<p>I got accepted into UC Irvine and waitlisted at UC Davis. At first, I was truly upset. I was really bent on going to UC San Diego but got flat out rejected from there. Now Im taking really keen interest into UCI, but want to know more about the school.</p>
<p>I know I sound really ignorant and would probably be really insulting, but I want to get the feel of UCI. Im going down to visit the campus next week, but Id like to know some on the surface answers before I visit the campus.
What is the campus vibe? Is UCI really a commuter school? Does the school have a social atmosphere? Are people outgoing? Is there stuff to do on and off campus? Im from NorCal, so I havent been exposed to the SoCal life yet.</p>
<p>Also, how are the academics? Im interested in going into International Affairs. How are classes and are people driven/motivated?</p>
<p>I just want to get the feel of the school overall before I head down to visit it myself. Any comments for UCI livin?</p>
<p>The experience sort of depends on who you are. There’s a place for everyone. If you like to be active in your social life, there’s lots of clubs and activities to get involved in. The University Town Center is a cool place to hang out with friends at. If you like studying in a more relaxed environment, both libraries offer unique experiences (just avoid them when exams draw near…). I like to alternate because it gets boring being in the same place all the time. I have yet to visit the art school cafe but it looks like an awesome place just passing by. So the “vibe” really depends on where you place yourself. It’s true that UCI is a commuter school. When I’ve stayed there during weekends everyone disappears…but I enjoy it because its a rare opportunity to find the dorms so quiet. There are outgoing people at UCI but its pretty chill overall. This is all really hard to explain and I think you will get a much better idea when you visit next week. If you choose to go to Irvine, definitely go to SPOP. You’ll be able to experience life on campus. As for academics, they are tough and there’s no way around it. But you can’t really go into college expecting it to be as easy as high school after all.</p>
<p>In short, it’s a really nice school, I have to say it feels wonderful to just walk around the campus since it is a beautiful place, everyone is really nice and there really aren’t too many people that are pricks or anything of the sort here. But yeah, it’s not entirely a commuter school, but during the weekends, in dorms for example, half the people or so leave and it’s not that much of a party school either. That being said, it’s not like it’s boring or that we’re just all sitting around doing nothing, I really do like being here and most people who do come here are content with the campus as a whole and are reluctant to transfer out even if they originally intended to.</p>
<p>I hear this rumor that UCI is a commuter school constantly. Honestly, some people on campus do go home every weekend and some people do commute. But I can almost guarantee you that the portion of the student body that commutes is probably the same or close to the same at UCLA, UCSD, and UCR.</p>
<p>If you go to a school in so cal (especially south of LA), it’s simply unavoidable that you’ll have a lot of commuters. The area is very suburban and the UC’s cater to lower income students for whom living on campus might not be affordable.</p>
<p>That said, I do feel like there is a substantial presence on campus during weekends, and you can easily find things to do if you want.</p>
<p>yes UCI is a commuter school… it is built like one!</p>
<p>I’m not really into the whole social scene with frats/sororities at UCI etc so I can’t really comment on that… but it’s OC! you’re so close to LA and SD. I grew up in Orange County and neighboring cities have a personality of their own. Trust me… there is ALWAYS something to do. You can’t confine yourself to JUST Irvine. OC offers so much… it’s such a melting pot :)</p>
<p>At first I wasn’t so excited about going to UCI because I wanted a change of scene, being from OC and all… but towards the end of my years at UCI I’m beginning to love it more and more. You’ll like so. cal… people are outgoing… but some people are stuck-up… it’s like that everywhere right? You’ll find your niche. Also, consider studying abroad. I studied in Cambridge thru UCI summer session… awesome experience.</p>
<p>I don’t know about the students in International Relations, but I do know that they offer many guest speakers who talk at UCI because I’m taking seminars for International Sociology. </p>
<p>Andddd… a little advice. Dorm your first year or so to get to know people, but afterwards rent an apartment outside of Irvine. Trust me, I think it’s way cheaper. I live in Fountain Valley and it takes me 10 minutes to get to UCI, using the freeway of course. But it takes me less time to get to school than those who rent apartments in Irvine! Neighboring cities like Costa Mesa and FV have cheaper rent and may be closer/faster to get to due to freeway access, etc.</p>
<p>it’s built like a commuter school. it’s in the shape of a circle. the outermost part of the circle is the parking structures. within that is the classrooms/ring road etc. the inside of the circle is aldrich park where UCI intentionally built it for everyone to congregate, which isn’t the case, really. you’re in and you’re out easily. whereas campuses, such as UCLA, are built so that students will be somewhat forced to intertwine with one another. had this discussion with a professor who has been at UCI for about 30 years if you need some sort of clarification. but don’t let the whole thought of a commuter school stop you from coming here… you WILL meet people easily.</p>
<p>and about the neighboring cities… what i see from a lot of people who i’ve befriended. most of them get annual passes to disneyland, which is in anaheim. beaches are only a few minutes away - huntington, corona del mar, newport, laguna etc. excellent MALLS… it’s literally right down the street from fashion island, south coast plaza. </p>
<p>as an orange county native, i think irvine restaurants are way overpriced and the quality isn’t good. just take a drive anywhere in westminster or garden grove. use yelp or PM me, i know all the good spots authentic goodness!</p>
<p>as for the nightlife… nothing is ever constant right? so by the time you get to UCI, ‘the spot’ might no longer be ‘the spot’. there’s always something new though. downtown santa ana, lounges in costa mesa, bars in HB/newport… and LA. a lot of people go to vegas almost every weekend apparently -_- (only 3 hours away) oh there’s a pub on campus too.</p>
<p>thanks for the insight!
I live 10 minutes from Berkeley, so I’m NorCal all the way. It’ll take me time to adjust to socal. hope people wont kill me from the amount of times i say “hella”. lol</p>
<p>Well, I’m sure you can’t get a lot of “hella” 's in here since you’d be dead after the first one, so yeah, you should take caution.</p>
<p>Haha, jk, there’s actually a lot of NorCal people here and it’s really not that much different (or at least I think so). It’s more of the people who haven’t seen too many Asian people packed together into one place that undergo a culture shock sortof thing…</p>
<p>My sister goes to UCSB and i visit her frequently. the party life is amazing and everytime i’ve visited her she’s taken me to so many parties, one time around 15 all in one night. i’ve heard that cops bust down every party within 30 minutes at UCI, but it could just be a rumor. will joining a sorority boost the party life?</p>
<p>I feel like this is probably just because UCLA is old. Any modern campus will be designed in such a way so that traffic flows easily in and out.</p>
<p>This doesn’t really relate but can anyone tell me if it’s reasonable to just ride a bike during my time at Irvine? I am totally not willing to pay 600 a year for parking -___-</p>
<p>This is actually a lot more practical than most UCI students realize. There is a long bike trail called the Mountain to Sea trail that runs all the way through Irvine, past UCI, and on to Balboa in Newport Beach. It’s a really convenient way of getting around.</p>
<p>I mean it is basically true that majority of the students are asian… But is it also true that on weekends students often go home… and so the campus is “completely” dead?? I mean hows the social life? </p>
<p>Also, people has been telling me that you cant really get around UCI or osmehting without a car?</p>
<p>How are the dorms in UCI? are they small and crowded? Dirty or very clean?</p>
<p>Yes, a majority of the students are Asian. Students do go home on weekends. It’s not completely dead but dead-ish. There will be something to do if you look around.</p>
<p>You can get around UCI without a car. It’s not that big. It does get tiring though with all the walking so if you prefer to, use a bike. Dorms are probably small and crowded (triples) no matter where you go to school…I guess how clean or dirty they are depends on the occupants. Bathrooms get a bit gross after a while but they do have people cleaning it often.</p>
authentic goodness!</p>