Commitment-makers overtake campus
More than 1,200 students from around the world (including 150 from Berkeley) joined a parade of luminaries at UC Berkeley in April for the Clinton Global Initiative University. Chosen for their detailed solutions to climate change, poverty alleviation, and other pressing challenges, the students made a “commitment to action” that shows the potential for lasting change. Watch inspiring presentations.
Three alumni win Pulitzer Prizes
Viet Thanh Nguyen ’92, Ph.D. ’97 won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction for his debut novel, The Sympathizer, a thriller/political satire about a double-agent who moves to Los Angeles after the Vietnam war. In addition, T. Christian Miller ’92 and Soumya Karlamangla ’13 — both of whom cut their journalistic teeth at the Daily Cal — won Pulitzers for their news coverage of, respectively, rape and the terror attack in San Bernardino last December. Read more about the winners.
Berkeley tops Forbes ranking
“The ever-growing reputation of the West Coast as an innovation and jobs hub … now has the higher educational cred to match,” said a recent Forbes story. Over 30 of the Best Value Colleges in the West 2016 are in California alone — and Berkeley was crowned No. 1.
More applicants, residents
For the first time ever last fall, Berkeley broke the 100,000 mark for the number of admission applications received. We’re also deepening our California roots. As part of a three-year plan to increase in-state undergraduates at all 10 UC campuses by 10,000 students, Berkeley will enroll an additional 750 new freshmen and transfer students from California.
Monster black holes
A near-record supermassive black hole — equal to 17 billion suns — was discovered in a sparse area of the local universe. These monster objects, more commonly found in crowded areas, may be more prevalent in quieter galaxies than once thought, according to Berkeley astronomers. Read the press release.
