University of California-Santa Cruz Top Questions

Very beautiful campus. Beautiful hiking trails and secret nooks to find. I walk up and down hills all day. DON'T TAKE THE BUSES! Walk! It's a beautiful campus and you will LOSE the Freshmen 15 if you walk to class. It is a big campus but really only takes 20 mins to get across it. Some things to note: UCSC has been trying to cut funds for Humanities for years. It might be better to go here if you are going to focus on the sciences. The bookstore is mediocre at best. The library is satisfactory. Santa Cruz is a fun town if you can drink or surf. Otherwise it's only ok. Don't bother with the Boardwalk. Some hostile locals towards UCSC students, so don't throw huge keggers off-campus unless you want to get a party fine from the city. UCSC is NOT a party school unless your drug of choice is THC. Oh...and the Banana Slug is the best college mascot....ever.

If you love the forest and access to the ocean, this is the place for you.

When i tell people that I go to UCSC, they always ask how it feels living in the trees and if there really are hippies on campus. On campus I probably spend most of my time in my room either online or watching movies or studying. Off campus I am usually downtown at the movies and or eating dinner. I think the biggest recent controversy was the tree sitters and also the unfair worker's conditions that groups such as AFSCME are fighting for.

right now, the size of the school is pretty much all right. i'm worried because they have been trying to expand, and the small town of santa cruz can't really handle any more students. the metro buses from downtown are always full by the time they get to the base of campus, if not a mile before then. if i could change anything, it would be the expansion of the campus. the best thing about ucsc is the setting. i love walking to class through the forest and seeing doe and their fawn, though some kid did recently get attacked by a mountain lion at merrill college. my professors are amazing too. the professors in the psychology, politics, and feminist studies departments are my favorite! the most frequent student complaints concern the accessibility of the campus (the lack of parking lots and meters, and the fact that meters are at least 75 cents per half hour.) you absolutely can't drive to campus, and the expansion and surfeit of students riding buses from downtown make driving a serious temptation. i would say there is a lot of school pride, but it's a different kind of school pride than i'd expect students at big private universities with great sports teams to have. i love telling people i go to ucsc. ucsc provides a different kind of education--an education i'd be lost without. lots of people in my conservative hometown think i must be a communist anarchist (which doesn't even make sense) when i tell them i go here, and it's fun to play devil's advocate. i guess that brings me to another complaint a handful of students have--that ucsc is 'too liberal.' i think it's a silly complaint, as most of my professors are relatively unbiased.

The school is quite large, but the fact that it's broken into 10 smaller colleges makes it feel much smaller. The campus is beautiful and has many great places to sit outside and study under the trees and in view of the Monterey bay. If you don't want to be outside, there are several libraries, coffee shops, and sitting areas inside academic buildings. The school is often known by its stereotypes, but anyone who has ever gone here knows that the quality of education is very high, and students love their learning environment. Many of our programs are top-ranked. There are 2 big controversies on campus right now. The first is the school's plan to expand and build a new science facility on Science Hill. This is called the Long Range Development Plan (LRDP). Many students disagree with this because it was done in secret, and the plan calls for cutting down many of the beautiful redwood trees on campus. In protest, there are students living in the trees on Science Hill. The second is the AFSCME workers union renegotiating their contract. All UC workers are going on strike, which is a debilitating hit. This is currently happening on all UC campuses. There is a lot of school pride. Students absolutely love UCSC. We wear banana slug gear and get involved in the school. We have very few sports teams, but there is a great amount of support for the ones we have.

UCSC is a pretty good school, not only do you get a fair education, but there are a lot of social and philosophical classes that you can take to get a broader view of the world on the side. I am a bio major and still had time to take some of these classes. It has the same administrative bullshit and runaround of any university. There is no big central meeting area where you will see everyone, but each department has a center and so that's where you will spend most of your time. Most students move off campus their second year and SC is a beautiful place: The ocean, the redwood forests, the cliffs, beautiful. The community is very diverse, but there is a little locals vs. slugs (that's our mascot) rivalry that mostly happens in the water (for the surfers) but can come up on land and ruin a party. For the most part the westside is dominated by students and rich older people so its not so much of a problem, but if you move over to the eastside (where its a lot cheaper!) don't be a dick or someone might try to put you in your place. There is a strange dynamic between locals, students and tourists.

I think the best thing about UCSC is that many professors care a great deal about their undergraduate students. I have had talks with several of mine outside of the classroom and they generally the professors have had some really interesting experiences. It is funny when I tell people about UCSC they tend to laugh and ask me if we have had any good protests lately. If I could change one thing it would be how protesters mobilize. They shouldn't march on a daily basis and they should only march on the people who can actually change what they are trying to protest. The protesters also believe that their cause is just, so they violate the law and then get up in arms over police "brutality" when the police start to arrest them. The general atmosphere around protests is the one thing that I really hate about this campus. However, the environment is wonderful and I believe the campus currently holds the right number of students. There is a Long Range Development Plan which wants to increase the size of the school a great deal, but it is still many years away from being implemented. Hopefully it won't destroy the natural beauty of this campus. It has many fantastic mountain bike and hiking trails. Every fall the local AIDS group puts together a great road biking event which winds through Santa Cruz county. This campus puts you in the center of great things and I would strongly recommend coming here.

This campus is amazing, there isn't another one that can compare to its beauty.

UCSC is a BEAUTIFUL campus. So many trees and naturally gorgeous. It's big but I always seem to see people I know. I hang out in people's dorm rooms a lot. There are some coolish things on campus- Porter Caves, Tree 9, peace forts where people smoke, etc. Usually some kind of dance somewhere on campus if you like those. The town of Santa Cruz is OK, there's a lot of restaurants and clothes stores and a few movie theaters. There's always the beach but the boardwalk is really expensive. Not a whole lot to do though.

Its a beautiful campus that really offers a range of subjects and activites that you can't find most places.

At first the school seems massive and like it will be impossible to navigate, but you learn your way around quickly and can usually get anywhere on campus in under 30 minutes on foot. You seem to spend most of your time on campus in your own residential college, since there is no great central meeting place. The college town is small, but it has a good spread of everything you could possibly need, plus its close to the beach and the boardwalk, which has rides and games. There is tension between the students and administration at times over further development of the school, but for the most part both sides get along fine and the students are pretty much able to do as they please. While there is hardly any emphasis on sports teams, there is definitely a strong sense of school pride since UCSC is such a unique, at times quirky place.

It's big here. The campus is spread out, but there's a pretty good bus system, so getting anywhere around campus isn't TOO much of a problem, especially if you're not against walking. It does make for a segregated populace though, as there is no "common area" central to all of the mini-colleges, so people tend to stay within their respective living areas. Pick somewhere you want to hang out a lot to live. A major downside is the distance the campus is from any sort of normal civilization. First-years aren't allowed to have a car, and parking on campus is on the expensive side. A trip downtown on the bus is an journey (going to get groceries? It'll take around an hour and half), and forget walking to say, Taco Bell unless you're in for an epic journey. It is pretty here though, and close to the ocean. Surfing is actually a PE class, which is pretty sweet.

The best thing by far is the gorgeous campus. The trees and mountains are so inspiring and unique for a college campus. There is not a lot of school pride, which is sad. People rarely come to the few sporting events we do have, and people are generally not very involved in the school. Sometimes I feel like I am at a huge commuter school. The size is just right for me. Small enough to recognize a few faces, but large enough to meet new people everyday and not get bored with the offerings here. The townspeople in Santa Cruz are not very friendly towards students, mostly because we drive up rent prices and crowd the already-too-small town with our cars and surfboards. One experience I will always remember is the great friends and people I have met here. The people are very unique, and there are many that I don't get along with, but once you find your niche, the social atmosphere is great. We go to the beach and go frisbee golfing.

I, personally, love going to UCSC. Some of the reasons are that it's somewhat isolated but it's still not too tough to get around, and another is because the on-campus environment is so friendly and laid-back. The campus is a little bit big for walking - if you live in Crown and you have a class in Oakes, it'll take between half an hour to an hour to walk there. I think the beauty of the scenery makes up for that, though. And if you're worried about making friends, it's not too tough: Despite the big number of students who attend UCSC, only a portion of them live on-campus; and living in the individual colleges gives a small-campus feel, so it's easier to make friends with those in your immediate area. Admittedly I'm not the most social person - UCSC accommodates for both the social and the anti-social pretty well. It's easy to make friends when you live on-campus. I've definitely run into a few people who have looked surprised or scoffed a bit when I told them I attend UC Santa Cruz. I know UCSC has a bit of a reputation (from before the system began giving letter-grades) of being academically less-than-UC-standard, but I don't think that's so true anymore. There are definitely some great teachers here - as well as some bad ones, but you can't expect a huge school to have 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} fabulous professors.

UCSC is a great place to be when you're trying to develop yourself and discover yourself in new ways. You live among a community of (almost totally) extremely open-minded people and it's extremely easy to find a small community of people which share some of your similar values and interests. There are so many things to love about UCSC and to keep you busy and intrigued. I don't think I could ever get bored of living in Santa Cruz--the city is so full of life and culture, and it's life and culture is great for the soul. If you love sun, nature, surfing, vibrant colors, and a wide array of great, genuine people and conversation, UCSC is the place for you.

Our school is a medium sized school and most of the students are democratic and environmentally friendly. when i tell people that i go to ucsc they automatically assume that i am a stoner (which i am). the best part about our school is the view on campus and our ski and snowboard club. santa cruz is a beautiful city and the campus is extremely nice. I am not really a fan of the school system though. it is organized poorly and the traffic/parking sucks. we are not really considered a party school, but i think that is changing thanks to ski club and people like me.

Being a slug is probably one of the lamest and weakest mascots a school can have, but don't let that fool you. UCSC is beautiful.

I honestly feel that UCSC is different from every other college. The students do a great job balancing their time between academics and social gatherings. On the bus, I always here people discuss their classes and tests that are coming up. But we don't take ourselves too seriously. We have "first run" and "4/20" here on campus. "First Run" occurs the first night it rains at the beginning of each academic year. It is also considered the naked run. Naked students start running from Porter College and make their way to all of the colleges. About 600-700 students are known to run while everyone else is cheering them on on the side of the road. "4/20" is another great event; I don't need to explain it. Look it up!

I love UCSC. The best thing about it is the community. I feel like I have friends everywhere. Even though this is a incredibly large university, it seems small, like you know more people than you think. Plus, in your major you kinda end up seeing the same people, which makes for a great community. The anthropology community, but the way, is awesome. I love my fellow anthro buddies. I spend most of my time on campus hanging out with friends either in lounges, outside, in the dh or at their place. Santa Cruz town is great, though I wouldn't characterize it as a college town, which fits me better. I never favored a college town environment. The administration is one bureaucratic state. It very rarely listens to the students and sets up bizzare restrictions. Plus, sometimes I feel that it acts too fast and without the best interest of the students at heart. Though, I must say, I do have compassion because it must be hard to be in charge, considering the dynamics of the UC Regents. The biggest recent controversy was the military men coming on during career fair. There is a lot of school pride, but it is very passive. I'll always remember going for hikes and cooking with friends. I'll also always remember our community and the incredible classes I've taken. I love UCSC. There is no other college I would have wanted to go to.

The greek life is a big part of UCSC, I myself am a part of it so I can really agree to this fact. It allows the opportunity for people to be active with on campus activities but also to meet new people and increase the amount of friends one has. The proffesors are amazing and are very knowledgeable in what they teach; in the long run when you tell someone you go to UCSC they oooo and aaaaahhh and really look at you in high respects. I must say when I graduate I will be leaving with an extensive amount of wonderful information and great friends.