Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
placeholder article
placeholder article

Get the Perfect Class Schedule

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Cesie Alvarez
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Elizabeth Carey
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UC Berkeley chapter.

Having trouble creating your schedule for the spring semester? Need to fulfill some breadths or just want to take a fun course? Then you have come to the right place! We know planning your schedule can be a pain, but HC has collected a list of the best classes to take at Cal.  From GPA boosters to health and fitness, we’ve got you covered.  But before you start planning your schedule, we’ve found that the best website for making your schedule perfect is ninjacourses.com. This site will help you find the best combinations of classes to ensure that none of your intended classes overlap and you’ll get a great schedule.

If you’re trying to fulfill your American Cultures (AC) requirement, the best course to take is History 7B. History 7B covers history from the Civil War to the present. The workload can be heavy because of a required 10-page research paper and a good amount of reading, but it’s well worth it. The course is taught by Professor Einhorn who recently won a distinguished teacher award and is known for her passion and ability to always keep lectures interesting. 

[ pagebreak ]
 
For your Biological Science breadth we suggest taking either MCB C31: Big Ideas in Cell Biology or MCB 61: Brain, Mind, and Behavior. Don’t let the Molecular and Cell Biology department scare you. These courses are basic biology and were designed for non-biology majors. In MCB C31 you will learn about the basics of the cell, DNA, and more. The level of difficulty can easily be compared to that of a high school biology course. Professor Wilt is passionate about the subject and the best part is that he puts his personal lecture notes online for you to study. MCB 61 focuses on the brain and its interaction with the world. This course is taught by Professor Presti, one of Cal’s favorite professors. It is very comparable to Drugs and the Brain.

If you need a course to cover your Social and Behavioral Science breadth we suggest taking Psychology 2. This course is aimed at students wanting to cover the breadth but are not in the major. Psychology 2 is a course that focuses on just the basic principles of psychology. It’s an interesting subject and a fairly easy course as long as you pay attention in lecture and complete the readings.

[ pagebreak ]
 

Looking for some classes to brush up some practical life skills? Then you should take either UGBA 196: Personal Finance or Theater 12: Speech and Vocal Communication Skills. UGBA 196 is a great class for learning how to manage your finances, loans, investments, and budgets, which are great skills to have! It’s only 2 units and an easy A. Theater 12 is great for sharpening your public speaking skills, which is always beneficial. It helps you refine your skills, which is helpful for speaking both in front of large crowds and just everyday life. 

Trying to just fill up your schedule with fun classes? Well we have quite a few suggestions. Psychology c162: Human Happiness focuses on all perspectives of happiness throughout history and life. The course has an A average and has been said to be life changing. Poli Sci 179 Undergraduate Colloquium on Political Science is a simple 1-unit class that features different speakers weekly who discuss political issues regarding our state, country, and international community. If you like diversity in a class then this course is perfect. Also, no homework is assigned and only a simple True and False exam at the end of the semester acts as the final. Another great, diverse class is L&S 110: The World According to Berkeley. This course features the best and most popular professors at Cal from every department. Each week a different professor presents their favorite lecture from their course. It’s catered more towards Juniors and Seniors that want a final chance at experiencing all the great courses that Berkeley has to offer. And for those that like Disney, there’s Scandinavian 106: The Works of Hans Christian Andersen. It’s particularly interesting because you get to read your favorite fairytales in their original, darker form.

Image Sources: 
http://booksyourkidswilllove.blogspot.com/2011_02_01_archive.html

http://www.celebrateboston.com/history/usa.htm

http://andjustincase.blogspot.com/2011/05/happiness-folly-of-positive-life.html

http://www.mylot.com/w/photokeywords/money+matters.aspx

http://www.fanpop.com/spots/the-little-mermaid/images/6260676/title/little-mermaid-wallpaper-wallpaper

  var _gaq = _gaq || [];
  _gaq.push([‘_setAccount’, ‘UA-26666574-1’]);
  _gaq.push([‘_trackPageview’]);
 
  (function() {
    var ga = document.createElement(‘script’); ga.type = ‘text/javascript’; ga.async = true;
    ga.src = (‘https:’ == document.location.protocol ? ‘https://ssl’ : ‘http://www’) + ‘.google-analytics.com/ga.js’;
    var s = document.getElementsByTagName(‘script’)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s);
  })();
 
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar
Elizabeth Carey

UC Berkeley

Elizabeth is a senior majoring in American Studies with a concentration in consumer behavior at the University of California, Berkeley. You'll find her at the pool swimming with the Cal club water polo team or running through campus training for the next half marathon. In addition to an active lifestyle, Elizabeth loves to keep up to date with the latest tech trends and is always looking for a new recipe to try out! Elizabeth hopes to pursue a career in public relations and marketing after graduation.