Notre Dame vs UC Berkeley for economics: which is better for an undergrad interested in economics?

UC Berkeley has the edge for undergraduate economics. Its economics department is one of the most established and visible in the country, the campus sits next to San Francisco’s finance, consulting, tech, and policy networks, and Berkeley offers multiple economics-related paths including the standard Economics major and the more quantitative Political Economy and Haas-adjacent options.

One major differentiator is the academic ecosystem around economics itself. Berkeley’s department is large, research-active, and deeply connected to adjacent fields like statistics, data science, public policy, and business. For an undergrad who wants flexibility within economics, especially if you might lean toward quantitative work, research, or eventually a PhD, that breadth matters a lot. You can build a much more specialized academic path there than at Notre Dame.

Another is recruiting access. Berkeley benefits from Bay Area proximity and a huge alumni presence across finance, consulting, tech, economic research, and startups. Even for students not aiming at Silicon Valley specifically, that location creates more frequent employer contact, internship access during the school year, and exposure to economic work outside a traditional classroom setting. Notre Dame has a very loyal alumni network, and that absolutely helps, but Berkeley’s surrounding labor market is hard to match.

A third difference is the style of undergraduate experience in the major. Notre Dame often offers a more personal, smaller-scale environment, and some students will thrive with that structure. Berkeley, though, tends to provide more sheer volume: more advanced electives, more research activity, more student organizations tied to economics and finance, and more classmates pushing toward top-tier econ-related careers. For pure undergraduate economics strength and opportunity density, Berkeley is the more powerful platform.

The main reason to pick Notre Dame instead would be if you know you want a tighter-knit campus, stronger day-to-day advising access, and a more intimate college experience, because Berkeley’s size can make students work harder to seek out mentorship. But on the specific question of economics preparation for internships, grad school, and jobs, Berkeley stands out more clearly.