<p>Wow just getting back to this now. Time flies.</p>
<p>@ duriandrake</p>
<p>I think an accounting minor is useful for recruiting purposes, yes…you could always self-study that material in advance of interviews though.</p>
<p>I’m happy to open this up to any questions for people deciding on whether or not to attend UCLA in this last month before decision day. Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks for being willing to field these questions. Please talk about housing after third year. How hard is it to secure non-university housing? Rates? Location?
Is a bike useful? Recommended? Long boards on campus?
Other public/ campus transportation options for Westwood/ greater LA area?</p>
<p>Do you know how difficult the neuroscience major is, pertaining to the courses required?</p>
<p>Does Neuroscience and Music work well as a double major? </p>
<p>Does the Honors program provide any benefits?</p>
<p>@Minnymom </p>
<p>The Westwood area has plenty of off-campus housing options, all fairly expensive. Of the people I knew, $600-700/month rent was the standard. For a better value, it’s well known that deals are to be had “South of Wilshire” (Blvd), but that means a 15-20ish minute shuttle/bike ride to campus. </p>
<p>I would say a bike is only useful if you have a job off campus and are working with budget/time constraints. I think anyone who lives north of Wilshire (aka Westwood Village) and who conducts a majority of their business on campus will not need a bike. Some people just like bikes though…</p>
<p>As for longboards, those are more common. In the years I was there they started cracking down on people rocketing down Bruin Walk on their longboards/skateboards. Theres definitely more of a culture of longboarding than of biking, but in my view neither make sense on a campus that is (a) hilly and (b) compact.</p>
<p>The last question about public transportation is a bit vague, so I’ll answer generally. Of course LA is not know for having well-developed public transportation infrastructure, but it does exist. </p>
<p>For fun: students get discounts on bus rides to Santa Monica (20-30 minutes away). For work: buses do exist along major corridors (Sunset Blvd, Wilshire, etc.) but tend to be crowded. I had an internship in Beverly Hills as a 3rd year. I worked 4 hours a day, 2-3 days a week (8am-12) and usually had to “hustle” back to make it in time for 1pm lecture. Although the bus wasnt the most comfortable, it was adequate and I managed.</p>
<p>@SmoothAl </p>
<p>I knew a handful of people in the Neuroscience program. It’s reputable,but has taken a bit of a hit in recent years: <a href=“USC steals 2 star brain researchers from UCLA”>http://articles.latimes.com/2013/may/10/local/la-me-0510-usc-ucla-brain-research-20130510</a></p>
<p>I think it’s a testament to the program that it still remains strong from everything I have been told. Funny you ask about doing a Neuro/Music double; I knew someone that did a Neuro/Theater double and seemed to enjoy it very much. I think it can be done and is actually an interesting combination. However, as I mentioned earlier in this thread, I think it’s very important not to start thinking about loading up on classes/majors/minors. College is about finding your purpose in life and way in the world, and not everything can be taught in a classroom.</p>
<p>In that same vein, I tend to suggest against the Honors program. I was in it for a quarter to get priority enrollment in signing up for classes, but once they eliminated that benefit…I eliminated Honors. I think the “regular” classes are plenty rigorous enough, but the benefits to Honors are…(1) a handful of interesting honors-only seminars, (2) more intimate exposure to professors (smaller classes), (3) and a distinction at graduation (although I think this benefit is minimal). I tend to think the juice is not worth the squeeze with respect to the Honors program (classes do tend to be slightly more difficult, but mostly the step up is just in the sheer volume of work – more papers to write, books to read, etc).</p>
<p>Thanks for the q’s and continue to fire away!</p>
<p>You might not know the answer to this, but does it matter when you submit the SIR if it’s anytime before the deadline? Like is there any advantage to getting better housing if I submit earlier?</p>
<p>@lostinmymind </p>
<p>If I recall correctly, it doesn’t matter. Housing sends you a form asking for your preferences in terms of living situation, roommate preferences, etc. Once all of that is considered, there’s a lottery…that process is mostly separate and not a function of when you submitted your SIR</p>
<p>Thank you for the response, I really appreciate it.</p>
<p>I agree that college is about learning who you are and your preferences. Do college professors allow you to use tablets or a laptop in class to take notes?</p>
<p>If I did want to double major in music, would I have to apply for the school of music?</p>
<p>Thanks for the clarification about the honors program.</p>
<p>@SmoothAl </p>
<p>I’m not personally familiar with the music/theater/art programs. Typically you have to audition or submit a portfolio, but I would refer to the school’s site: <a href=“Admissions - The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music”>http://www.schoolofmusic.ucla.edu/admission-to-the-ucla-herb-alpert-school-of-music</a></p>
<p>Yes, most professors allow tablets and laptops. I had a professor or two ban laptops because with on-campus wifi, people tended to get distracted…</p>
<p>Thank Dontcha, I appreciate it. Your answers about transportation were helpful. </p>
<p>Do you ever wish you went somewhere else? What is the one best thing and one worst thing about going to UCLA? I know your time is important - thanks and appreciated! So you know where this is coming from, my S thinks they might want to go there, but it seems like some parts of the experience are a really giant struggle. Not looking for everything to be easy, but don’t want it to be a bit** either. </p>
<p>Is UCLA really as competitive as everyone says? Is it hard to maintain a high GPA?</p>
<p>@jle123 </p>
<p>I think that’s too vague to answer generally, but some majors (pre-med, engineering) are more competitive than others. As for maintaining a high gpa, getting into a routine and figuring out how to allocate your time studying (ie not wasting too much time on HW that is 5% of your grade). Also, I found getting sleep prior to exams was really helpful and gave me an advantage over my classmates lol. </p>
<p>The philosophy I adopted was to be prepared for an exam 24 hours in advance. So if an exam was on a Thursday, I would study hard Tuesday night…worse came to worst, I’d go to office hours on Wednesday…</p>
<p>I think all in all maintaining a high GPA isn’t too difficult if you don’t over-commit to outside activities and put a decent amount of time into your studies.</p>
<p>@CADREAMIN </p>
<p>I had the classic UC Berkeley vs UCLA debate at this time of year 6 years ago. Naturally, whenever I was feeling down for whatever reason while at UCLA, I had thoughts about how things would’ve turned out if I went to Berkeley. These feelings came and went from time to time but tended to subside after my first quarter in Westwood.</p>
<p>Best thing about going to UCLA: Campus & Westwood. The campus is nice, well-maintained, and compact. Also, Westwood and the Westside in general are among the most desirable places to live in LA.</p>
<p>Worst thing about going to UCLA: Class sizes…and the fact that invariably you don’t realize how many options are available to you as a student until right before you’re set to graduate. As a senior, I stopped by campus over Winter Break with my parents, walked the campus alone for 30 minutes and told myself I wouldn’t take the last 6 months for granted…and then I kinda did lol.</p>
<p>And if there are particular things your S is concerned about, I’m happy to address those as well.</p>
<p>Also excuse my poor syntax – was up at 4am pst for yoga today -____-</p>
<p>Super nice of you to reply. Might PM you sometime, but sure appreciate your time and response here. Get some sleep! </p>
<p>How did you go about finding your job after graduation?
And what do you think helped you get that job?</p>
<p>@audisky </p>
<p>I recruited heavily in quant heavy fields - investment management, consulting, etc.</p>
<p>As for recruiting advice…</p>
<ul>
<li>Use the career center. The staff there are very, very good.</li>
<li>Attend as many info sessions and career fairs as possible. Not just for the sucking up (which is a necessary evil), but to gain a perspective on what options are out there and where you fit best…this will help you confidently answer the “why do you want to work here” questions…another benefit of attending info sessions is that you can talk to some of the people you will be interviewing with before the actual interview. this eliminates the 3 minutes of awkward small talk at the beginning of most interviews and allows you to be more comfortable from the beginning.</li>
</ul>
<p>For the job I chose, I had a variety of relevant coursework and internships. Also, although I am not the strongest interviewer, I was able to present myself as hardworking, humble, and fairly mature in my interview…and this is something I learned mostly from doing (and failing) multiple prior interviews lol</p>
<p>How should I figure out whether I really want to study a certain major or in a certain field? I’m entering UCLA as a biochem major this fall but I am still really uncertain whether I want to do this. I think this is due to my lack of exposure to what people do for their jobs on a daily basis, but I’d like to know your opinion on this and what I could do to “figure it out”.</p>
<p>@lillychenny </p>
<p>I think the dilemma you describe is one of the reasons we’re forced to go through GEs/introductory courses as underclassmen. Eventually you will take a class that pulls you in one direction or another, and then you go off from there.</p>
<p>One of my roommates freshman year was a Biochem major. The classes early on overlap largely with pre-med disciplines – bio, chem (obviously), physics, etc…the point being, there’s little risk in starting on the Biochem track. You’ll take one of the introductory courses and know whether or not that’s for you.</p>
<p>For the record, my roommate is now a technician in a lab and doing very well. Grad school and higher levels of research positions, as well as jobs in the private sector, are still on the table.</p>
<p>Being uncertain about your major is I think one of the defining hallmarks of everyone’s freshman year, so I wouldn’t be concerned. And the other point that needs to be made is that some people pursue career paths that differ wildly from their major. Again, the point being that you are too young to be worried about these kinds of things.</p>
<p>Also, you will have plenty of time to get exposure to what people do as far as jobs for your desired field. This is one of many reasons it’s important to network as best as you can, and get to know your professors.</p>