In a campus as vast and expansive as UC Berkeley’s, our brief time in college can sometimes feel like a journey that is felt in isolation. We move from lecture hall to lecture hall with dazed looks on our faces.
But once a year, this familiarly unfamiliar campus awakens in cohesion as we meet together to celebrate what to outsiders can look like a daydream of blue and gold. We rejoice in what makes us part of a community.
From groundbreaking research to student activism, from beloved campus landmarks to the latest developments in every field imaginable — this little part of the world that has become our whole universe comes alive. Students with barely a fortnight left and the newly accepted baby Bears ready to brace the space between Sproul and Piedmont have, interestingly, a few things in common: At one point of their long lives, they have had — or will have — the opportunity to have called this hallowed grass fields and hilly streets home. Happy Cal Day to all, and to all the cubs, welcome to Berkeley.
Cal Day throughout the years
Cal Day 1995 had more than 20,000 attendees. Cal Day numbers increased to 30,000, eventually bringing in roughly 40,000 attendees prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
— Sophie Ward
You stepped on the seal, future slips through your fingers
You have done the worst thing any in-the-know, regular UC Berkeley student knows not to do: you have stepped foot on the seal.
— Malayna Chang
Miss 305
— Julianna Goldfarb
An appreciation of small moments at UC Berkeley
— Kyle Garcia Takata
18 lessons in 18 years
Sometimes checking off things on a bucket list is an easier first step to healing, and to inspire other people that small moments of kindness still really matter.
— Nadia Karys Dickey
Learning maturity through food
Up until freshman year, my relationship with food had been pretty straightforward. In my little bubble of home, questions of who made food and when to expect it were already answered for me.
— Ryan Sheehan
Troy Bolton returns to Cal as men’s basketball assistant coach
With his success on the court, Bolton is now being asked to return to Berkeley to be the assistant coach of the men’s basketball team for the 2023-24 season.
— Stefania Bitton
The best libraries on campus
If you’ve ever been wondering which library is the best for your vibe check, look no further. Here are some of the top libraries on campus to check out.
— Aryia Dattamajumdar
Fostering balance and community
— Madison Creekbaum
Women on the mic: Cal Spirit’s female ‘mic men’
— Dina Katgara
Generational ripples or a glimpse of belonging?
This experience ripples through our community as each one of us struggles to find our voice in the academic world.
— Daniela Ayala
Check out these student perks and discounts
Explore the various discounted activities, services, products, and food offered to us as Berkeley students.
— Natasha Kaye
A purposeful journey
— Michael Temprano
Life’s a movie: UC Berkeley edition
— Caitlin Wang
Leaked campus document reveals ‘haunted’ truth behind Evans Hall demolition plan
The document reveals that Evans Hall is not being demolished because it is “seismically deficient” or “just f—ing ugly,” but rather to allegedly appease and rid the spirits of angry ex-business students who have been haunting the halls of the building for years.
— Carolyn Yu
A letter to Luke
“And honestly, I’m jealous of you because I didn’t get a roadmap. I can only hope that one day I get one of these letters from a future Luke explaining what to expect next.”
— Luke Stiles
Tales from a Bay Area local: Making new memories
We tend to focus so much on needing new experiences when we enter college — a new city to explore, a new home to decorate, finding new sights to see and checking off all the new foods and restaurants we absolutely need to try.
— Veerle de Jong
The Bells of Berkeley: Campanile DeCal offers accessibility to carillon study
Outside of classes instructed by Jeff Davis, University Carillonist, the ‘Learn to Play Sather Tower Bells’ DeCal seeks to make learning the instrument accessible to students.
— Lindsay Muangman
Breaking up with Berkeley
I am learning to accept that all of my beautiful moments and memories from my time at Berkeley are fated to remain just that — memories. As much as I may wish to prolong my Berkeley experience, I know deep down my journey here has reached its end.
— James Meyer
No car, no problem: Alternative methods of Bay Area transportation
— Megnath Dey
Remembering “The Big Play” 40 Years Later
This year’s wild ending from a Cal comeback to win 27-20 was perhaps reminiscent of all the chaos that occurred 40 years ago on what would be dubbed “The Play”, an iconic moment in football history which occurred during a Big Game on November 20, 1982 held at California Memorial Stadium.
— Paula Hsiao
Moments in the dorms that altered my brain chemistry as a homebody
As a homebody, I’m not always aware of trending topics and often find things funny when others don’t. Here are a collection of moments with my freshman roommates that I found special, no matter how simple they might seem to others.
— Aileen Park
I love you, little me
I wasn’t able to see the future when I was 15, but I can tell the past what I know now. And I’d start it off like this.
— Adriana Temprano
Double majoring in STEM and humanities: Why you can do it all
I was struggling to remain interested in my classes, waiting impatiently for days where I would be an upperclassman engaged in biology deeply, and enjoy it.
— Merve Ozdemir
‘Matching the sky’s color is the word ‘Welcome’’: my personal experience as an international student
The new and in some ways support-less lifestyle that seemingly sets you apart from everyone else is just like the watch my mother gave me — you wear it, you forget about it, and soon it becomes part of you, not new anymore.
— Jingxing Wang
5 nuggets of advice from an RA
I now present five things incoming freshmen could benefit from knowing as they go into their first year of college.
— Elena Hsieh
Figuring out college: A winding path
UC Berkeley is an intensely competitive atmosphere where it can too often feel like everyone’s got it figured out and doing way more than you are, but no one really is. When it comes down to it, it’s beyond okay to take time away from it all to figure out where you fit, like I did.
— Alessi Ayvaz
Learning to love Berkeley
Instead, I made myself a deal: I’ll stick it out for a semester, and, if I still hated it, I’d return to the dreaded Common App portal for my transfer application. You can probably guess how that ended, as I’m still here, trying to convince you to give it a chance.
— Miriam Klaczynska
In defense of studying the humanities
— Amrita Bhasin
Commitment is a 2-hour ride from home
— Chris Ceguerra
Golden Bear Orientation: Explaining the $475 charge on your CalCentral
As you meet and introduce yourself to your group, get ready to repeat the same four things. Name. Major. Where you’re from. Instagram.
— Joann Moon
