University of California - Los Angeles
Reviews

UCLA- It's in Los Angeles.

There are many nightlife things to do at UCLA. The frats and sororities are lined up in a row that is close by the campus. Many campus clubs also have clubbing events and parties.

Westwood Village is a ten-minute walking distance from the campus, and there are restaurants, shops, and movie theaters in the village.

Also, Hollywood, Sawtelle, Koreantown, and Santa Monica are not far from campus. It is easy to leave the UCLA bubble to go to malls, clubs, restaurants, and beaches.

UCLA- as Diverse as Los Angeles County

Being in Los Angeles, UCLA is really diverse. Statistically, Caucasians are a majority, but the Asian ethnicities are very present at UCLA, and most international students are from Asian countries. There is also a strong presence of other ethnicities, as seen through the cultural clubs for Latinos/Latinas, African-Americans, and various Middle Eastern ethnic groups.

Moreover, there are many different religious groups on campus. Although there are many Christian groups, there are also Buddhist, Jewish, Atheist, and Muslim groups on campus as well. There is also a Catholic center near campus, and the center actually hosts many different religious clubs' meetings.

There is also a strong acceptance of the LGBT community, and they have their own office in the Student Activities center.

The Best

UCLA's dining is second best in the nation! We recently opened a new dining hall called Feast, which serves legit pan-Asian food.

Lots to Do

Being in LA just gives you so many options. You can explore Westwood, shop at the 3rd Street Promenade at Santa Monica, visit Hollywood, and so much more. My first year, we trick-or-treated in Bel-Air.

Mostly Sunny

Most days are sunny, and average around the 70s. You'll still have some rainy and cold days though.

Overall Experience at UCLA

I love UCLA and would recommend it to anyone I know. It is a great place to learn to grow up -- it's basically a diverse city of 18 to 20-somethings. Between the nationally ranked athletics and academics, as well as extremely strong art programs, UCLA serves everyones' interests, especially those students with diverse intersts. Being in a huge city helps as well: there are a variety of internships available for whatever field you want. It has a strong Greek life, excellent social scene, active arts scene, and engaging academic world. Take advantage of every opportunity offered!

Greek Life

I joined Greek Life first quarter freshman year, and it turned out to be the best decision possible. Not only do I have the greatest sisters, but they party hard and also study just as hard. UCLA is a very challenging school, especially for South Campus (Science Majors), but it can be managed to find the perfect balance. Joining a sorority made a school that can at times feel very large seem like a small community. If you are a boy and not in Greek life, it can be very difficult to get into frat parties, though it is not the case at all for girls. But other than Greek parties, there are opportunities to go clubbing in Santa Monica and apartment parties and some of the fraternities let in boys. Greek housing is readily available with spots for 50-70 people in most of the houses.

Westwood Village

Not a bad place to grab something to eat for cheap or expensive. Definitely have many different options to eat from fast food (subway) to dine in (Yamata's Sushi). There is a diverse amount of restaurants that can cater to your cravings, whether you're feeling something mexican or to a more american dining, throw in a couple delicious asian cuisines and persian and thai food in as well. Definitely a great place to eat late at night as well most places close midnight or later.

Psychology

The psychology major is the biggest undergraduate major at UCLA thus classes are typically huge in size, with most having at least 300 students. If you don't take the initiative to get to know your professors, such as going to office hours, it's very easy to become just another number. However, if you do take that extra step, professors are generally very helpful and welcoming. There are also plenty of opportunities for research within the psychology department. You have professors and graduate students who are more than happy to receive the free labor. All in all the student body is huge but fortunately if you take advantage of it, you have one of the best psychology research institutions at your fingertips.

Plethora of Computers

There are nine libraries at UCLA and each have computers for students to work from. You can also find a computer lab in any building on campus. In addition, the library also checks out apple laptops for four hours at a time.

A Well Dressed Crowd

UCLA is generally known as a college of good looking, well-dressed girls and boys. Everyone on campus is usually dressed well if not stylishly. But everyone is human, and around midterms and finals, the sweatpants come out.

Financial Aid Is Standard

Its like any other public school. You either qualify or you don't.

California Rules

The weather here is almost always ideal. California weather can't be beat.

Easy

Most of them you just need to declare as your major. Freshman admissions are major-blind!! So if you pick physics or english your chance of getting in is the same.

Some majors are impacted and you do have to apply but thats less then 5% of the majors.

They Have Everything

UCLA has great facilities. The dorms have lounges and study rooms on every floor. There are so many different libraries and athletic locations. I love that there is always an event at UCLA that attracts a variety of audiences.

They're on Top of It

UCLA is very good about safety and security. They constantly perform drills via email and practice safety evacuations often. Not only do the police offers patrol, but the employees are frequently looking out for the safety of others as well.

Very Safe

It has its own campus police department and EMT responders, and they respond very quickly. They also have volunteer safety officers that will accompany you throughout campus if needed. It has a lot of services to prevent theft and other crime on campus.

Dining Halls

There are 4 residential dining halls: De Neve, Covel, Hedrick, and Feast (the new Pa-Asian themed dining hall). All four serve pretty decent food and are fairly conveniently located. My favorite is Feast; lots of diversity and authenticity in dishes, and everyday is vastly different from each other. One day could be Korean-Thai, the next could be Japanese-Hawaii or Vietnamese-Indian or any number of combos of the above plus Chinese. Moreover, Feast is located right at my dorm, Rieber Hall, so it's the most convenient.

There Is So Much to Do!

There is literally something for everyone! From research opportunities, clubs, volunteer groups, politically active groups, a cappella groups, music clubs, dance companies, sports teams, etc. Everyone is doing there own thing and the possibilities are endless! There are some amazing professors on campus and so many internship/job opportunities! I love UCLA! Also, the weather is sunny all year around! You can't beat that!

Los Angeles Has Lots to Do, but Transportation Is a Pain

There is so much to do in LA that it's almost over whelming, but if you don't have a car it's really hard to go anywhere. Westwood is really nice, but just has a lot of shopping and restaurants to hang out in. You have to use the bus system to do anything fun, which is fine, but it takes forever.

Convenience of Housing

Housing is pretty great, and everything is very easy and convenient for the people that live in the dorms. There are laundry rooms, workout rooms, and the dining halls are extremely close to the dorms. There is also a cleaning service, so the only thing you need to do to to keep the room neat is to vacuum and take out the trash.

Closer Apartments Are Expensive

As you get closer to campus, the apartments become smaller and more expensive. Further away, there are apartments that are cheaper but getting to class can be a problem. However UCLA provides its very own bus system for these students so it can be worth the extra mile.

Anthropology

I love it. I was unsure about my major coming in, Chemistry, and when I finally decided to switch to Anthropology and that was the best decision ever.

Beautiful Weather All the Time

The weather is excellent. You can expect most days to be sunny and you do seldom have to worry about the rain.

Athletic Centers

There are always a space to do whatever people enjoy most. There is also a lot of equipment available to use. The facilities are always clean and taken care of.