University of California - Los Angeles - Overall Experience

College Prowler Take

UCLA is a school for people who want to focus mainly on education and still have an occasional night out. There is a reason that UCLA is not a party school; the classes are too difficult to slack off for any prolonged stretch of time. However, being set amidst a Greek system that thrives on throwing boisterous parties and in close proximity to a plethora of dive bars and easygoing nightlife, staying inside all the time is nearly impossible. Add all of the campus events, speakers, workshops, and free shows to the mix, and you have something of interest for everyone in the spectrum.

UCLA challenges the students in many distinct arenas. Academically, students need to be prepared to focus on their classes beginning the first day of school. Classes demand that students study every night. Socially, students are pressed to find a niche amongst a throng of 35,000 students. Student actions tend to feel minuscule in such a large student body. Fortunately, classmates are generally polite and helpful. The first year you make friends helps scale down the exorbitant number of students of the campus and form friendships that endure the college experience. The academic and social challenge that students face is enhanced because there is no school-sponsored programs outside of the dorms that bring students together. On the brighter side, this forces many students to branch out and develop social skills that they would never have learned under the guidance of such programs. Through all of its challenges, UCLA is the ideal school to come to if you want to grow into a stronger person (physically, mentally, intellectually, socially) as students are sure to learn more than just what’s inside the textbooks.

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Students Speak Out

UCLRG says: University of California - Los Angeles 2011 Computer and Information Sciences

UCLA is amazing. There's so much... UCLA is amazing. There's so much to do, so many people to meet, so much to learn, and so many great times to be had! It can be hard to juggle one's social life with one's academic life, especially depending on the major you're in. I like how there are so many choices of what to do, whether it involves what to do in my academic life, what to see around LA, or simply what to eat in Westwood. 12345 Overall Experience: March 11, 2009 Report

UCLJH says: University of California - Los Angeles 2011 Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics

UCLA has been really wonderful. I... UCLA has been really wonderful. I do not live on campus, so it has been a struggle to find friendships. But, I also know people who live on campus and do not have any good friends. It really depends on you and how much time you are willing to put in to a friendship. 12345 Overall Experience: March 02, 2009 Report

UCLAT says: University of California - Los Angeles 2012 Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences

It's awesome! I would come here... It's awesome! I would come here again. 12345 Overall Experience: March 01, 2009 Report

Anonymous says:

At UCLA, you really are just a... At UCLA, you really are just a number. It’s huge. Every day, you’ll be surrounded by people you have never seen before. The key is to find a niche. You will meet so many different types of people who will really open your mind. You’ll have to fight with the administration a lot, and they don’t always give you help or advice. You also have to fight to get your questions answered. It’s a hard school both socially and academically. UCLA had made me socially and politically aware. I guess I could say I have been hardened. Sometimes, I wished I went to a small private school where everyone knows your name and they hold your hand, but UCLA prepares you for the real world. Although it wasn’t always smooth sailing, I wouldn’t have gone anywhere else. 12345 Overall Experience Report

Anonymous says:

UCLA was a great school for me. I... UCLA was a great school for me. I had a lot of fun. There are a lot of opportunities available, so take advantage of them. I was afraid it would be too large and impersonal for me, but I found that the opposite was true. You get a great education for the price of a state school. 12345 Overall Experience Report

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