Upper Division Academics
Berkeley Upper Division students (in ninth to twelfth grade) flourish in an atmosphere akin to a small liberal arts college, where unmatched advantages and enriching challenges create leaders of impact, integrity, and character. From advanced academics, to global opportunities, to service experiences, and more, Upper Division prepares students to enter the world with a clear direction and a strong sense of morality, ethics, and social responsibility.
For a detailed look at our courses, read through the Upper Division Curriculum Guide, and check out how Berkeley students excel in these unique academic programs by viewing our School Profile.
In Upper Division, Students Can Experience:
-
ambitious academics through AP®, Honors, and Advanced Topics courses, as well as a three-year Global Scholars program
-
advanced experiential learning in institutes dedicated to business, law, health sciences, biology, national security, journalism and communications, and theatre
-
financial education through the Lasher Center for Business and Entrepreneurial Studies
-
STEAM-related courses in the Diasti Family Robotics Lab, the Best Family Multimedia Production Classroom, and the Smith Fabrication Studio
-
meaningful leadership opportunities as class representatives, prefects, peer tutors, campus guides, and within Spiritual Life, the Leadership Academy at Berkeley, and the Student-Athlete Leadership Program
-
an immense array of co-curricular activities, such as athletic teams (including beach volleyball, rowing, ice hockey, golf, and swimming & diving) and clubs (including a nationally ranked Debate Team, a beekeeping club, and music groups such as the Beatitones male a cappella singers)
-
international travel to Spain, Italy, Ireland, the Dominican Republic, and more
-
personalized college counseling, beginning in tenth grade
-
self-directed community service initiatives
-
learning supported by Apple technology
Students entering Upper Division who are new to Berkeley are invited to the Berkeley Bridge Program, a one-week program that aims to prepare incoming ninth grade students for the first day of school by allowing them to meet their peers, become familiar with the campus, and practice important learning skills.
Life in Upper Division
Incredible Post-Grad Opportunities
With the support of the Bray College Counseling Center, many Berkeley students find unique and prestigious post-grad opportunities. For example, Madelyn Malin ’24 won and accepted the Morehead-Cain Scholarship to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. More than 2,500 students from across the globe applied and under 4% were offered the scholarship.
The Morehead-Cain is the oldest merit scholarship in the U.S. and funds not only full academic tuition, but also room and board, an international gap year, research opportunities, Lovelace Fund for Discovery grants, and four Summer Enrichment Program experiences. The four pillars of the Morehead-Cain Program are scholarship, leadership, character, and physical vigor.
Malin is the third student from Berkeley to have won the scholarship and the second to have accepted it. Sean Nguyen ’17 was also a Morehead-Cain scholar.
Successes in STEM
In Upper Division, students are encouraged to forge their own path and pursue their passions both on and off campus. Hannah Flitman ’24 has a love for STEM that led her to become the only student in Hillsborough County in 2024 to be named a top-300 international scholar in the 2024 Regeneron Science Talent Search, a prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors. She is now attending MIT.
As a Regeneron STS scholar, Flitman joins an impressive list. Since the competition’s founding in 1942, other Regeneron STS scholars have been honored with 13 Nobel Prizes, 11 National Medals of Science, 21 MacArthur Foundation Fellowships, and more. Flitman was selected out of 2,162 applicants from 712 high schools across 46 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and 10 other countries. She was awarded a $2,000 scholarship, and $2,000 was given to Berkeley’s Science Department.