<p>Im gonna be a freshman at ucsb next year and am deciding what I want to do for my housing situation. The social aspect of FT sounds appealing but idk if I'd want to live that far from campus, especially my freshman year. Does anyone have any input on the commute from FT to the campus or if FT is a good dorm for freshman? Any help would be appreciated ;O</p>
<p>FT is a good dorm, I LOVE IT here. </p>
<p>But the distance does suck. . . -___-</p>
<p>If you do live there, invest in a road bike. really.</p>
<p>Would you recommend it for an incoming freshman?? Also, how long is the bike ride to campus? And what do you do if you have a break in between classes? Sorry about all the questions but the dorm situation is stressing me out haha</p>
<p>I would . . .the rooms are big, the bathroom situation is really convenient, and people are sociable here. But you won’t go wrong with any other dorms too. :)</p>
<p>Thats the VERY nice thing about having dorms on campus: if you have breaks, you can just go to your room with relatively little hassle, since your next class is bound to be near. Because I live in FT, if I have a short break in between classes. . .I just hang out with friends, eat a little snack or cram some studying in between. </p>
<p>As for the bike ride. . .people say it takes 10 minutes. I’ve been getting to campus under 5 minutes nowadays. (A little over 4 if I’m running late. hah). But keep in mind: I am a very aggressive cyclist on a road bike .___.</p>
<p>How would you compare FT with Manzanita? I’m kind of torn between the two.</p>
<p>Personally, I would not recommend Manzanita for your first year. The dorms are very nice, yes, but social life is absolutely dead there. (Manzanita is a mix between freshmen and upperclassmen.) You need to establish connections for at least your first year before you branch off. . .</p>
<p>How easy is it to get away with drinking in FT?? Are kids constantly getting written up by RAs for drinking in the dorms??</p>
<p>^i just depends on the RA. my sister was in FT last year and it sounded like nobody really got written up.</p>
<p>oh and i got a question, Anacappa or Santa Cruz?</p>
<p>Lemon, what about San Nic?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Pretty easy. Just don’t be obvious about it. . .I’ve drank in FT in several occasions with my suitemates, floormates, friends from other floors, all in FT, and I haven’t gotten written up. (yet.)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’d personally go with Anacapa (only because I feel more at home there when I visit), but you seriously will not go wrong with either. Really.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I used to live in San Nic during the summer! I liked it. . .and I LOVE the hall layout: boys in one wing, girls in the other wing, but with a great, big, ole’ lounge in the middle (which I find to be very friendly to socializing with your floormates.) </p>
<p>San Nic has been charming to me when I stayed there during the summer. I will fondly remember it and the memories. (Its just my personal opinion lol)</p>
<p>Oh yea. . .and all of you better stock up on cold medicine or sudafed or something of that sort when you come here. </p>
<p>When you have kids from all over California (and the world) crammed into one building or something, chances are – you WILL get sick at one point. So, prepare. Just in case.</p>
<p>I’m definitely putting FT as my first choice. Everything I hear about it sounds pretty awesome, and I don’t think I will really mind the 10 minute bike to campus. It will probably be good for me haha.</p>
<p>Yea. Just invest in a road bike. . .that will really make your ride really efficient lol.</p>
<p>And. . .your quads will get ripped. (Its super ripped on mine, at least. xD)</p>
<p>Sorry to be a dolt but which dorm is “FT”? I don’t see it listed at UCSB housing. Thanks.</p>
<p>FT is now known as Santa Catalina.</p>
<p>^Matrix</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Yea. </p>
<p>But most of us UCSB students still call it FT lol.</p>
<p>Remember: </p>
<p>FT = Santa Catalina</p>
<p>Are dorm assignments prioritized by date of housing deposit or is it like Berkeley where they have a lottery?</p>
<p>Thunderhorse - pretty sure the UCSB website says assignments are random. Since you seem to be new to all this info, check out gauchoinsider.com lots of great info and very funny. There you will find out that FT (now Santa Catalina) previousy stood for Francisco Torres and the different name students gave it and why. The articles on gauchoinsider are priceless. Also, the UCSB Class of 2015 is already on facebook so you can check out fellow admittees.</p>
<p>^Matrix</p>
<p>Thanks for the site ref, I’ll check it out.</p>