It’s the time of the school year almost everyone looks forward to: summer vacation. Whether that takes the form of a summer internship, travel plans, or spending quality time with family at home, we Golden Bears will be taking a much-needed break from midterm stress, unprecedented all-nighters at Doe Library, and the constant stream of assignments (but if you’re taking summer classes, I apologize). With the summer holiday in mind, it is important to take a look back at all of your accomplishments throughout the past academic year. Along with your personal accomplishments, our campus has collectively experienced a range of achievements and memorable events. From the opening of new restaurants to recent Cal Day celebrations, here is UC Berkeley’s 2025-26 Wrapped.

New mid-day to midnight munchies

What’s UC Berkeley without its unique food scene? In just this past academic year alone, we’ve had several new stand-out restaurants enter Berkeley’s eclectic food scene, with most located on Telegraph Avenue or the Southside of campus. The honorable mentions are listed as: Eight Grams Matcha, Shake Shack, Ox 9 Lanzhou Handpulled Noodles and Campus Burgers.

Greek Theatre party

The Hearst Greek Theatre, nestled on the top of campus, delivered a stellar lineup that brought a refreshing energy to the beginning of the fall semester. Whether you were sitting atop Foothill to listen to Mac DeMarco or dancing in the bowl with Lorde, the Greek Theatre did not disappoint with its fall 2025 lineup, with more exciting artists to come in fall 2026.

Big Game and scandal

Who can forget this past Big Game at Stanford? It was the 128th Cal vs. Stanford game, and the competition and rivalry were well alive coursing through each respective team’s veins. This game marked the end of Cal’s four-year win streak but sparked new energy among the Cal coaching team. Following the end of the game, Cal Football’s coach Justin Wilcox was promptly fired, marking the weight of the loss. Maybe next year, we will reclaim the Axe trophy on our home turf.

Another Nobel Peace Prize, please

With all of the fun events happening around and on campus, it’s easy to forget our academic achievements! In October of 2025, UC Berkeley racked up a few more Nobel Prizes for professors John Clark, Michel Devoret and John Martinis’ work in physics and professor Omar M. Yaghi for his work in chemistry. With these two additional accolades, UC Berkeley now has 63 Nobel Laureates. Let’s see if we can collect more in the 2026-27 academic year!

Reclaimed our title of No. 1 public university

And the most important memory as we conclude our UC Berkeley Wrapped, we as a university reclaimed our title as the No. 1 public university in America. Recognized by the U.S. News & World Report, The Wall Street Journal and Forbes, Cal has knocked down our long-time public-school ranking rival, UCLA, to affirm our status as No. 1 in the country for academic excellence and achievement.

Overall, whether you’re ready to relax this summer, lock in for internships or classes, or prepare for life postgrad, I hope this Wrapped is a reminder of what you and what our university are capable of! Even during the unprecedented times, we Bears have always found a way to keep the good energy rolling. Let’s see what’s to come in the 2026-27 school year!