Just my thoughts

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Riverside
1

<p>I'm a transfer and this is the end of my first quarter at UCR , these are just some of my opinions .</p>

<p>UCR
Pros: Very Cheap housing options, you can get a single within walking distance for less then 600$
The campus is nice .
Alot of student groups .</p>

<p>Cons( most of these have to do with the city itself );
This is almost NO ones first choice , 99% of people will say that this was the only UC that they got into .
The city is an economic nightmare, with this you have high unemployment , high crime , and more homeless people on or around the campus then you can count .
The first 2 Cons explain why so many students transfer out .
You can hear the F***kin train if you live on campus . </p>

<p>Personal cons : This city is absolutely depressing , social groups tend to be ultra-clicky .
I lost nearly 18 units by transferring here( CSU only units ) I thought it would be worth it since the UC's have a higher reputation, but seeing how being here has sucked for me thus far I seriously wish I went to a CSU . </p>

<p>The only thing going for this school is "diversity" which is something I personally don't care about( as long as their aren't hate crimes all over campus like UCSD), but its diversity as in you can expect to get constant emails from your ethnicity's student group about how to self segregate .</p>

<p>To all high school seniors who only get accepted into UCR , go to a community college first, and then see if you can transfer out to a better school . This is a UC , but its one of the most unhappy schools in America( UCOP</a> - Insitutional Advocacy) . To transfers such as myself , its worth it to go to a CSU in a better city . </p>

<p>God willing I'm going to transfer to a CSU next year, even though its going to be a complicated mess since I'll have cc units and UC units .</p>

2

<p>Honestly, as a student here, i could only agree with half of what you have said. Lets start with the Pros: I will agree with the relatively beautiful campus (going to make this a comparison with a school i have visited many times), and the cheap housing. The Cons that i agree with is the fact that the city is relatively bad. Notice that i have sad relatively with these sentences, the reason is that you need something to compare to in order to pass judgement. So now time to break it down.</p>

<p>First off with the Pros: Personally, i like this school for being a small campus. UCR is relatively small compare to the other UCs, so i do not have to walk for over half an hour to get from one class to another (UV classes are the exceptions). Dorm food is the best, because not many school will have the possibility of crab legs, steak, swordfish, etc. I know i am picking the best meal i have had, but the food i have had at UCSD is no where near the quality as the food served in UCR. Also, i like the school for the colorful buildings. Sure that this statement doesn’t say much, but i would much rather looking at UCR’s many building than at UCSD’s cement concrete.</p>

<p>Now lets get to the Cons. The city is bad. I will not try to sugar coat the condition of the city because it is that terrible compare to the average cities most of the students come from. We get an email alert about some crime around campus pretty frequently. I see a lot of homeless families, and it has been increased because more people are showing up to soup kitchen. And if you stay in dorms, you will realize that the campus is dead during weekends since most south cal people go home for the weekends. And of course, personally, i was afraid to walk anywhere on campus at night (anytime past 10pm). BUT, i found all of these concerns to be minimal. Humans are adaptive creatures, so we get used to our environment. If you live with good friend, most of these problem will vanish. You can travel with your friend to places either by walking or by bus. That way you can avoid getting robbed a lot better, you will have someone to hang out with for the majority of the weekends (people usually stay when they think about the cost of the apartment is out of your own pocket if you live in a private apartment). Also, you will feel the city is not as bad as you think once you start visiting different places. I have been to a park called Andulka park, and it is the best park i have been to so far.</p>

<p>So after all of these, i think the choice should be made by the potential students themselves, not reject the school because of the things that people say. Our voices should only be opinion, not a way to judge the school and to tell everyone to stay away. So thisislife, i hope you can change your opinion about the school, or at least, don’t make the possibility to mislead many potential goers. Yes the city is bad, but it is manageable if you know how. And why past up a great school just because the city is bad? If that is the case, why is UCLA still so popular when it is in a relatively bad part of Los Angeles? Why do people still attend Cal State LA when the area around it is just plain bad? So anyways, i hope you can reconsider your opinion about the school, it can make your life enjoyable. But if you still won’t change your mind, i can’t really do anything about it. However, i do hope you will consider my opinion on UCR.</p>

3

<p>" why is UCLA still so popular when it is in a relatively bad part of Los Angeles? Why do people still attend Cal State LA when the area around it is just plain bad? "
Live in LA my whole life, UCLA is in one of the best parts of LA, Cal State LA accepts people with 2.2 gpas, and thats why people go their . </p>

<p>Lets be real, this school is almost no ones first choice . I think I’m saving alot off trouble for students who think that since its the only UC they go into , they have to come here . Plus as an added bonus most students take 5 years , since you can never get the classes you need . These are just my opinions , but if you google UCR reviews then you’ll find that alot of people have similar feelings to what I have on this school. </p>

<p>The city being as dangerous as it is , is a very big deal . In LA you in a cultural meca , and as long as you stay out of the ghetto your going to be safe . Riverside, however is a giant ghetto, and robberies occur during the day time in this crazy place .</p>

4

<p>I think any school is what you make of it. My son chose UCR after visiting and is glad he is there. He enjoys the diversity and finds it refreshing. He has a great time with his friends from the dorms. </p>

<p>Yes, he does get the emails about the crime, but if you look in any newspaper for any city, you will see it is the same. They just make a point to let students know what is happening. </p>

<p>We live in suburbia and crime happens here as well.</p>

5

<p>Honestly I was surprised how it’s not really that diverse I mean there’s still a large amount of asian population here. But I guess compared to all the other UC campus there are a larger amount of different ethnicities. </p>

<p>You probably came to UCR with a negative attitude, therefore you’re going to be miserable. Like crizello said it’s what you make of it. Nobody’s going to hold your hand and take you to all the great social at UCR; you have to go find it yourself. Obviously you’re not putting any effort into enjoying your college experience. Don’t blame UCR for your misery; blame yourself.</p>

6

<p>This school is no ones first choice. Thats a simple fact, the school it self is ok. What I really hate is the economy here. I came with a positive attitude, that disapered as so as i relized im in a giant ghetto . And have a nice bonus is school has the lowest 4 year graduation rate of any UC aside from maybe merced. This means i get to look forward to not being able to get the classes i need. Im transfering out if Spring registration is as bad as Winter. </p>

<p>Fact : UCR has the most transfers out of any UC. Apparently I’m not the only 1 that doesn’t like it here</p>

7

<p>thisislife and haha438 sound like bitter UCSD rejects.</p>

8

<p>lol JeSuis, after seeing what ucsd was like? i seriously glad i was not a part of it. Worst school ever. My reason for picking UCR is very simple–chancellor scholarship and priority registration. Meaning being a big fish in a small pound is better than being a small fish in a big pound. And just from personal experience, the fact that i can use a program that has not yet been released, and to test for accuracy, i think is pretty awesome</p>

9

<p>So you’re saying UCR is a bad school because of the area and clique groups? Not enough reasons to reject it, in my opinion.</p>

<p>USC is a great school, and it’s in a very dangerous part of LA, so why do people attend? Sure, it’s a better ranked, but both UCR and USC can have it’s pros and cons. It’s also false to say it’s a fact that UCR is a never a first choice, unless you’ve done extensive research, you can’t make such a extreme statement.</p>

<p>Also, you do not mention any of Riverside’s academic strength or weakness, your pros is cheap housing and a “nice” campus, and your cons is a dangerous neighborhood, not really being specific at all. How are research opportunities, how are class sizes, are professors available to students, how good is a certain department, what is there to do on campus? You don’t elaborate and you simply put down UCR because of your personal hate for the city. College isn’t solely about location is it?</p>

<p>Sure, UCR isn’t the best UC school, but nationally, it is one of the top schools. Perhaps the cons outweigh the pros in your case, but you can’t say the same for the thousands of other students who attend, or plan to attend UCR. </p>

<p>Also, I feel it’s wrong to choose UCR because it has “UC” in the name. You should of really done your research about the school and what you want out of college before you attend and regret it. It’s fine if you want to transfer out, but don’t put down UCR and tell everyone it’s not a school worth attending, it’s actually better than a lot of schools out there. I just hope that you would research about what CSU school you plan on attending before you go there because you think it will immediately be better than UCR.</p>

10

<p>"To all high school seniors who only get accepted into UCR , go to a community college first, and then see if you can transfer out to a better school . This is a UC , but its one of the most unhappy schools in America( UCOP - Insitutional Advocacy) . To transfers such as myself , its worth it to go to a CSU in a better city . "</p>

<p>To be real with you, there are plenty of other people who are having a blast at UCR. Let the seniors make their decisions, not you. If you like UCR, stay. If you don’t, then transfer out. Let UCR just be UCR.</p>

11

<p>I attend UCR.
I’m glad I am here.
Why?
Because I made it fit me.
Simple as that.
I took advantage of the student orgs and the people here. I found my niche.</p>

12

<p>Hey thisislife you could withdraw from UCR and go to community college and then transfer to any other school if you you are not happy attending UCR.</p>

13

<p>Its my fault i didnt get into a better school. Ohh well</p>

14

<p>If you feel that you “should” get into a better school or that you didn’t get into one, then i only have one advice for you. Get out of the school. Why bother coming to UCR when you have a choice like a guarantee transfer that community college offers? Why trying to “waste” (according to you) your life in UCR. If you feel that your destiny is with other school then get out. School is a choice, everyone here choose to go to school. you are not tied down to a specific school. A school like UCR don’t really need people who judge the university based only on people’s preference and the city the school is in. Unless you get into your department and see what your department has to offer. If your department is not as strong or not strong at all, then i would agree with you that UCR is bad at ONLY A SPECIFIC DEPARTMENT, but not the entire school. However, your current example is not enough to tell us UCR students who enjoy this school is a terrible school that need such bashing, and especially not a warning as if this school is a trap.</p>

<p>But all in all, it is Christmas, so merry Christmas to all of you</p>

15

<p>Most of it is I wasn’t expecting the city to suck so much. IMO a city’s atmosphere is just as important as the school it self. To be honest I’m a bit homesick, yet I’m sure the large number of students that transfer out of UCR will agree that this isn’t the happyest place to be</p>

16

<p>then go to a school with a decent to good city, like Irvine or San Diego. Honestly the city isn’t the factor that made me happy/sad because i have experienced classes at UCSD (one of the nicest city i been in); however, the overall experience made me feel very sad day after day due to some ******** and the overall look of the campus. In contrast, being at UCR makes me very happy even though knowing the city is just terrible. I can like the city because i found my way of living in it (not because i have to but because i like to).</p>

<p>So what i’m trying to say it that despite UCR being in a bad city, you shouldn’t base a school’s reputation on just that. Also you should let others make a decision themselves through visits, not because of they see your complain about the city which lead u saying it is a terrible school.</p>

17

<p>To each his own . Haha, you think that a crappy city shouldn’t matter all that much when picking a school, id say that its a key factor . For me personally I’m disappointed in the local economy . A young student going to UCR wont have the job opportunities a student going to Irvine or UCLA would . Again , this is my fault since if I payed closer attention to the job market out here I would of avoided coming here</p>

18

<p>I read this whole thing. I feel like some people cannot have a life…and then blame the school for it.
I mean come on…</p>

19

<p>I agree with this person ^ </p>

<p>Sent from my MOTWX435KT using CC</p>

20

<p>It comes down to this </p>

<p>Do you have a car, and are you coming here for CNASS- engineering and Science ?
If you said no to both of these questions then stay far away from Riverside , I’m basically trapped here , when my friends have parties out in LA, guess what I’m in RIVERSIDE .</p>