University of California-Santa Barbara Top Questions

professors are a bit unapproachable/favorite class was poli sci 7-international relations because professor belkin is amazing and the class was very very good/our school is competitive within the classroom but only outside in terms of passing and getting in in competition with city college attendees/german department and trying to figure out my double major- very amazing department, small and very personable/i do spend time with my prof outside of class for german- we have lots of class extracurriculars including movies and coffee meetings/the academic requirements to get in are a lot more challenging than the academics at the actual school is my opinion/ucsb is geared towards finding what you want to do and sticking to it- there are resources for everyone so it depends what you decide to do and how you will get there and take advantage of what it has to offer or not

i've really liked most my classes. some teachers shouldn't teach, and don't even seem to really like people. others really enjoy what they are doing. the psychology classes are pretty fun, but my favorite class so far was sex and relationships. everyone became friends, and it was nice to go to a class where everyone knew your name.

classes are great. most teachers are fair and informative

Emphasis in on research here. Undergraduate education is not a priority. Research money is what it's all about.

Class is like any class I've ever had. Professor lectures, students comment and question here and there, and most it's taking in what they have to say on the subject matter. You definitely get a different perspective on your professors when you go to their office hours. They can be really helpful or really not. I know some students go out to lunch with some of their professors, that can definitely benefit them in the future.

i never got too close with my professors. i HATED astronomy. its not stars and meteors, its straight physics. so it sucked to be me. i really liked the history of black popular music by dr. earl stewart. he's the man, take anything he offers. a great teacher and an even better person. depending on the class, participation takes place, but sometimes people like to think they're really cool and know a lot of answers but that's when i get annoyed, usually from hearing their voices and dumb comments too much. i'm here to learn, not to make out with them. global studies is a great major. i like that big picture mentality, so taking a step back and learning a lot about a myriad of different topics and categories really kept my interested. i learned about international business ethics, global environment trends, regional sociology, global culture and religions and international trade. woo.

i love almost all classes i take at ucsb. of course there are always classes you dont like but overall i am more than satisfied with what i have taken from my education. I am sad i am graduating because there are so many more classes i wish i had at least another year to take. class participation is very common. as a soc major we discuss many controversial and debatable topics and ideas. so students who are interested have something to say. the sociology department has lot of diversity in it, in the classes offered as well as professors and lecturers who teach. we have some very prominant figures who are known in sociology literature and i am proud to learn from them.

Academics are solid. The math professors don't speak English, but CLAS makes up for that. Students study a moderate amount, but it isn't a competitive thing. Lectures are big but if you speak up the professor will learn your name.

In order to get a professor to know you by name, especially in a large class, you have to go out of your way to go to office hours. Other wise you are nothing but a number. Students study a lot. Many people know the party reputation of UCSB, but not that our school is actually challenging and requires study skills. Class participation is only common in small classes. Big lecture halls rarely have interaction and most people get annoyed if class goes over the time period anyway. I do have intellectual discussions outside of class. It comes with going to school with intelligent people. I have not personally taken this class, but we do have a sailing class, which I heard it amazing. The psychology department is extremely helpful with any questions or concerns. The classes are interesting and challenging, while the professors are overall very good. Plus, because we are a UC, many research opportunities come up where students can work with professors on psychology experiments, which looks great for Graduate school.

No professor has ever learned my name. Europeans, don't take anything in the Chicano Studies department if want to be able to look yourself in the mirror. Everyone in the sciences is competitive but we help each other out too. I always had the feeling that we were "in this together." That really helps, especially as a Freshman and Sophomore. Back then you are still studying too much and learning too little. It isn't until Junior year that you hit your stride, and start to have an enjoyable life on the side. I regretted my decision sometimes, but then I would be talking to a friend and we would start discussion the pros and cons of L-glutamate supplementation (no pros in my opinion) and suddenly I was proud of all the work I'd done.

I knew all the professors in my department by their first names. They always took the time to speak to me. Most of the young professors are cool enough to make time for you outside of class. Archaeology was one of the coolest majors I saw during my tenure at UCSB. The department is small, but well known the the field. However, dont expect a job straight out of college. Very little in the way of hands-on field work unless you travel.

Whether or not professors know your name really depends on the class. I've had classes that have 300+ people, so they obviously won't know your name. But I've also had classes with only 20 people and I really get to know my teacher, and he/she gets to know me. For every class, you also have a discussion section each week that tends to have a small amount of people, so you at least get to know your T.A. How much students study definitely varies, again, depending on your class load. Last quarter, I didn't leave the quiet study room. This quarter, I don't think I've been there once, and I have way too much free time on my hands. I've had some of the most intellectual conversations I've ever been a part of here at UCSB. I've been in a lot of controversial debates with my roommate and friends. We still talk about stupid stuff, but it's nice knowing that people can hold an intelligent conversation, too.

On a 4.0 scale ( 4 being Harvard and 1 being a Community College. Id give a UCSB a 3.4

Most introductory classes are huge, and the professor definitely won't know who you are unless you talk to him/her directly. (They love it when you do, though.) I had one introductory course in IV Theater - which holds over 500 students - where the professor took attendance for every lecture (it was a nightmare), but all the other introductory courses usually leave lecture as optional, and then put questions from lecture on their tests. In this case, it's good to get a friend in the class. The nature of the majors at UCSB varies. Engineering, I hear, is the hardest. It has its own college, even. The next hardest would probably be Biology or Chemistry, especially in the lower division courses where the competition is high. I'm a sophomore Communication major, and so far it's been very feasible. The introductory courses can be a little boring, but I have friends in upper division Communication, and they said that those courses are smaller and significantly better. I'm looking forward to it!

Some of my professors know my name. However, all the professors are willing to get to know the students, but you have to take the initiative and go and talk to them in office hours. Some classes are different with others when it comes to class participation; the smaller classes like writing require more participation then the big GE classes. I have not really spent much time with my professors outside of class. However, I did take one seminar and for our final the professor had pizza at his house that was pretty cool! Education at UCSB is geared a lot towards research is some departments.

A lot of my professors do know my name. My favorite classes have been my Russian classes (the professors and my classmates are great and I've learned a ton) and also my sociolinguistics classes, because I thought they were absolutely fascinating. My least favorite class has been semantics, mostly because of the professor I'm sorry to say. Students study A LOT. That's how college goes. Class participation is common, but most of the participation is done by a few students. I hear lots of interesting intellectual conversations going on outside of class. (The dining commons especially seems to inspire all sorts of bizarre but interesting ones) Students want to do well, but theyre supportive of eachother too. There's way more cameraderie than competition. That's one of my favorite things about UCSB. My major/department is wonderful. I love linguistics. I highly recommend taking a class in it to anyone who comes here. I think the education at UCSB is geared towards learning for its own sake, but it should definitely be a huge asset in getting a job as well.

Once you start getting into upperdivision classses your professors begin to remember you. My favorite classes here at UCSB have been Politcal Science 7 which is an intro class to international relations with professor Belkin and all of the Black Studies classes I have taken especially those with Professor McAuley, Lipsitz, and Madison. I am a Political Science and Black Studies major and I enjoy being apart of both departments. The learning at UCSB is definitely more theory based becuase we are a research based institution but I do feel like I have learned many skills that I will carry with me into the work force.

Professors don't generally know names. But my music professors do. favorite class: anything other than writing has been quite fun!~ Least favorite: Writing. Not fun at all. Studying: really depends on people participation: pretty common Music major needs to take many many more classes than any other majors. I don't think it's fair at all because we don't get many credits at all for them and it just seems like the administration thinks that since most people who are in the major genuinely love music, it's ok to make them do more since they're doing what they like to do. UNFAIR. Job...I really don't know.

UCSB professors are here to help you. They WANT you to go into their office to talk to them, most of the time-they're pretty lonely. In class participation in discussions are important (it's part of your grade). Some interesting classes UCSB students should take are: Soc152A (human sexuality) and AsAm 8 (about AsAm gender roles). Even if you're not sexually active, or if you are...Soc152A is a great class to take- the midterms are pretty difficult, but nonetheless, I've gotten so much out of the class. The most important thing to do for your classes is to visit the T.As. They're the ones that determine your grades, and sometimes, they feed you answers to the test or tell you what's going to be on it. There's a lot of reading for every class, but I have not experienced any competitiveness. Our school is pretty chill.

The Humanities at UCSB are great. Profs are sooo interested in the material, and in getting you interested in it. If you put in the effort to get to know them, they will get to know you, and remember you. The 4 series in History is great, as is 17. Religious studies, global studies and comparative literature are always great classes. I feel like the more you relate to or enjoy the class material, the less you will have to study, and the less of a chore it will be. It is soo important to make sure that you are in classes that you will enjoy and not just that you feel like you should take.