ucbprof

If you were admitted to UCB, please don't hesitate to contact your peer advisor (or faculty members who've contacted you) for any questions like this. But the short answer is: yes, you've understood the course requirements approximately correctly [1]. 24 credits is approximately 8 courses. Most people take about 2 courses per semester, so you can finish off your coursework in about 4 semesters. Keep in mind, your primary focus in the PhD program is research (rather than coursework) -- this is a significant change from an undergraduate program. No, Berkeley is not unusual in this regard. If anything, Berkeley PhD students take more courses than at many other PhD programs. I think you'll learn a lot in the courses, and they'll support your research nicely. Many Berkeley courses have a large project component, where you do a research project of your choosing -- which is a great way to learn about how to do good research and try out new research ideas. Again, if you have questions, please don't hesitate to contact your contacts at Berkeley! They'll be glad to explain how it works, if this is a concern for you -- but let me reassure you that the requirements are quite reasonable and are nothing to be afraid of. [1] OK, OK, there are some details. We'll tell you about them if you come, or if you ask. At this point, you really don't need to worry about them. (But if you want to know, technically, the 24 credits is divided as follows: at least 12 credits in your major area, at least 6 in an inside minor area, and at least 6 credits in an outside minor. The major area and inside minor are two areas within EECS. The outside minor must be graduate courses in some department outside EECS.)