University of California-San Diego Top Questions

BASICALLY, UCSD provides more than enough opportunities for every students to study what they would like. Professors are generally competent, but TAs may be the waekest part of the Academics system at UCSD, there is no middle ground, either the TA is amazing, or the TA stinks.

Most classes are hard, and for the most part I have been lucky with amazing professors (though there have been some, especially in the physics department, that have driven me absolutely crazy). My favorite class has been Sedimentology and Stratigraphy, mostly because the teacher was awesome and we got to go on a bunch of field trips to apply our classroom knowledge. The general education requirements at UCSD are insane - I am in Revelle college which is the worst of them all. I was fortunate enough to have many of my requirements coincide with my major, but I saw many of my communication major friends struggle through three quarters of college calculus which ended up adding multiple quarters to their time at UCSD. I feel that I was prepared properly at UCSD for a career in research, which is what I am pursuing next year as a PhD student in oceanography.

Difficult classes. Must be dedicated to succeed. No skating by. Science classes the prof.s don't seem to care about their students (for the most part) b/c they only teach so they can get funding for research... :( BOO!

grant nebel is an excellent teacher. intense. econ/chem/history all rolled into one. very difficult. richardo dominguez. an interesting teacher. i had to stop counting the amount of times i saw penises and vaginas in class because i saw them at least twice within a lecture. but regardless i enjoyed his class. keith poole. the worst political science teacher i took. obviously bias, anti- anything non american and rightwinged. also, a bland speaker. i dropped his class after attending my third lecture. how often students study? depends on the major. engineerers of any sort have to study all the time. class participation is generally a must and is part of your grade, at least in political science. how education is geared depends on your college. some like muir seek independence and personal freedom while others like revelle demand well-roundedness (hence the amount of ges)

Academics are more challenging and rigorous than I could have ever expected. Every single student here has to work incredibly hard, but the reward comes in gaining an unparalleled education.

Like any large, public university, UCSD has a range of classes from 300 person lecture halls to a 15 person discussion setting. Most classes are split into three hours of lecture and one hour of discussion. Lecture classes are large, and though participation is encouraged, it rarely happens, which is why discussion sections are key to learning effectively. Discussion sections are generally between 20 to 30 people and one TA. This allows for a more personal environment and a closer relationship between students and TAs. The six different colleges also have different general education requirements. Students can choose which college is best for them based off of the level of requirement. I go to Muir College, which is generally known for the easiest GEs. You take two writing classes developed by Muir faculty and then choose four year-long sequences, one from science or math, one social science sequence, and two sequences from foreign language, visual arts, or humanities. The Muir writing classes consist of 12 to 15 people and an instructor, and are honestly some of the best classes at UCSD. I learned more in my Muir 50 class than from any other class on campus so far. My class was about AIDS, society and culture and I learned from many different areas including social science, science, politics, philosophy, fine arts and psychology. The academics here on campus are why I chose to come here, and I have not been disappointed.

I feel like academics at UCSD is the best out there. Not only are the courses interesting, but the professors are amazing. Given there are bad professors, just find the right ones and your academic experience will be wonderful. The best part about academics at UCSD is there is not that much competition. Students at UCSD help each other and want each other to be successful. That rarely happens in any other school.

As a transfer student, I didn't have to take any of the six colleges' GE requirements. If you are an incoming freshmen, the prepare for the BS that goes with it. Many of my friends constantly complain about the writing programs such as MMW, DOC, CAT, Muir Writing, etc. So pick your colleges wisely. I was a communication major. I felt that this program was geared more for intellectual stimulation than helping students get jobs. However, there are UCSD alumni who make it in Hollywood or wherever they desired to be. As for me, I enjoyed my major classes. I got to meet lots of interesting people. The eye candy is quite good too! (Unless you're in engineering, j/k!) You may have heard of the curve system. It's meant to help you, not hurt you.

There is a lot of competition in the classes. Many science and math classes are graded on a curve so it can be tough to get a good grade. The humanities classes, however, are not graded in such a way and are therefore often more reasonable in assigning grades.

Professor can learn your name alright. All of the professors I've had have learned my name. It is pretty easy to get in contact with them. Worst Class: Ethics in Society. It's a GE required by all students in my college. Most unique class: Gospel Choir. It's a 3 unit class and all you do is spend three hours a week learning and performing traditional and contemporary Gospel songs with a local professor tunned pastor.

The students are smart at UCSD, part of the reason I chose it. Some classes are competitive. The professors that I have come in contact with are very helpful and care a lot about forwarding my education.

If you make the effort to get to know your professors by going to office hours, they WILL know your name and they will do everything they can to help you out. The math professors at UCSD all SUCK, which is extremely disappointing. My chemistry professor (Hoeger) however has been amazing, and I plan on following him through the chem series. Students here study A LOT, and a lot of the times it IS necessary, but depending on your major you usually don't have to make yourself crazy studying all night. Class participation usually happens in discussions rather than lecture, but then again there are some professors that like parcipation. UCSD students are WICKED smart, prepare to finally have an intelligent conversation with that guy you've been eying across the class. Students at UCSD are extremely competitive. I can't tell you how many people ask me what grade I got on a test to gloat about how much better they did than me. A lot of the education at UCSD is based on which of the six colleges you go to. At Revelle where I go, the education is very much based on learning for its own sake. If you really want to prepare for the working world, there are plenty of internships and research opportunities for the taking though.

Professors don't usually know my name if it's a big lecture. Students usually study a lot and mostly during midterms or finals. Class participation during section is common but not during lecture. Students are fairly competitive.

not professors yes tas like all the classes very informative study lot participate alot yes intellectual conversations not competitive good requirements both learning and career goals

Professors: They don't know your name, often classes are 200+, but if you go to their office hours, they can get to know you better. Fav and Least Fav Classes: Favorite was Poli12 with Professor Lake. He's awesomely smart and the class was totally interesting. Least favorite was Poli10 With Professor Gordon. It was an hour long napfest three times a week. Study: NEVER! Until finals week, then we cram. Class Participation: The classes are large, so no. But in section (in lower division classes) the size of class is smaller, usually no more than 20 and discussion is sometimes required. Intellectual Conversations: Not really, unless prompted by controlled substances. Competitive: Not really... Unique Class: Haven't had one yet, but the wait list on the Sexual Sociology class is like 100 people long. Major: Political Science with emphasis on International Relations. This will probably be your major too, unless you are Biology... Spend Time with Profs: No. I saw one at Baskin Robbins at 10pm once though. Academic Requirements: In general I think that GEs are a joke, but they are a requirement at almost every reputable school. UCSD Education: I'd say that it's geared towards getting a higher degree. The TAs are almost all PhD candidates or Master's students and they always talk about it.

I think classes are ranked based on the professor. Some professors can be great people but give horrible tests, or some give easy tests but are difficult people. As long as the students have something to engage in and the professors test that, there will be student participation. My favorite class was a Human Nutrition Biology class. I think the thing that made it so great was that the professor related it to college students. She would throw in random sex and exercise facts that you rarely hear about, and then relate it back to how it works in the body.

Professors tend to know your name only if you make the effort to talk to them. My favorite class was definitely HILD2B with professor Klein, because the professor made lectures fairly interesting, her tests were fair, and she seemed to be very friendly. My least favorite had to have been VIS3 with professor Steinbach. Apparently a very large number of people who took the class received A's. However, his class was so mind numbingly boring and my TA was so inept that I simply stopped going to class around the 6th week and got a C+. Students tend to study lightly throughout the semester and cram at the end, which seems typical of every college. Students are not really competitive as few professors will grade on real bell curves.

no comment

No, UCSD is too big for professors to know you personally. Some of the intensive writing classes were difficult, but I like the seminars they provide. Students study quite often, even on Saturdays. Class participation is common especially in liberal arts classes, but I heard in science classes competition is fierce. Some classes don't generate a discussions students are willing to participate in. I think my friends, especially after taking 2 years of a history GE, have intellectual conversations outside of class. I think a lot of the classes teach intellectually-stimulating, but relevant information to our contemporary world, that students find it interesting and easy to talk about it outside of class. I like our communication department is pretty impressive, but I wish the T.A.s were more helpful. I think education at UCSD is geared toward both getting a job or learning for its own sake.

no - none/none - most of the time, since thats mostly all you can do - not really, especially not for large classes - sometimes - yes, very much so.. especially for those engineers - mmw - structural engineering is very interesting, although i've come to the realization that lots of classes that are required are irrelevant - no - ucsd's academic requirement is decent, but how every college has a different requirement is the part that is frustrating, especially for students who want to experience different GE's while coming from different majors - education at ucsd is prepping me for the real world, because it's taught me connections is really important in the world out there.