Incoming UCSD Freshman Questions

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - San Diego
41

<p>Someone told me that things are stolen on a fairly regular basis, especially electronics like laptops & iPods. always take precautions (don’t flaunt, put things away when you’re done with them, don’t give the impression of carelessness) and lock up when you leave your room.
taking a safe is not extreme at all, especially for people who have been targeted before or go the extra mile with electronics by bringing fancy accessories, gadgets, jewelry or clothes.</p>

<p>I’d leave anything rarely worn/used that doesn’t get taken out much in the safe. even if it’s not THAT valuable, “better safe than sorry.” it also works to keep bigger sums of cash in there & take it out as you need it, since cash is easy/common to steal.</p>

<p>unless you get a safe that’s really convenient to open (laser/scan mechanism = convenient, but expensive) then you can slip your electronics in a locked drawer or clever hiding place (my old rabbit plushie had a zipper in the back fit for a cell phone or iPod).
have someone watch your things when you’re away; always lock your room when no one’s in it; invest in a laptop-backpack so that you can slip your gadgets in there & take them with you more easily. even if it’s bothersome to pack it then unpack it again, never go to the bathroom in a library without taking your laptop or purse with you. things like that really help.</p>

<p>sometimes, theft is really just bad luck for the victim. people who are neither neurotic nor careless & take proper precautions usually incur fewer losses or don’t get victimized, so if you aim for that balance, I think you’ll be fine. :)</p>

<p>fruitytart,
umm… underwear? I share your reaction. but that kind of theft is hard to prevent. I guess you could always stay at the laundromat with a magazine until your clothes is done, but otherwise I would just time it so that I always come back for my clothes right/shortly after they’re done.</p>

42

<ol>
<li>what are the desks like? is it just a flat table? it seems like the desks have a space for the computer monitor and then shelves</li>
</ol>

<p>Depends on what college you’re in. All desks are flat tables with a pull-out tray for a keyboard and then three drawers of different sizes on the side of the desk. In some colleges, you get a tall shelving unit that sits on top of the desk. In ERC, you do not.</p>

<ol>
<li>about how much space is there under the beds, dimensionally? I’m bringing an underbed storage box but i don’t want it to be too high/big & not fit. </li>
</ol>

<p>Probably a couple feet. The beds are pretty high.</p>

<ol>
<li>how useful are lap desks, the ones that you put on your lap so you have a flat surface for books & laptops to study in bed? </li>
</ol>

<p>I brought one to college and never used it once. My roommate used hers occasionally. Certainly not a necessary expense.</p>

<ol>
<li>doubles have two individual beds against each wall; triples have bunk beds, right?</li>
</ol>

<p>That’s correct</p>

<ol>
<li>is there room enough in a double or even triple for a small drawer stand, similar to this: </li>
</ol>

<p>Yeah, there will be room for that. Seems pretty small.</p>

<ol>
<li>is there a bench/stand in the shower stalls for me to put my caddy on? I hate leaving it on the floor (clean freak here) so are there hooks & flat areas to hang clothes, put bath products, etc. in the shower stalls? also, do the stalls have shower curtains or doors?</li>
</ol>

<p>Yes, there are hooks to hang your clothes and towel. The showers have curtains (at least in ERC). There were no benches in the ERC showers. If you have your stuff in a caddy, you’ll be fine.</p>

43

<p>And everyone, as long as you LOCK YOUR ROOM, (even when you leave for 2 minutes to check the mail or grab food), your stuff likely won’t be stolen.</p>

44

<p>ucsandiego915,
thanks so much for your answers! luckily you’re from ERC, which is my college too. what relief to have such good help on College Confidential! </p>

<p>overall, how are the ERC bathrooms? ucsd provides toilet paper, right?</p>

<p>also, what do you think about putting food in the refrigerator in the kitchenette? do you think I should get a mini-fridge if I plan on having fresh fruit & drinks around? i’ve heard stories about food getting stolen or being half-eaten & am willing to invest in a mini-fridge if necessary. </p>

<p>how are the closets in ERC designed? is it a wardrobe with drawers inside?
what kind of cleaning products did you bring/use/wish you had? </p>

<p>thanks so much for answering my questions!</p>

45

<p>The ERC bathrooms are pretty legit! I remember being nervous at first cause it seemed like 4 sinks/3 toilets/3 showers was NOT enough for 13 girls but I never had a problem. Everyone has really different schedules so try not to worry about that. </p>

<p>UCSD does provide toilet paper but I like to call it sand paper. Just kidding. It’s pretty damn rough though.</p>

<p>There actually is no fridge in the kitchenette. You have to buy a mini-fridge if you want to do that. And yeah, I would get a mini-fridge. My roommate and I bought one in October cause we realized we REALLY needed one.</p>

<p>The closets in ERC have one shelf not very high up (that extends the length of the closet), a bar hanging just under that, and then a large wooden chest of 3 drawers. The closets are pretttty small though. Bring less than you think you’ll need- I had to send a ton of stuff home. </p>

<p>Cleaning products - definitely Clorox wipes, you’ll want to use those all the time. A duster would be nice, the rooms tend to get very dusty. Besides that, you borrow the vacuum from your building’s RA and there are maintenance crews that come and clean the bathroom and common room for you.</p>

<p>For sure, I’m always willing to answer questions :slight_smile: Glad I could help</p>

46

<p>@fruitytart You know what I really hate? When my bras get stolen >> SO ANNOYING. But it’s only happened once or twice. You could always just camp out at the laundry room if you’re that afraid of your stuff getting stolen. Or just get there right when it’s done :)!</p>

47

<p>Donny AP courses count as elective courses? Most of the AP’s I’ve taken don’t meet any GE’s, but do I still get units for them?</p>

48

<p>@nicholep
yes, you’ll still get units for ur AP’s even though you dont test out of any GE’s.
For example if you’ve taken AP stats and passed it, you’ll get 8 units, but u wont get any GE’s out of the way. On the other hand if you’ve taken AP Calc BC and passed it, u get 8 units AND pass out of Math10AB/20AB.</p>

49

<p>I was wondering when you decide if you want to take a class pass/nopass</p>

50

<p>when you register for that class, they ask you how you want to take the class. you bubble in the p/np option. </p>

<p>if my registration date is Sept 1 in the morning (range is Aug 31-Sep 3 I think? or to Sep 5) how likely is it that I’ll get Tara Carter for mmw 1, considering only she and Jordan are teaching? what about getting my preferred math 20b professor, considering there are 4? thanks!</p>

51

<p>um, it really depends on how popular those profs are with your future classmates. 99% of them don’t know alums, CAPE, or the fact that places like CC exist. relax. </p>

<p>sooner or later you’re going to have horrible registration experiences, so take it easy!</p>

52

<p>Can someone explain this to me. Most of my friends who go to college on the semester system take 4 classes per semester. UCSD is on the quarter system and most people take 4 classes also. Why do people on the semester system take the same amount of classes as we do but have more time to compete them.</p>

53

<p>one quarter = 10 weeks
one semester = 15 weeks</p>

<p>at any given time, the college student at either school will be taking 4 classes. the amount of material covered in a quarter is obviously less than that covered in a semester, but it all evens out by June. </p>

<p>(semesters suck.)</p>

54

<p>how likely is it that i won’t get my classes because my reg date is sep 3rd?</p>

55

<p>@nicholep</p>

<p>A year of a class is a year of a class. Don’t worry about it. All the doomsayers of the quarter system just want more time to slack off.</p>

<p>@californiagurl92</p>

<p>Won’t get the time you want or won’t get the class at all?</p>

56

<p>@$KingsElite$
she means wont get the time and class she wants, but more importantly time.</p>

57

<p>With semesters, you take ~8 classes per year. With quarters, you take ~12. It evens out by the end.</p>

58

<p>When you guys say it will even out at the end of the year why do you mean exactly?</p>

59

<p>We mean, you end up learning the same amount of material as your peers on semesters.</p>

<p>The quarter system is really good because if you hate a class (which you will) it will be over before you know it. Semesters just drag on and on.</p>

60

<p>@nicholep</p>

<p>There’s a lot of classes that you have to take for a year. So, three 10 week parts of a class equals two 15 week parts of a class. You go over the same stuff in those same 30 weeks.</p>