UC Santa Barbara

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Vital Stats

Status: Public
Full-Time Undergraduates: 17,529
Overall Acceptance Rate: 53%
Student to Faculty Ratio: 17 to 1
Web Site: www.ucsb.edu
Most Popular Major: Business

Social Life & Atmosphere

UCSB and its town of Isla Vista, Calif. are laidback and outdoors-oriented, with a large and diverse student body that digs a solid school-life balance. House parties are going on pretty much all the time, with the first weekend of school being like a total bacchanal. The Greek scene is small but prominent, and also takes a casual approach to rushing, offering a frat or sorority experience without some of the crappy hazing. A drug scene does exist, but it’s not the overriding culture of the school, either. If you're under 21, your fake ID might not fly in town, but once you have a real one, there are some nightclubs and bars that entertain locals nightly.

During the daylight hours, the school boasts a robust Intramural program, ranging from snowboarding to surfing to soccer, accommodating former high school stars as well as recreational fun-seekers. Overall, students come to UCSB for the lifestyle as much as anything else, so be prepared to enjoy it. (Sounds really tough, right?)

Facilities

The UCSB campus is well-maintained and well-equipped to handle the number of students there. There are 18 computer labs, plus Ethernet hookups in the dorms and WiFi on campus. The main library -- Davidson -- has eight floors of hardcore 1970s feel, but the University Center (UCen) is like the Peach Pit of the school, with fast-food restos, cafes, a coffee shop, bookstore and computer lab. The campus Rec Center is the big gem of the school, with an outdoor lap pool, four indoor basketball courts, a climbing wall and a Jacuzzi, among other things. The drawback of having such a slick facility, though, is that it can get so crowded that lying out in the sun is sometimes the better option.

Academics

Students at UCSB should expect to work hard, but true to the sunny California vibe, the atmosphere isn't cutthroat. Classes are generally very large and sometimes run by TAs, but students who look for more one-on-one time with their profs or want truly stellar class time can usually get it. While some students say that the atmosphere is too laidback, professors generally strive to make sure that students enjoy learning, instead of having to drag themselves through it. University of California schools are on the quarter system, which means that you'll start hearing about midterms in the second or third week of class -- a great call if you like your studies intense but brief.

Weather

Santa Barbara is known as 'seasonless' because of its nearly year-round sunny days and cool ocean breezes -- but don't leave your hoodie and jeans at home. Southern California is known for the 'June Gloom' of a month’s gray, cool weather, as well as to sometimes chilly, rainy weather -- but hardly enough to keep students from sunbathing, biking and surfing year-round. You’ll wanna get your homework early, so you can bust out and enjoy the outdoors.

Craving More Info?

Visit CollegeProwler.com, where you can purchase UC Santa Barbara: Off the Record, a for-the-students, by-the-students guidebook on more than 20 aspects of UCSB life. CollegeProwler.com offers guidebooks on hundreds of schools, or you can sign up for an online account and get access to everything instantly!

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