<p>I heard that UC Santa Cruz puts more emphasis on "independant study" compared to the other UC's. Is there any truth to this?</p>
<p>I am currently a freshmen at UCSC and while I am very aware of independent study I know very few people who actually do it. Most people are just in normal classes with a normal major in mind. Nothing too different. If you have any questions of UCSC let me know.</p>
<p>i also attend UCSC, i PMed you back. i don't think it's so much that they emphasize independent study as they make it more accessible.</p>
<p>sfbbgurl, which college are you in?</p>
<p>is it easier to get an A in a class than independent studying? i prefer independent studying just because it is more efficient in subjects, with exceptions concerning math and computers.</p>
<p>whats "independent study"?</p>
<p>I wouldn't know how UCSC compares to the other UCs in terms of emphasis, but their literature (mostly the general catalogue) does highly encourage "group tutorials" and various independent projects. They do seem to have a lot of support for them, too, but I wouldn't know off-hand as I, too, am a freshman.</p>
<p>The difficulty, I imagine, depends on what you promise, to whom, when, and under whose supervision, all of which are important in the "independent" study process.</p>
<p>A friend's kid is a freshman at UCSC and is very unhappy. She's geting all A's in her classes with no effort (came from a competitive CA public) and feels unchallenged. Feels unconnected to other students, they seem flakey and not serious. </p>
<p>Aside from the disappointment in the academics, she feels the campus is isolated, that everyone leaves on the weekend, and since it's so hard/expensive to have a car there she feels trapped. Also thinks the campus is creepy at night.</p>
<p>We are really shocked and discouraged to hear about the academics. I can't imagine it to be much different at other UC's. DD's counsellor said that UCSC is better than UCSB in terms of indepentent thinkers, intellectualism, but this girl sees no evidence of that. DD applied to UCB, UCSD and UCSC, but we are thinking definately not to go. </p>
<p>Of course, this girl may just have her own issues. I told her parents to look into transferring asap. Otherwise I thought that if she waits another year it isn't worth transferring, because upper division should be much better.</p>
<p>What do you think? How can she make the situation better?</p>
<p>Also, is there no UCSC forum on this site?</p>
<p>I'll bet theres a general UC forum somewhere</p>
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Of course, this girl may just have her own issues. I told her parents to look into transferring asap. Otherwise I thought that if she waits another year it isn't worth transferring, because upper division should be much better.
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<p>Actually if she's interested in another UC she's kinda gotta wait. UC schools only accept frosh and junior xfers. </p>
<p>Your post does illustrate the dangers of relying on second-hand or third-hand advice. Maybe to the guidance counselor UCSC does have independent thinkers and so on, but the student should have either visited or talked to current students to get a better feel for what the school is really like. </p>
<p>UCSC is one of those "love it or hate it" places. For those it fits its great. But of all the UC campuses UCSC has the highest rate of students tranferring out.</p>
<p>You can't judge the other UCs by some kid's experience at UCSC. UCSC and UCR are known as the backup UC schools. UCB and UCSD are definitely more intellectually demanding, especially with a competitive major like business, engineering, or premed (biology or chem).</p>
<p>Well we are told that UCSB student body is like a big high school, cliquish etc. And of course we know they too have large share of flakey partier types. And I don't really believe that the first 2 years at any UC will have any substantial differences. For us, UC is financial back-up. But since dd got into her first choice school, she is drastically scaling down other apps to just 3 super reach, so it is worrisome if this ends up the only choice financially. </p>
<p>For the girl who goes to UCSC now, she will not want to transfer to another UC. But her window of opportunity is very small now. Esp because she will want to stay on the west coast. She is really very unhappy, so I think she should get out. There must be some people more similar to her there, but how to meet them?</p>
<p>You could go to the Community and Forum Issues area and ask Admin to start a UC Santa Cruz forum. They just added two other colleges due to demand, so why not?</p>
<p>Bettina, UCSC seems to be very much a "love it" or "hate it" kind of place. The atmosphere is definitely more intellectually ambitious at Berkeley, UCLA, and SD; I wouldn't write off either SB or Davis...both of those have many hard driving students and it's what you make of it.</p>
<p>Bettina, I have a couple of questions: Do you know which college she's at? That can have A LOT to do with her unhappiness, particularly for a freshman living in the dorms. She might consider transferring to one of the other colleges for next year. There are big differences among the colleges, and she should be able to find a better fit. It sounds to me like she's really unhappy with her living situation. Getting off the dorm this Spring Quarter could really help, although Spring Quarter on that campus is about as close to Paradise as a person can get! Two of my D's friends live in the apartments just off-campus on Bay Street, and my D will move into one this summer. They're clean and new, and if she has someone to split the rent with, the cost is less than living in the dorms. Start with Craig's List for off-campus listings, or tell her to go down to those apts. and drop by the office to find out what's available. </p>
<p>My D is at the Crown-Merrill apts. this year. What an improvement over last year's dorms! It's a roomy, ground floor apt with 4 singles, overlooking the forest. Your friend's D will have the option of staying on-campus next year and trying for one of the student apts, whichever one she's currently affiliated with. She'll have to line up roommates and take her chances with a lottery. I don't know which college she's at, but the Crown-Merrill apts. are great and worth the trouble of the lottery. D's boyfriend lives in the brand new Cowell student apts., which are beautiful, comfortable, and roomy. Porter also has brand new apts. this year, and I would guess that those are a step up from the dorms at Porter, which are small and creepy, imho. </p>
<p>My son lived in the College Ten dorms last summer. A double room there is huge in comparison to my D's double at Crown last year. They're clean and new, they have elevators, and the buildings are located in a lovely courtyard setting next to College Nine, which is also relatively new (built in 2000, I think). My son's bandmate is a junior this year, and he's been living at the College Eight dorms all three years. It gets the most sun of all the colleges, and it's in a resort-like setting with a view of Monterey Bay.</p>
<p>A change in her housing situation could be the most immediate solution to her unhappiness. As far as her classes go, has she tried to meet with an academic counselor to create a more challenging program of study? What's her major? I'd love to know what classes she has taken during her first quarter that are so easy for her. She needs to ramp up to more rigorous courses, and I wonder if she has sat down to talk with anybody who can recommend more challenging classes. Each college has a core course that is required for freshmen. She may not be satisfied with the one that is required for her college, but it's not a permanent situation. Most core courses only last for one quarter, with the exception of Stevenson's, which is a one year course.</p>
<p>The campus is in a redwood forest, and it is quiet and secluded. It's the nature of the place, and it can be intimidating for freshmen. After her first quarter, I can understand why she may be feeling isolated. Depending on where she is living, she might need to connect with students with whom she has more in common. My D is a hard-working Bio major, pre-med, very involved in volunteer activities at the student health center. If your friend's D is interested in meeting an average, nice person, my D would be happy to show her their apt (yes, there is life after the dorms!) and give her a tour of the health center. UCSC is what you make of it, and it's important to have a focus. Otherwise, all of the other bullsh** intrudes (e.g. lack of administrative organization, political correctness, difficulty in getting classes, dorm dramas, boredom, the usual stuff) and it can overwhelm a student. Hope this helps! We're a banana slug family. D is there now (soph); H graduated from UCSC in 1978 with a BS in Information Science, MS in Comp Sci at UC Berkeley, 1980. I graduated with an AA in Humanities from Cabrillo College in Aptos, transferred to Cal in 1978, graduated with an AB in Linguistics, 1980.</p>