University of California-Santa Cruz Top Questions

The teachers are really interested in getting to know all their students; the one's who go and talk to them either for help or just to say hi are usually those students who end up doing better in the class.

From my experience, classes at UCSC can vary from a 20 person lab to a 400 person lecture. In all honesty, what you put into the class is what you're going to get out; there is no easy way to get good grades and students are studying most hours of week days and, more often than not, many hours on weekends. However, the UCSC academis system is much more free and student oriented than other campuses and it is known to think outside the box. Competitiveness is hardly an issue with most students, but I have found that majority of the student body works extremely hard in their academic life.

The professors here are awesome. In some classes they are a little too left, so it is difficult to get an unbiased opinion sometimes. But I have taken many biology classes, where I get taught by professors that are so intelligent and excited about what they are saying. They are excited because what they teach isn't dry and boring, it is what they research. Like cancer, new things are being discovered everyday, and we get to learn it first. It makes you excited, because you will do that one day. And the students are encouraging, not that stressfull competitiveness some big schools have.

The professors are really good, even for some of the lower division classes the profs are amazing and engaged. Also, people are really smart.

Once you make it past the prereqs, the class sizes become much more manageable 20-50 people. Most of the professors in my department (linguistics) were great teachers, who made a huge effort to learn names, as well as encourage independant thinking. It was a very tough major but thats probably why its one of the top 3 ling. programs in the country (above UCLA and berkeley). For prospective ling students: make buddies, form study groups, never skip class!! As far as prereqs go, just make sure to learn about your teachers (on ratemyprofessor.com) before enrolling in any classes. For most of the prereqs you can get by with doing the bare minimum and still passing: its the best part about an academic system which allows you to take 25{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of your classes pass/fail. It also helps to have friends in large classes: alternate who goes to class and takes notes/signs people in.

Classes here range from big to small. If you are in a small class most likeley the professor will know your name. But if you are in a huge lecture the professor will most likeley not know who you are unless you go to office hours. It's a good idea to go to office hours that way when you try to apply for grad school you can go to them for letters of recommendation. Large lecture classes usually come with small section classes in which a TA helps you clarify and work through the material the professor presented in class. Usually what I find people struggling with is learning how to study. Make sure you take good notes and look them over. It always helps to highlight and make flashcards before a test. Try not to buy books from the bookstore because the prices are outrageous. Go to Uloop.com or something like that and buy them from students for a lower price both you and the other student benefit. If you aren't sure what your major will be make sure to take a lot of "Intro to... " classes so you can get a feel for what you may like.

Even in classes with 300 or 400 people, professors love having people come talk to them and are always flexible to have one on one time when you express any concern. UCSC doesnt allow classes to be taught by TA's so its always a professor which is good. Some students are competitive, but its not isane, so if ou really work hard, its possible to stand out. The way the students are, you can slack and pass all of your classes, or you can work really hard and get all A's... but the ball is in your court. No classes are impossible, but i've never had an easy A.

People have this idea that UCSC is extremely artistic - and as a result we must have a great art program, or at least a good one. Not so. Our art program is close to non-existent, and it's almost impossible to take any art classes unless you're an art major (we have no art minor). UCSC has no graphic design, 3d design, or digital design facilities/classes. We DO have a great game design program here, but don't come here expecting anything more than that. Also, we have no mechanical engineering program. If you want to pursue engineering, I highly recommend you go to San Jose state, which supposedly has an amazing engineering department. If you want to pursue astrophysics or biology, you'll probably love UCSC's academics. Classes here can be 150-300 people, unless you're in a seminar. If you talk to the professors, most of them will happily get to know you. However, be prepared to run into some nasty surprises - most of my friends agree that a majority of the professors here are dumb as a doornail in comparison to our high school teachers.

Depends on the student and the major. Intro classes tend to be easy, but as you go higher up the food chain you had better be good at the subject. Be prepared to work hard if you don't want to waste your money, i know a lot of people on probation/about to be kicked out for getting low grades. It's a UC, UC's are serious schools.

Professors don't care to know my name. My favorite class is Economics in East&Southeast Asia, and my least favorite class was core because I did not get the college I wanted to live in. Students study everyday in the evening. Class participation is not very common, most students keep to themselves. Students are not competitive at all. I am a global economics major. I have not taken any unique classes so far. I try to go to office hours and get to know my professor and vice versa. I feel that UCSC has reasonable academic requirements, but most students are unaware of them, like what classes to take for what major, where to go, who to talk to, etc. I think the education at UCSC is geared towards learning for its own sake. But what can I say, I'm a freshman, not an upperclassmen yet.