Question for those who got accepted to UCLA...

<p>I am still pending BTW and anyway I was wondering where did you guys grow up in California? The reason I ask is that I heard that UCLA considers your academic achievement with respect to your surrounding community. I think that might be a plus for me considering I live in a not so great city (think east LA, south central).</p>

<p>I've lived in Santa Clarita all my life. It's your typical suburb - track homes, crowded roads, a lackluster mall, grocery stores, nothing too exciting except Six Flags Magic Mountain next door. But that gets old REAL fast with a season pass. It's so boring here, so most kids start drinking early and smoking pot. Figures. It's basically a great place to raise a family, but not to grow up in if you're in your teens. </p>

<p>It makes some sort of sense that they'd take your location into consideration, though I'm not sure of the credibility of that statement. Did you write about it in your essays? That might work in your favor. <em>shrug</em></p>

<p>how do they know where you grow up? lol i could have moved to my current place right before i applied right?</p>

<p>I grew up in Valencia (Santa Clarita) as well. Upper/middle class conservative stronghold. High achieving public high schools. I'm also 27 and a military vet (an adult) so I would hope they would take the decisions I've made based on that more into consideration than the surrounding area.</p>

<p>I didn't directly talk about the area I live in since I spent all of the prompts talking about good things (maybe I should have). Hopefully noting on my application that I'm from the area is enough for them consider that that had an adverse affect on my performance, and if you've ever lived in east LA or south central, believe me IT DOES (gang activity like you won't believe, just for starters)!!</p>

<p>"how do they know where you grow up? lol i could have moved to my current place right before i applied right?"</p>

<p>I went to middle school and high school in the area.</p>

<p>twitchyhamst3r,</p>

<p>That's a common complaint I hear from younger people here in SCV...that it is boring here, it sucks, etc. </p>

<p>But it's interesting to point out that you say those things, but also say you've lived here your entire life, which means you have nothing to compare it to.</p>

<p>Right after basic training I went to advanced training at an AF base in San Angelo, Texas. It was (is) a damn hole in the ground. Armpit of America. Did you hear about that polygamist cult that has been in the news a lot lately? That was in San Angelo. Now that placed truly sucked. But as much as it did suck, there were people from even smaller, more boring places than that. Those people thought they had died and gone to heaven when they ended up in San Angelo. It really was a lesson for me in how to put things in perspective that I'll never forget.</p>

<p>Moral of the story is Santa Clarita, and most of California in general, is one of the best places to live in the entire world. But I encourage you to get out there and live abroad so you can find that out yourself. It will be a good character building experience for you.</p>

<p>Good luck everyone!</p>

<p>I grew up in a suburb south of San Francisco. There's no sense of community, polluted streets, and the public schools are horrible.</p>

<p>@Edward: I'm aware of all that :) Santa Clarita is probably one of the safest places to live, and like I said, a great place to raise a family. I'm lucky to have lived here as opposed to some one-horse town like your example, but regardless, for someone like me, Santa Clarita's still quite boring, and I don't resent that thought. That's why I'm so eager to go off to school and live on my own a bit. Regardless, I do appreciate your words, and I'm definitely planning on living abroad at some point to gain those experiences. It's what I've looked forward to for so long. :D</p>

<p>As a side note, what part of Santa Clarita were you (or <em>are</em> you) in? I'm in good ol' Newhall, haha.</p>

<p>Man seeing where you guys grew up gets me depressed as compared to the **** hole I was raised and live in. :(</p>

<p>Again, I hope UCLA really considers this factor.</p>

<p>I grew up in Shanghai, China....Maybe that's a plus?</p>

<p>Well whatever the case, I hope you get in, Ed. It sucks that they're still making people wait until the <em>end</em> of April. It's ulcer inducing.</p>

<p>I was born in Compton... Raised in L.A.= rejected, false theory... LOL.</p>

<p>I'm an international student. I came here about 2 years ago, and I am in Sacramento :)</p>

<p>i actually grew up in oklahoma (sooner nation, baby), but i have been going back and forth from oklahoma to california since i was 13. i moved here full-time when i was 17 (i'm now 21) and i live in the san fernando valley.</p>

<p>Hey twitchy,</p>

<p>I liked reading your reply. Sometimes I get uptight when I hear people (especially in class) say such things but it appears you do have your head on straight and realize what you're talking about, as opposed to so many.</p>

<p>I live in the Summit, not too far from Whole Foods and Kohl's. I can remember that shopping center being a dirt lot, and then I came home on leave and was like "wth is all this?!" hehe.</p>

<p>@Edward</p>

<p>Hey, it's understandable. Also thanks! ;)</p>

<p>And oh wow - I remember all the emptiness over there. Everything slowly getting developed. I still remember the time before the mall, haha! My dad's lived here all his life too, and he remembers when most of everything was onion fields and vast hills to just go roaming around. And wow does he have some crazy stories. XD He's seen a lot of changes, and I can only imagine the "whoa, wth" you probably felt coming back on leave, lol. And the place is still growing, amIrite?!</p>

<p>Yeah, growing out of control unfortunately. It was a tough decision but I won't be settling here after grad school. The traffic is unbelievable as you know. McBean at 5pm = the 405. I wish they implemented controlled growth here...say, back in 96 or so, like Thousand Oaks has in place.</p>

<p>I can remember how it was before the mall too. My friends and I would go ride bikes and make jumps there on the weekend. :)</p>

<p>Congrats on getting into UCLA. I'll probably be commuting there from here (McBean/405 style ftl!) What is your major?</p>

<p>I hear you. I can't stand driving around during dinner time, but sometimes it's a necessity, and wow it's insane. A lot of times I find the city streets more dangerous than the freeway itself. McBean especially, and sometimes I can't escape it. It's almost like Saugus in certain parts: one way in, one way out. </p>

<p>And thanks again. Congrats to you too. :) I'll be majoring in English, so far hoping to go into law school. Still, my main passion is the writing itself; I love to be creative and all that. I also paint and draw, and it all ties together with my writing. All stuff I <em>hope</em> to implement later in life.</p>

<p>Also, what's your major? I don't think I caught it yet in the slew of posts, haha</p>

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I am still pending BTW and anyway I was wondering where did you guys grow up in California? The reason I ask is that I heard that UCLA considers your academic achievement with respect to your surrounding community. I think that might be a plus for me considering I live in a not so great city (think east LA, south central).

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<p>UCLA does consider "circumstances that may have prevented students from achieving their highest overall academic performance" (see UCLA</a> Undergraduate Admissions and Relations with Schools: Transfer Admission under 'personal criteria'). You said that you wrote mostly about positive experiences in your application...? by that if you were implying that you've experience such circumstances related to the area you live in (that can be documented), then i'd say you have grounds for appeal, in the case you're not admitted.</p>