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Welcome!

I want to welcome you most warmly to Berkeley, and assure you that the Graduate Division is here to help you throughout your graduate career. We will assist you in your search for financial support, research and teaching appointments, and academic counseling from the time you are admitted until you’ve earned your degree. You can find our student services on the third floor in Sproul Hall, overlooking Sproul Plaza.

I am delighted that you have chosen Berkeley for your graduate career. No other university can compete with the breadth and quality of education offered here. Surely, most of you are here because of the reputation of a particular department or renowned faculty member. But you will soon come to appreciate the comprehensive excellence of the campus in a broad array of disciplines. Whether you are a cell biologist who needs help with biostatistics, or a sociologist who would like to learn about agricultural and resource economics, or an art historian with an interest in music composition, you will find it here.

Berkeley is a magical place, and I predict you will fall under its spell as so many other scholars have over the years. You will find, as many before you have, that Berkeley provides the best of opportunities for learning and for living. Smart students take full advantage of these opportunities. Here is my advice. Go to lectures in different disciplines. Sign up for a designated emphasis. Join a political club or work for a student journal. Get involved with graduate student government. Attend film festivals, live performances, and art exhibits. Meet and befriend people who are really different from you. Sign up for a hiking trip in the Sierras or take sailing lessons on the Bay. Get out of the library and lab on occasion and go to a graduate social. You can have a full life here.

And here is your first assignment as new graduate students at Berkeley. On a beautiful fall afternoon, take a bus, bike, or walk from campus to the Berkeley Marina. Walk the length of the Berkeley pier, gaze back at the East Bay hills, look across to San Francisco, and then watch the sun set beyond the Golden Gate Bridge. Appreciate the fact that your hard work has earned you a tremendous opportunity. Now make the very best of it!

Andrew J. Szeri
Dean

 

Last Updated: July 2, 2007 3:23 PM