but the two schools are vastly different...there is no comparison between the two. Sure they are both in the UC system, but that similarities stop there. just look at the work being produced from their respective programs.

just my .02 cents but if you got into both schools it would be a no-brainer : go to UCLA

i had to make the exact same choice, email me and i can answer some questions you might have.

MArch n' unemployed: is that you March06? Did I read about you in the latest Arch Record??

yes and yes

hi 1deviantC... i was hoping to ask the same question, but so far have only heard from berkeley. so, does your question imply that you've received a decision from ucla? thanks for your response.

tmskin, I think the open houses will probably be more important than you might think, and that they should form a large part of your decision. That's how it was for me at least. In terms of my personal feelings about the two schools, I would say Berkeley is more conservative, though probably better for undergrad studies, and UCLA is more about contemporary work and should position you for a future outside working in the Bay Area. Also, and I'm saying this less as a statement of impartiality and more as one of familiarity, I spent an exchange semester as an undergrad at Berkeley (and am from the bay area), and am now a first year grad at UCLA. To further distance myself from claims of impartiality I'll also say that my choice of grad school was between Columbia and UCLA, because I didn't get in to Berkeley. But I feel like I made the right choice. Ultimately I think you have to take incidental factors into account as well; Can you deal with Westwood or Berkeley for three years (tough thought, I know)? Do you think LA provides an exciting backdrop to your studies, or is the privileged monoculture of the Bay Area more your speed (no, I'm not proposing neutral dichotomies, ha ha ha)? Etc etc.

archny, sorry i didn't mean to imply that i got into either school. i'm not applying anywhere right now. i'm a current march 1 student at sciarc...

I will be going to berkeley this week to check out the program, so hopefully I'll get a better feel for the program.

it seems like lots of people feel that berkeley is generally a more conservative program. However, I look at the recent work, and it seems otherwise. I would love to hear from current berkeley students if they agree with this popular perception.

also I hear berkeley is looking for a new dean? any news on that?

1deviantC: ah, how's your sciarch experience been? and were you considering other schools? if so, which?

New UCB dean is chosen, its the new chair (search on now) that could be exciting -- finally could be an outsider. And the claims the two schools are sooooo different are a bit exagerated -- you can find digitally driven/emergent work at Berkeley these days, and even some everdayurban/sociallyrelevant stuff at UCLA as well.