Hi there!! I am a senior in high school and got into Cal Poly for engineering (yay!!!) and it is one of my top choices right now (Waiting to hear back if I got into UCSB.).
I visited SLO once and I wasn’t sure if I really loved it… kinda just felt like a big high school to me, but I know first impressions can be super misleading. Looking for anyone to give some insight as to what the lifestyle at slo is like?? Social scene, food, sports, etc etc. I just really like the idea of the whole “college feel” and want to make sure that I get that in some way or another. I’m a white female and I love the thought of a big school with a lot of school pride.
OK, I’ll bite. As a parent, I’ve been there a few times, both before my son chose to attend, and several times after to visit. I’ve never felt that it was “like a big high school,” but you’re not the first to mention that. What made you feel that way?
My impression, every time I’ve ever been, is that students all seem to be happy.
I gather through my son, that he spends more time at the beach and in the surrounds hiking and camping, than he does doing campus things. I know he’s been to a football game or two and has seen several soccer games, typically UCSB. I don’t gather that the Poly athletics are a big deal, like they might be to a student at say USC or Oregon.
He does play pick up soccer.
Campus food is bad, but there are good options in the city.
This is my impression gleaned from my pretty social kids who are in the COE and my older two who attended UCSB.
This it "kinda seems like a big high school"meme is a common first impression of CP. I think its the case because the campus architecture is pretty lackluster and lacks the grandiosity of some of the UCs. But, once you dive into classes, clubs, and your social life you will realize CP is anything but a big high school. It just happens to have ugly buildings and dorms.
CP is a very social campus and lacks the cynicism that pervades a lot of elite schools (hello Berkeley!). The students have a lot of school pride and are very involved in clubs, IM sports, and there are no shortage of parties on the weekends. However, it does not have the abject debauchery that is present literally every night in IV on the UCSB campus. As a parent I think that is a good thing. But, I am sure a lot of 18 year olds would think otherwise.
I would guess the percent of students that are in clubs, participate in IM sports, and are of the work hard/play hard type is much higher at CP than most UCs. The surrounding area is amazing if your into the outdoors: surfing, sailing, kayaking, mountain biking, hiking etc… Lots of good shops and restaurants downtown if that is your deal.
However, outside the soccer game against UCSB, not a lot of students attend athletic events. CP students are more likely to be doing sports rather than watching them. So if you like going to a stadium with 80,000 people screaming at young men giving each other concussions CP is not your place. But, if you want to rock climb, play on an IM volleyball team or launch rockets on the weekend CP is the spot.
My advice is to attend open house at CP and visit the club booths and talk to the students. Then attend open house at UCSB. I think the differences in campus pride and the enthusiasm the students have for their respective schools will be quite noticeable.
As a parent of a Cal Poly freshman and a high school teacher, I totally understand the impression that Cal Poly seems like a “big high school .” The reason for that is as clear as day to me: the high schools copy colleges like Cal Poly. We do it with our activities, our sports, even our campus arrangements and decorations.
That being said, I think the above posters have made excellent points. Cal Poly students in general lack cynicism. They LIKE being there. Whenever we visit, the students we interact with often talk about wanting to stay in SLO after graduation. It’s really just a great place with so much to do. As a parent, I love visiting and I often tease my son when he complains about things by saying “Yeah, rough day in your educational paradise.” That usually makes him laugh and reminds him of how great he has it.
THAT being said, my son was so DONE with high school by the end of it. He wanted nothing to do with the rah-rah stuff or the petty little absurdities of daily life in high school (trust me, after 25 years as a H.S. teacher, I am familiar with every aspect of all that). He found like minded friends, tons of activities, and intellectual pursuits that are far beyond high school. He has, as far as we know, avoided the big party scene, yet he stays very active socially and has lots of outlets. The conversations that we have now show me that he has grown and matured by leaps and bounds academically. He is definitely NOT in high school anymore.