<p>thanks for all the replies so far. i appreciate them. 
something else that i guess i should bring up is the fact that i want to be a journalist (or possibly something else in the media industry), so i probably won’t be going to grad school unless i absolutely have to. i don’t think ucla or ucsc is particularly known for journalism (although ucla is obviously known for film, which ties into the media fields i’m looking into), so i wonder if the name of the undergrad degree would even really matter? thoughts?</p>
<p>There are some great journalism programs at a few CSUs. SF State comes time mind quite readily as an excellent program.</p>
<p>At UCSC, I would check out their Creative Writing concentration for the Literature major. It is not a focus on journalism and it is impacted, but it is a wonderful program. Love the Living Writer Series they do every week (that anyone, not just Creative Writing majors, can go to).</p>
<p>UCLA is good for building those connections with film. UCSC is better for building connections in theatre. It just has to do with what’s available and how you make use of it.</p>
<p>The name of your undergrad degree really means almost nothing in the big picture especially in comparison to your experience in the field and who you know. Heck, you might find some hiring managers that might avoid graduates from your particular college. I know of one in Silicon Valley that is biased against Stanford graduates due to a perceived entitlement attitude (no experience, but expect the corner office with six figure salary) the hiring manager believed some applied with. In comparison, I know several companies that prefer to hire Chico computer science graduates (and other colleges with similar requirements to graduate) due to a requirement to perform an internship in order to graduate.</p>
<p>Just find where you can be happy and where you can thrive. Take advantage of all resources available to you. That is how you will be successful in life.</p>
<p>do what you want, but dont believe the lie that ucsc people are any difficerent that ucla people. ucsc is just as “fake” as ucla. its just a different kind of “fake”.</p>
<p>as far as it being the hipsters paradise, pssht, maybe hispter as in 5 years behind LA hispter. good lord. i feel like i go back in time when i visit. </p>
<p>are you from LA? there is a lot of amazing stuff going on here. you could not pay me to live in santa cruz. college towns = death.</p>
<p>i wouldnt transfer after being accepted to ucla, personally. i would just find my niche, focus on my studies, and look for like-minded people.</p>
<p>OP just remember it all about fit, if UCLA doesn’t suit your tastes you are free to leave. Don’t listen to these idiots bashing one school or another. LIKE omg UCLA is spool prestigious, UCSC people are way cooler. Ucsc has clean air, LA is ***in polluted. Ucsc is full of stoners, ucla is full of the high maintenance type. You see where im coming from, the internet is filled with misinformation. Only you know the best fit for you as a person</p>
<p>@windedbison: agreed!</p>
<p>@fishtankcleaner: give me a city with polluted air and culture over a town with “clean air” and a small, white, homogeneous population any day.</p>
<p>@op: obviously nobody here is invested in your choice. do what you think is best. admittedly I am not a fan of the city of santa cruz, but the campus itself is beautiful. the negative reactions you are getting are probably becasue you posted this in a forum where most of the people posting would give their fisrt born to attend ucla. good luck in whatever you choose.</p>
<p>@Liz What wrong with Santa Cruz? Its easily one of the most beautiful places to live in the state (putting it in the running for the country/ planet), with a variety of different ecosystems all within a small area. Its located no more than an hours drive from SF/ East Bay/ Monterey, a half hour from San Jose, hour and a half from Big Sur/ Napa (give or take). Yeah, the city itself is small, and some folks can’t hang with that, but you can get your big city fix easily here, while having a sanctuary to return to. As far as white and homogeneous goes, yeah, I’ll concede that. For example, there’s very few black folks here, but we do have a lot of Latinos! </p>
<p>To be honest, after spending 26 years growing up here, I’m eager and ready to leave, but there are few places that compare to SC in terms of the generally good attitude I get from people. Sure, it lacks an extreme amount of variety, but thats to be expected in a county that has ~300,000 people across its entire area (with perhaps 150,000 in the Santa Cruz/ Capitola/ Soquel/ Aptos/ Live Oak areas combined). For 4 years of school, its not a bad place at all. And traffic is nothing like SoCal, although we get congestion too. And while I didn’t go to UCSC, I have friends who did, and they speak highly of the school, even though it lacks the prestige some of the others carry.</p>
<p>FishTankCleaner:
Who bashed UCLA? I said I personally don’t like SoCal or the style of UCLA’s campus. I also do not like UCB. I think it’s an ugly campus and the size bothers me. I like more spread out campuses. I never said UCLA wasn’t a good school. Last I checked, you and several others were saying Santa Cruz lacks culture, is full of stoners, and full of everything that’s evil. No one in this thread is bashing UCLA or SoCal. No one is making generalizations about the area only saying that it is not for them and giving personal experiences why. Making opinions about an area based on another person’s idea of an area is not thinking for yourself.</p>
<p>If you don’t like something, that’s totally fine. But point to facts and personal experiences for why. Not someone else’s opinion. Those who have not been to the area being described should be very careful what they name for why they don’t like it.</p>
<p>My statement never even was close to, “Omg, the air is so terrible <em>cough</em> <em>cough</em>!” It was that my very sensitive lungs (I’m allergic to marijuana and cigarette smoke causes my throat to close) have trouble down there and I am not fond of the southern part of the state’s weather. That is a personal preference that keeps me from wishing to spend extended period of time down there, but I never said it was a negative point that made it “a terrible place to be.” It is only not for me because I risk my health. I also risk my health in some NorCal cities and most certainly out of state. I happen to like breathing so I avoid areas where the air is too thick for me when I can and keep my inhaler on me for those times I can’t.</p>
<p>LizfromHollywood:
Have you not read any of my posts where I very clearly stated that it is the OP’s decision to make and not anyone else’s? Not everyone is telling the OP one way or the other. I’m telling the OP to do what is best for them and that does not seem to be UCLA as are several others.</p>
<p>This thread is not about bashing either area so I politely ask that those thinking it is alright to attack either place to please stop. This does not help the OP make what is more than likely a difficult decision. They should be given the facts to think about and not bitter and scathing comments from people who think it’s okay to attack anyone. Seriously, chill out.</p>
<p>Just an example of how people are biased towards their school of preference. It could be idaho vs montana, there is always going to be bias. In the end the person has to make a decision and that’s that.</p>
<p>Personally I think santa cruz > la</p>
<p>I’m not biased towards either school when it comes to the choices of others. UCSC is definitely not for everyone nor is UCLA for everyone. I would hate to be at either campus and have anyone around who did not be there.</p>
<p>I am biased towards UCSC when it comes to my personal preference, though. But that is for me and me alone. It’s not like UCSC and UCLA are sports rivals or anything. That’s a whole different colored horse if they were ;)</p>
<p>i agree with kender and planet - if youre unhappy and you really feel like you’d excel personally and academically somewhere else, that ultimately that will pay off in the long run. don’t let the name or the prestige define you (plus, its only ucla, its not a freakin ivy). ultimately though, employers dont care so much about the name of the school but what talent you have to offer…whats the likelihood of honing your skills when you’re too busy feeling miserable? sometimes the name of the school doesnt matter as much as the GPA you get there either, so if you have the academic talent to get into UCLA as a freshman then you’ll probably succeed with a higher GPA at UCSC.</p>
<p>either way, your decision should reflect your values and what you feel is most important to you, if you feel that a schools reputation is much more important than your personal experience then by all means stay at LA. if you do end up transferring just make sure you know you are doing it for the right reasons.</p>
<p>Definitely go where you’ll be happiest! You’ll be much more productive when you feel comfortable and happy at a university. Mental and emotional well-being are the greatest foundation for success in any field. If you can’t even see yourself at UCLA for the rest of the year and find the academics less than stimulating, it doesn’t sound like you feel super motivated to work your caboose off and utilize your resources there…so you should try to find a place where you will! Good luck!</p>
<p>This thread makes me weep.</p>
<p>Surely there are better options for you than the school where they shove Marxist-Feminism down your throat in every class. You won’t get intellectualism, you’ll get psuedo-intellectual babble. Resources are dwindling, the budget cuts have forced the library shut on weekends. The campus is poorly designed, students shove and scratch their way onto the limited shuttle spaces because walking anywhere on campus through the woods is stupid. And your time and overpriced tuition gets you the distinction of being a graduate of the laughingstock of the UC system.</p>
<p>I would have killed to take your spot at my dream school, UCLA, after having to put up with that garbage school.</p>
<p>P.S. I think that answers Liz’s question about which UC I went to.</p>
<p>barnaby:
Been awhile since you last updated your facts, yes? The library is currently open on the weekends for quite a number of hours. The last “forced shut down for an extended period of time” was when there was a fire in the new part of the building last spring.</p>
<p>I’ve never seen the attitude you’re talking about in any of my classes except for one specifically discussing the idea of feminism in Shakespeare. However, part of that conversation was surrounding what was the real definition of feminism to begin with. Nothing was “shoved down our throats,” though. I’m sorry it seems you had such a bad experience with classes that did not fit your tastes. Perhaps different decisions would have served you better.</p>
<p>A nice stroll through the woods is actually quite pleasant :). I will agree the buses can get a bit crowded at certain times of the day, but it’s an inconvenience many accept if they choose to leave close to the start time for their class and want to take a shuttle instead of walk. I have never seen anyone be as aggressive as you describe, though, and most of the people I know walk. It’s excellent exercise ;)</p>
<p>UCSC was definitely not for you and I hope you left as soon as you could. Someone who does not enjoy where they are is a waste of a space that could go to someone who would appreciate and enjoy it.</p>