional degrees such as the Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration.[50] The university awarded 887 doctoral degrees and 2,506 Master's degrees in 2012.[51] Admission to graduate programs is decentralized; applicants apply directly to the department or degree program. Most graduate students are supported by fellowships, teach assistantships, or research assistantships.[51] The 2010 United States National Research Council Rankings identified UC Berkeley as having the highest number of top-ranked doctoral programs in the nation.[52] UC Berkeley doctoral programs that received a #1 ranking include Agricultural and Resource Economics, Astrophysics, Chemistry, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science, English, Epidemiology, German, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Genetics, Genomics, and Development, Physics, Plant Biology, and Political Science. UC Berkeley was also the #1 recipient of National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships between 2001 and 2010, with 1,333 awards.[51]
Faculty and research[edit]
Main articles: List of UC Berkeley faculty, Research centers and laboratories at UC Berkeley, and List of Nobel laureates associated with University of California, Berkeley


Seventy-two Nobel Laureates have been university faculty, alumni or researchers. Special signs indicate campus parking spaces reserved for the Laureates.
Berkeley is a research university with a "very high" level of research activity.[40] There are 1,582 full-time and 500 part-time faculty members dispersed among more than 130 academic departments and more than 80 interdisciplinary research units.[citation needed] Berkeley's current faculty includes 227 American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows, 3 Fields Medal winners, 83 Fulbright Scholars, 139 Guggenheim Fellows, 87 members of the National Academy of Engineering, 132 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 8 Nobel Prize winners, 3 Pulitzer Prize winners, 84 Sloan Fellows, 7 Wolf Prize winners and 1 Pritzker Prize winner.[53] 72 Nobel Laureates have been affiliated with the university as faculty, alumni or researchers, the most of any public university in the United States

Secondary seal adopted by the campus in 1996[39] Berkeley is a large, primarily residential research university with a majority of enrollments in undergraduate programs but also offers a comprehensive doctoral graduate program.[40] The university has been accredited by the

eley has turned to private sources: BP donated $500 million to develop biofuels, the Hewlett Foundation gave $113 million to endow 100 faculty chairs, and Dow Chemical gave $10 million to research sustainability.[34][35] The BP grant has been criticized for diverting food production to fuel production.[36][37]
The original name University of California was frequently shortened to California or Cal. UC Berkeley's athletic teams date to this time and so are referred to as the California Golden Bears, Cal Bears, or just Cal. Today, University of California refers to a statewide school system. Referring to the University of California, Berkeley as UCB or University of California at Berkeley is discouraged[38] and the domain name is berkeley.edu. Moreover, the term "Cal Berkeley" is not a correct reference to the school, but is occasionally used. Berkeley is unaffiliated with the Berklee College of Music or Berkeley College. However, UC Berkeley does share academic ties with Yale University; not only were many original Berkeley founders Yale graduates (see below), but the names, University of California, Berkeley, and Berkeley College (Yale), were both inspired by the intellectual contributions of the western philosopher, George Berkeley.
Academics[edit]



Secondary seal adopted by the campus in 1996[39]
Berkeley is a large, primarily residential research university with a majority of enrollments in undergraduate programs but also offers a comprehensive doctoral graduate program.[40] The university has been accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior College and University Commission since 1949.[41] The university operates on a semester academic calendar with Fall semester running from late August through early December and Spring semester running from mid-January through mid-May.[42] Berkeley offers 106 Bachelor's degrees, 88 Master's degrees, 97 research-focused doctoral programs, and 31 professionally-focused graduate degrees.[43] The university awarded a total of 7,526 Bachelor's, 2,164 Master's, and 1,264 Doctoral degrees in 2012.[44]
Undergraduate programs[edit]
The four-year, full-time undergraduate program has a focus on the arts and sciences with a high level of co-existence in undergraduate and graduate programs. Freshman admission is selective but there are high levels of transfer-in.[40] 106 Bachelor's degrees are offered across the Haas School of Business (1), College of Chemistry (5), College of Engineering (20), College of Environmental Design (3), College of Letters and Science (67), College of Natural Resources (10), and other individual majors (2).[43] The most popular majors are Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Political Science, Molecular and Cell Biology, Environmental Science, and Economics.[45]
Requirements for undergraduate degrees come from four sources: the University of California system, the Berkeley campus, the college or school, and the department. These requirements include an entry-level writing requirement before enrollment (typically fulfilled by minimum scores on standardized admissions exams such as the SAT or ACT, completing coursework on "Am