I love the carne asada quesadilla at Jose’s Courtyard on Prospect St in La Jolla. Also on Prospect is Duke’s La Jolla with fantastic views of La Jolla Cove and all the way up north. Both are super close to where you are staying. You will love walking around the La Jolla Cove area.
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Your trip will be great! From your hotel in Oakland you can walk over to Lake Merritt. Walking all the way around is fun too–about 3 miles, and it’s super vibrant and very Oakland (in a good way). Lots of good food there too. I’ve recently enjoyed Grand Lake Kitchen and Portal. Also Nido’s Backyard for a fun outdoor experience but it’s not walkable from your hotel. But really there are too many good choices so you will have to see what you’re in the mood for!
My D22 is wanting to leave CA for college and is applying in Chicago, the East Coast, and the PNW (but also many of our in-state schools because of cost).
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As restaurants go, there are at least three worth considering on Channel Road. Two established Italian places, Caffe Delfini, and Giorgio Baldi, are both very good. I prefer the former (love their sautéed spinach.) There is also the Golden Bull, an old chophouse with good food and an old Hollywood Vibe.
As for other restaurants and shopping, it really depends on what you prefer. For hip boutiques and restaurants, you could try Abbot Kinney in Venice, which is between Santa Monica and Loyola Marymount. For higher end boutiques there is Montana Ave in Santa Monica. Sawtelle Blvd in West La has all sorts of fun restaurants, with a concentration of Asian restaurants (used to be mostly Japanese but that has changed.) Eagle Rock (Occidental) is a fun area with lots going on, and Pasadena is just over the hill.
Anything particular you have in mind? High end shopping? Fancy malls? Thrift stores? Young hip neighborhoods? Armenian food? Tacos? Old burger joints? Vegan? Tattoo parlors? It is hard to know where to start without knowing what you might have in mind.
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We are omnivores but most of what we eat is vegetarian, meat usually appreciated as a side dish or flavoring to main dish, so thank you for the sautéed spinach recommendation on Channel Road. Love checking out smaller places, and prefer restaurants that offer outdoor dining or takeout if it is only indoor dining. There isn’t a type of food we aren’t willing to try, and we love all cuisines. D23 definitely favors Asian food (Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Vietnamese…you name it it is one of her favorites) but is up for trying anything and is an adventurous eater. We are all lovers of flavorful food and not afraid of spice. Not really dessert/ice cream eaters.
I have to admit that we are very excited about eating in Oakland - not sure if we should concentrate on Soul food, Ethiopian, Asian, Mexican…or do our best to try a bit of everything.
D23 is a bit of a magpie when it comes to shopping; if it is shiny - she wants to check it out. She likes finding boutiques with eclectic (but delicate) jewelry - she is very petite so it needs to be on scale for her. We have plenty of high end shopping and fancy enough malls in the Chicago area - I think she would prefer to have a chance to see what “only in California” options are available when it comes to shopping…but we also aren’t into buying touristy trinkets - we won’t be coming home with t-shirts proclaiming the locations we’ve visited. D23 usually picks out a nice, though not necessarily expensive, piece of jewelry (she’s partial to rings and necklaces) instead of any kind of ‘souvenir’ as they may typically be thought of. At the same time, she will be checking out those thick sweatshirts at campus bookstores…as she lives in athletic gear most of the time (dancer as well as wee gym rat). She just won’t want one that loudly proclaims the school name or location.
For “clothes shopping”: cute dress shops, and any kind of shoe store. Though she prefers either sneakers or heels (no real in between for her).
No tattoo parlors! 
D23 would love to check those out; I am an old fuddy-duddy when it comes to the idea of tattoos - though I do think they can be beautiful.
Then definitely 100% hit Sawtelle when in LA!
Try Tsujita Annex for ramen (NOT the main Tsujita, the one across the street). Then visit Black Market right next door (super cute clothing/accessories store). And there’s a spectacular store for pastries - Artelice Patisserie on Olympic Blvd. You have to go far from the west side for good Chinese, but there are some very fun KBBQ places in Koreatown that are closer.
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Sawtelle on the must-do list after just a cursory look! My mouth was watering looking at some of the amazing food on offer 
We love Chinese food, but not enough to drive super far away when there are so many other great options…
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Since you mention indoor vs outdoor dining, the CITY of Los Angeles requires those dining at a restaurant to show proof of vaccination and ID. It is not required in all of LA County but some restaurants outside of the city still ask for it. LA City Proof of Vaccine
LA County requires masks to be worn indoors. You will find people wearing masks both indoors and outdoors in LA County but less so in counties where it is not mandated.
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If you are still going to Whittier you’ll be passing not far from dozens of quality Asian restaurants. Below is a list that just scratches the surface. I am assuming @33mom33 is was referring to this area as the place to go for Chinese, and she may have better suggestions than the list, but the Chinese food on the Westside has somewhat improved as San Gabriel Valley restaurants have opened annexes on the Westside (Sichuan Impression in Westwood and Tasty Noodle on Sawtelle for example.)
As for shopping it sounds like your daughter would find something on Abbot Kinney.
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Our favorite for Dimsum is Lunasia. They are in Alhambra, Pasadena and Cerritos.
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Now I’m hungry! 
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La Jolla is beautiful and the village is high-end, but definitely not trendy. My daughter much preferred surf shops, thrift stores and boutiques in Mission Beach and Ocean Beach. USD is gorgeous, but many kids there and at SDSU usually end up living in those beach communities after their first or second year, so it’s good to see what that is like.
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While you are at LMU, if you are hungry, there is a good Mexican place within walking distance of the back gate, Benny’s. Small, local, busy, great food, patio only. Or if you want something a little more upscale head to super nearby Playa Vista which is a nice area to walk around, some shops and plenty of restaurants. Agree that Abbott Kinney is appealing for a food and shopping spot, lots of cute boutiques, popular outing with the LMU gals, very CA in my midwestern opinion! Good breakfast/brunch place there called the Butcher’s Daughter (I think), mostly vegetarian and lots of trendy but good food.
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The best Chinese food in Oakland is just a few blocks from the Marriott in Chinatown - Shandong Restaurant. They just reopened for dine in service and they have the most amazing fresh noodles you have ever had.
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Just wanted to provide an update - all the schools have opened up their touring schedules for March so we registered for all the tours planned. It was a smooth process, and very reassuring to see how seriously the schools are taking Covid without being over the top (proof of vaccination or negative test required on every tour).
We actually decided to double up on one day with tours, we are doing Whittier in the morning and LMU in the late afternoon. Looks fairly doable with traffic patterns we’ve been tracking and gives a day in the LA area that is completely open for sightseeing/exploration/etc.
Thanks again for all the help and advice given - I am sure I will be back with more questions as we get closer to the trip!
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My LMU daughter seems to eat at Butcher’s Daughter couple times a month! Also recommend Playa Provisions in Playa del Rey (really good cookies there too!)
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I clearly tempted the planning Gods…just was notified that the non-stop flight we had booked into San Jose was cancelled and had to change the flight to arrive at SFO (not the ideal plan, in part because rental cars are obscenely expensive coming out of SFO).
Right now, it looks like it might make more sense to take BART from SFO over to Oakland (straight shot, 45 mins) and then pick up a rental car at Oakland Airport. It is leading us towards not doing Santa Clara at all; I am trying to decide if this is a sign to just avoid San Jose entirely.
D23 decided she would rather check out USF rather than UoP and the tour schedule worked better for our trip. Thank you for those who brought it back to our attention, there was a lot D23 liked even though she doesn’t care for the school colors (yes, this is a serious thing for her). Part of me hopes that doesn’t become a deal breaker if we spend the time looking there, part of me is resigned to the fact this will probably be a deal breaker. C’est la vie.
If you will take BART out of SFO, you may as well take it to a non airport location where there is a rental car place.
You can also go to Millbrae and then take Caltrain to San Jose.
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And that Caltrain stop is right across the street from the main Santa Clara entrance…and a 10 minute or less bus ride to the San Jose Airport.
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My D22 started off thinking school colors were a serious factor, but as she is deeper into the process, she knows that is silly. But I will tease her sometimes-- “Of course you’d go to XXX University if you were accepted–the colors are blue and white!” She really wanted blue and white.
Sorry your trip isn’t as streamlined as you’d like. I have no personal knowledge of Santa Clara so cannot advise whether to skip or not.
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If you could somehow mitigate the cost of the rental car (Uber to downtown SF?), then I’d consider my base of operations at a hotel around the airport. There are some nice hotel properties both around the airport, on the water, and in downtown Millbrae across Highway 101. I’d then drive into SF, East Bay and Santa Clara, if time allows
You could also take Cal Train from the Millbrae station to just a stop just across the street from Santa Clara U. I would not miss Santa Clara U, it’s the most well thought of U of the ones your D23 is considering. Smaller, but beautiful campus, and has great connections to Silicon Valley. My D21 was accepted EA there with merit last cycle, but ultimately decided to attend one of the CA publics.
Lots of great restaurants and shops in the Millbrae, Burlingame and 3rd Avenue (San Mateo) areas.
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