<p>My daughter is being accepted to both UC Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz. What are the pluses and minuses of each? Which would you choose? We visited each campus very briefly. She is smart, liberal, but not a hippy. She worked very hard in high school so wants to be sure to go to a school where she can have an active social life.</p>
<p>UCSB is better academically and has a better social/party scene.
I would definitely go with SB.</p>
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UCSB is better academically and has a better social/party scene.
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<p>Yep that pretty much sums it up.</p>
<p>Are either one of you UC Santa Barbara students or alumni? If so, what do/did you like about it?</p>
<p>Santa Barbara! cuz i've heard that a person went missing in SC, he was my friend's friend's roomate plus, SC is more secluded that SB</p>
<p>When did that happen Haberdashery? Details please!</p>
<p>though UCSB probably has the upper hand academically, it depends on what you want...at UCSB, parties seem to be the primary form of leisure, while at UCSC leisure time is more relaxed and slow-paced (possibly involving substances...). my older sister graduated from UCSC, and i'm friends with quite a few people who go there, so i can attest to this.</p>
<p>I agree with the above.</p>
<p>It also depends on what she wants to major in. I normally wouldn't consider UCSC (a safety for me), but then I found out their linguistics department is very strong (top 10, I believe). Since that's my intended major, UCSC is on my list.</p>
<p>Overall UCSB is better, but again, look into the strengths of the departments she wants.</p>
<p>My sister goes to UCSB and a good friend goes to UCSC. I personally like UCSB much better.</p>
<p>what's her major?</p>
<p>This one is a no brainer; UCSB. The only problem with UCSB is that you really need to manage your time well. Otherwise, you won't be enrolled in the school after a few quarters.</p>
<p>UCSC is also probably the only UC which can be considered to be somewhat "undergrad focused." I believe it has the smallest undergrad population (other than Merced), very few grad programs, and I hear it's in a nice location too. Check it out, although I still agree with other people here that UCSB probably has the upper hand overall.</p>
<p>She's a language person -- English, Spanish, maybe French or Italian. She'd also want to write for the school paper.</p>
<p>UCSC doesn't have a student newspaper.</p>
<p>go with UCSB</p>
<p>I would choose UCSB over UCSC.</p>
<p>Sounds like both would be great for your daughter. Both are coastal, and both seem pretty liberal. More social life I think at SB, but that's what I heard from friends. On the college tours I took, the tour guide (student) at SB was in a sorority and very blonde and from OC (needless to say, fairly conservative in that cheerleader sort of way), but even she admitted she's not the norm. I think the academic/social balance is pretty good. I think based on what you said about your daughter, SB would be the better match, unless she's totally tired of overstudying, in which case, SC might be better. Have you visited both campuses? I did and Santa Cruz is the better match for me.</p>
<p>to beatchick, it happened to my college friend's roomate, who was out at a party the night before who never showed up...days later, the filed a missing person report but doesn't this ocassionally happen at other colleges?</p>
<p>it's weird that the Chancellor of SC committed suicide last year but it seems that most students aren't really affected by it </p>
<p>I think that UCSC is very liberal, based on what I know. If your daughter is not prepared to take on extreme liberalness, she might want to stay away from Santa Cruz.</p>
<p>I strongly recommend that you visit the schools. We toured both this past year with our D and were very struck by the "cultural" differences. I would compare it to the difference between Northern and Southern California. SC breaks down into small close-knit college communities and is gorgeous in a woodsy way. SB is also beautiful with wide-open spaces, ocean views and a beach culture. To me, SC seemed more homey and comfortable while my D loved SB which felt much larger, more vibrant and simply new to a girl from the Bay Area. I was slightly horrified by Isla Vista (even though I lived there for a summer 30 years ago) and she thought it looked great. You may feel like the academics at either school would work for you but I am guessing that one or the other will feel like a better fit socially.</p>