My daughter just got off the waitlist at UCLA this week and decided to accept her spot. She had planned to go to UCSB and do their Freshman summer start program. She is majoring in Marine Biology. Can anyone tell me what the benefits are of the CSI program at UCLA and if it is worth it? The FSSP at UCSB seemed a lot better and way more courses were offered. I only see a handful of courses at UCLA for their CSI program. Any advice would be great!
@aliwalsh76
My advice would be to just attend orientation and save the money and enjoy summer by not attending CSI. It’s incredibly easy to graduate in 4 years at UCLA even without any AP credits. Getting classes as long as you’re flexible on times and teachers is just fine so getting 1-2 classes ahead on CSI isn’t a big factor in the long run. Not worth it in my opinion.
I’m wondering if it might be a bigger savings and worth it since we are paying out of state tuition?
@aliwalsh76 I’d Rec taking a full A and C sesh summer sessions after freshman year. You can take a wider range and more classes. Summer has no OOS supplement tuition.
I have tremendous respect for 10s4life, so it is with some hesitation that I offer advice that is contrary to 10s4life’s advice.
My daughter went to CSI last year (Summer 2018). Here are some observations in no particular order:
- There were fewer than 200 CSI participants. They all stayed together in one of the better dorms. They generally dined together, went to and from classes together, and in the end got to know each other. My daughter made several new friends who remain close.
- CSI provides a "soft" introduction to UCLA. The classes are smaller and the lines - if any - are shorter. The CSI staff did a quick tour of the classrooms so the participants knew where to go. CSI feels like a calmer environment compared to the vibrant but "massive" feel of the regular school year.
- With smaller classes, it easier to communicate with, and get to know, the professors. This proved especially valuable to my daughter, who had a rough time initially with Chem 14a, but she did well in the end.
- Six weeks goes by quickly. Students need to study hard from Day 1. That said, the amount of material covered in my daughter's courses was appropriate for six weeks.
- Some CSI students will experience academic disappointments. FWIW, in my opinion it's better to have these disappointments occur in the calmer CSI environment.
Congratulations to your daughter. It’s a great achievement to be admitted to UCLA.
CSI is nice but isn’t cheap. If you wanted to get something done this summer, you might want to consider doing summer school at your local community college. Even if you got one math course out of the way, that would be a big help.
I attended CSI this summer–it was a fantastic transition to UCLA. The environment was pretty small and by the end, I felt like I had a ton of connections on campus, making the transition to ‘real school’ a lot more stress-free. I met some of my best friends through CSI. before signing up, I was a bit hesitant to shorten my summer and jump into a new environment but now I would 10/10 recommend to anyone.