<p>Okay, I know I have a lot of questions, but even if you can't answer them all, I would greatly appreciate any advice on UCSB. I am seriously considering attending UCSB, since it is the best school that I was accepted to and I like it's location. Yet I also have many concerns. Whenever I mention UCSB, people immediately tell me that it is a crazy party school. Is this true? I have visited Isla Vista on a Saturday night and there were tons of people out partying and drinking. These partiers were only on the two streets closest to the beach when I went though, so is the outer edge of Isla Vista less crazy? Like is the partying easy to avoid? Since I heard that the majority of students live in Isla Vista in their third and fourth years, I am hoping that as a third and fourth year I could live on the outer part of Isla Vista if that is in fact the quieter side. Also, is Isla Vista like a normal, calm college town during the day? I do not plan on being a partier or a drinker, however I am also NOT a nerd who just wants to study all the time. Are there many people who want to have fun in other ways besides drinking? Or is it difficult to find these types of people like me? Also, do people pressure you to drink and party? And do people party on campus too, or is it just in Isla Vista? Also, what do people who don't want to party in Isla Vista do for fun? It does not seem like there is much to do besides attend UCSB sports games, go to school sponsored events, and visit State Street in Santa Barbara. Are certain dorms known for having partiers constantly using alcohol or drugs than other ones? I don't want to live in the Scholars or the Quiet floor, because that is too studious for me. Yet I also don't want to live in a dorm where people just want to drink all the time. And just to clarify, I do not look down on people partying and drinking. I realize that these people are very smart since they are attending UCSB. Honestly people can do what they want, and I will be fine as long as I am able to easily avoid that social scene and find my own niche of people who like to have fun and dance without drinking or drugs. OK THANK YOU FOR ANSWERING ANY OR ALL OF MY QUESTIONS! I REALLY APPRECIATE ANY HELP THAT I CAN GET SINCE THIS IS SUCH A HUGE CHOICE!!!</p>
<p>I weep for all who have not sampled the sweet revelry that is Isla Vista on a Friday night. You will come away enlightened, hung over, and possibly infected.</p>
<p>All of my “non-partier” friends who went to UCSB ended up converting very quickly.</p>
<p>Simply put, If you don’t want to party don’t party. Absurd is just being absurd.</p>
<p>they are plenty of people at ucsb who dont party…im not a student (yet?), but when i go on the campus, there are plenty of clean, motivated people around and i doubt the ROTC people party haha</p>
<p>I used to party when I was a senior in high school at UC Davis, which wasn’t as crazy as UCSB but the influences are the same. I live on the 66 block of Sueno, pretty far out yet close too and it does get a little loud but I usually go to the library or lounge if I need to avoid it. People don’t really pressure you but it’s a good way to bond out here, although there are other methods of course. You can go to the ocean and pick up fishing, or even at Lake Cachuma about twenty minutes away to fish or camp. You can hike to hotsprings about 20 minutes away in Gaviota or visit Knapps’ Castle in the SB mountains. Chumash Casino is 40 minutes away for eighteen year olds and LA is just an hour and a half away. Plenty to do here, and no worries. It won’t hurt to spend a day in IV having fun, to be honest. I waste a day on the weekend everyday and still maintain top 20% of student body. Don’t worry, just relax when you come here and do whatever you want, no one will care</p>
<p>I wonder if the freshman dorms are quieter??</p>
<p>@tjdabeast
haha it’s so weird seeing CC’ers being so “local”</p>
<p>Look, UCSB is a crazy party school but it is not the only thing we do here. Yes, as you saw, the most parties are only on the 1st 2 streets and only Fridays, Saturdays, and Thursdays sometimes some kickbacks but no big parties. It gets quieter as you get farther from those streets, there are parties scarred through all of IV too though.</p>
<p>Here is the important part, the party scene IS easy to avoid. Most people will go out maybe one night only, it is normal to hear “Im staying in tonight got to work on ____”. . The tricky part is, half the time when people stay in and dont party is because they have homework and cant hang out all. By the way not only 3rd and 4th years live in IV, most 2nd years do too. During the day, IV is a regular calmed college town, there is an extremely chill atmosphere during the day, and sunny days remind you that you live close to the beach, so everyone dresses beachy-like on sunny days and its just like any town next to the beach, full of life.</p>
<p>There are activities besides partying, I recommend you link your real email with your ucsb email (because no one checks their ucsb email) so you get the notifications that UCSB sends out. And yeah you pretty much listed what people do, plus just mess around on their dorms or watch movies. Also the theater is within biking distance. There are definitely people that dont like to party or drink at all, but it is on the low side. Most people do these but valance it with other activities and academics. Finding someone that does not want to drink or party ever will be very hard, the only people that come to mind are the ugly stereotypical nerds that you mentioned, because well they simply dont know how to. Do not live on a theme floor, there is no point to them, I always think of people in them as close-minded and scared to experience, whether is race, or just hiding in academics on the scholars floor.</p>
<p>There is drinking and partying in the dorms, all the dorms, but to a lesser degree than IV. BUT again, in general, no one drinks unless its the weekend and they are done with their work. So wherever you end up I can assure you no one will want to drink all the time. Drugs, most people dont do them and it is easy to find people that are not interested in them. </p>
<p>Dont be scared to be friends with people that drink because you will discover, that just like you, most of the people that didnt plan on drinking and partying and people that have never ever done this get sucked into the party scene at some point. They are not just smart, many if not most were non-partiers too in high school.</p>
<p>You may get sucked into the experience too, it is not a bad thing, it is part of the college experience and growing up, just know your limits and put school first. I have a friend who would go out t take care of people and wouldnt drink and had never been into a big crazy party. By the end of second quarter he willingly joined us and I can assure you he does not regret it. He only drinks one or two weekends per month though, thats about right for me too.</p>
<p>Also you said dance parties yes, alcohol no right? Guess what; I would say half the people that go out in IV do not end up drinking (even if they are drinkers). Many just go to the Dance parties since there are plenty DJs all over. Trust me, you will be fine and make plenty of friends, most who drink (on some weekends), and some who dont or very rarely drink. I do recommend you check out IV with an open mind.</p>
<p>siglio21: ROTC people do drink what makes you think they dont? I think people think of partying as undisciplined and counterproductive to academics, but in reality it is just age-appropriate fun that should not affect school life unless you let it.</p>
<p>ROTC people are hard partiers.</p>
<p>Just ask my roommate. (Who is indeed in ROTC.)</p>
<p>Here’s the sad thing to remember: If I went to UC Irvine or UC Davis, I would never have drank at all.</p>
<p>But when I went to UCSB, my resolve to not drink. . .kinda fell apart. haha. (No, I have not turned into an alcoholic. Only drink the intoxicables to let a little loose on fridays only.)</p>