Your bucket list for fall semester at UC Berkeley
Like any young adult, you’re probably bored with the slump of summer and all the liberty of having too much time on your hands. Rest and relaxation gets overwhelming, doomscrolling gets too boring to continue.
Luckily for you, UC Berkeley’s 158th fall semester is soon upon us, and just like every semester before it, it will be one filled with an awesome array of both annual events and events exclusive to fall 2026. Now, I present to you an itinerary for events to look forward to in the fall.
What’s going on?
With age comes traditions — and Berkeley is full of them. But with each new school year and incoming class comes fresh events and brand new experiences to be enjoyed and appreciated. As such, the events scheduled for fall 2026 can be divided into annual and exclusive events.
Annual events
1. Golden Bear Orientation (GBO)
Every incoming student to UC Berkeley, whether a first-year student or a transfer student, must go through a rite of passage — the jovial set of events that is GBO Week! If you’re an incoming student, your year will start with meeting a group of fellow incoming students, a convocation led by the Chancellor, and an assortment of other events, including a silent disco and trips around the Bay Area.
But the frenzy of this first week isn’t just for incoming students.
Golden Bear Orientation Fall 2024 at UC Berkeley from the Berkeley Gallery.
2. DormDash
Once everyone is moved in and settled, we all collectively start to realize that we forgot something. You might not have brought enough snacks from home, or perhaps you’re in need of more outfits and sleep clothing. For all your dorm needs, I present DormDash. At DormDash, the annual flea-market style festival held this year on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., you’ll get to retrieve home goods, snacks, and clothing to fulfill your newfound residence hall needs.
At the farmer’s market stand from the Berkeley Gallery.
3. Calapalooza and Caltopia
At Calapalooza — Cal’s bi-annual student involvement fair — the 1,200+ registered student organizations come out in full force to show you the many opportunities you can get involved with here at UC Berkeley, including how any given club, sorority or fraternity, or student government role may be right for you. In particular, you might want to check out the Blue Heart organizations tabling at Calapalooza. Blue Heart organizations are open to anyone and everyone joining their organizations without a formal application process. Any given organization you find at Calapalooza could be your four-year community.
Once you’ve got the fun, however, you need the funds. That’s what Caltopia is for. UC Berkeley Recreation & Wellbeing’s iconic lifestyle festival brings job opportunities to campus, hosting tables with recruiters and brands so you can search for an employer that is a good fit for you.
4. Indigenous Peoples’ Day PowWow and Indian market
Saturday, October 10, 2026 marks Indigenous Peoples’ Day, an annual holiday honoring the Indigenous People of Berkeley and America at-large, and recognizing the sacrifices of Indigenous People in both the past and the present. In Berkeley it is a day of celebration, bringing the Berkeley community together in acknowledging the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and other familial descendants of the Verona Band, the Indigenous people that are alive and flourishing members of the Berkeley and broader Bay Area communities today.
Explore a marketplace supporting Indigenous families and communities, an immersive cultural journey suitable for all generations, and music as well as performances commemorating the day.
Berkeley PowWow by Native American Student Development.
5. Lunch Poems reading series
Once a month in Morrison Library, the building is transformed into a venue for the arts by the power of poetry. Lunch Poems, Berkeley’s storied noontime poetry series, hosts poetry readings by esteemed writers and artists, which are of course free and open to all. You have the opportunity to not only listen to poetry, but participate in a Q&A session with the author themselves, elucidating the complexities of poetry that tend to linger after reading a difficult piece. The Lunch Poems series, along with the other frequent programming hosted by the Arts Research Center, is always a great opportunity to appreciate the arts.
A packed house listens to poet and Professor Robert Hass at Lunch Poems in Morrison Library. Photo by Jami Smith.
6. The Big Game
The biggest event in (Californian) college football needs no introduction. For 134 years, Berkeley’s Golden Bears and Stanford’s Cardinal have taken the cross-bay rivalry to the football field, and at the Big Game, crowds of students from both universities show out in support. If there’s one sporting event you’ll want to save a spot on your calendar for, it’s this.
It is important to note that the Big Game tends to be the priciest sports event of the year, and you might struggle to find a ticket if you start looking just a week in advance. To get a head start in preparing, you can learn how to access sports at Berkeley, and then consider purchasing a combo-pass for access to all home games for the year.
7. Berkeley Harvest Festival
The City of Berkeley’s annual Harvest Festival is a chance to get into the community, celebrating the fall with crafts, food, and live entertainment. The Harvest Festival is completely free, and brings Berkeley students, workers, and vendors together. Just as you can expect fall to arrive every year, so can you similarly look forward to the city opening its arms with an event you can bring your friends, partner, or just yourself to. The Harvest Festival will take place at Cedar Rose Park in October.
Colored and decorated pumpkins by Keegan Houser.
Events exclusively for fall 2026
1. Cal vs. UCLA
Personally, one of the most exciting events coming up next semester is the Cal vs. UCLA football game, a home game at Memorial Stadium. The Bruins are coming up north to face the Golden Bears for the first time since 2023 — blue and gold of all shades will fill the stands and student section for what’s sure to be a highlight of the season. With many students — including myself — being from Los Angeles, it’ll be novel to have SoCal fill up the Bay for a day, and you might even spot a friend from back home.
Students at Memorial Stadium from the Berkeley Gallery.
2. The Jungle at Zellerbach Hall
It isn’t every day that the titans of neo-soul perform 5 minutes from your residence hall. This fall, on October 6 and 7, the Jungle are coming to Berkeley, performing at Zellerbach Hall in Lower Sproul Plaza. It would be remiss of me not to mention the exclusive opportunity to hear tracks like “Back On 74” and “I’ve Been In Love” live, though as tickets currently sit at $88.45, it’s important to also note alternative free musical opportunities such as the Department of Music’s weekly noon concerts and ASUC SUPERB’s free concerts that will be announced later in the semester.
Berkeley rapper Brandon “Lil B” McCartney concert by Kevin Ho Nguyen.
3. CapFest
Every year, the students of Cinematic Arts & Production Studios at UC Berkeley record their creativity with the camera, draw ornate images with their directing, and make art with their acting. Their student films are screened annually at the CAPFest film festival in December at the iconic Grand Lake Theater in Oakland. Whether you’re a casual viewer or a film aficionado, five hours of uninterrupted student film is a hard offer to pass up.
CAPFest by Cinematic and Arts Studios at UC Berkeley.
Seize the day
UC Berkeley’s motto, “Fiat Lux,” a Latin phrase that translates to “Let there be light”, reminds us that every day is an opportunity to make new discoveries, have new experiences, and enjoy the many offerings of our institution. Thus, it’s essential that we “carpe diem,” a Latin phrase that translates to “seize the day.” These annual and exclusive events are amazing opportunities to do exactly that.
Joseph Burney, Class of 2029, is majoring in philosophy and minoring in journalism. Cover photo by Brittany Hosea-Small.
Want more?
- Find the friends and community you’ll spend the semester with.
- Discover the “blue heart” clubs that are right for your fall semester.
- Check out these free creative resources to dig into your creativity.