University of California-Santa Barbara Top Questions

Yes and no. UCSB is definatley a party school, in the sense that you don't have to be a part of the Greek life to have a party to go to or something fun to do every night. And yes, a lot of people do skip class to hit up the local beach on a beautiful day, but I think UCSB students are the best out of any in learning to balance work and play. The academics at UCSB are no joke and it is getting harder and harder to get into this school, attracting scholars from around the nation. The professors are excellent for the most part and help make going to class be less of a chore. UCSB is full of young beautiful people, but most of them are down to earth and Isla Vista is one of the friendliest towns you'll find anywhere. You could walk into a party, not know a soul there, join a beer pong game and walk away with 3 new friends, easy. UCSB = University of casual sex and beer, well it is what you make of it. You would definatley fit in at UCSB if this was your motto, but then again, it is college isn't it? This is the time to have uninhabited fun and UCSB is definitaley a good place to do it.

I think that they may be accurate, however intuitively I dont think that they would deviate far from other campuses. I dont think that people are having more sex here at UCSB than the average 18-23 year old population. The overall stereotype is that UCSB is a party school, which is true, however I dont think that this is because UCSB students are innate "partiers", I think that it is due to the fact that so many students live in a small town 1 mile x 1 mile.

For the most part, no!! The STI rate (be proud) is just the same as the national average for all other universities. Also, I have found that the people here are far from stuck up; its southern (almost) California, we have a beautiful campus and I have a view of the ocean from my dorm room...relax everyone here is really chill. Also, same with the guys- there will always be sletchy guys anywhere you go, but I have already found some pretty amazing guys that I can trust (ha ha and they're in the Greek sysyem). Lastly, we do tend to have parties here from time to time, but keep in mind not only do we know how to have a lot of fun, but the people who go here had to be smart to get into the school too!

pretty much... students in the greek system get their act together come midterm and finals time, but other than that, party party party. and yes, it seems that everyone is [fake] blonde and a Forever 21 devotee.

For the Greek system, largely yes. Not for the general population.

Most UCSB students do drink a fair amount. I don't know anyone having very much casual sex, or that admits to having an STD. If UCSB student are smarter than your average college student, I'd hate to know how retarded the average college student really is. Seriously, I often wonder how some of these people graduated from High School.

the partying stereotype is definitely an accurate portrayal of a lot of students here at ucsb, but it is a personal choice and generally no one pressures you to do so if u don't want to, but the opportunity to do so is always there because the iv community is so small and made up of almost all students

beachy, yes, a lot of blondes, but school is very important to everyone, because this is a hard school to get into and everyone is pretty much intelligent. work hard, and of course, play hard.

UCSB has just as many alocholics and STDs as any other school. Our parties are just way better and everyone parties in a small area (Isla Vista).

These stereotypes are not necessarily true. It depends what you want to make of your college career and what you get involved in. If all you want to do for four years is drink beer at the beach, you can, but you will definitely not be taking advantage of the best programs this school has to offer.

Partying = yes. Surfing = not everyone. White-majority = yes.

To an extent some are but for the most part, doesn't have the highest STD rate and I for one amongst other people do not drink.

They are close, but not completely accurate. There are plenty of people who do not drink or party.

We do know how to party but we also know how to prioritize. We study...then we party.

It is a party school, but it only happens in IV because it's a college community. It's really easy to not be involved in parties and the school offers a lot of alternatives. The campus is mainly white but there is very little to no racism at the school.

Being in a sorority and being around the dorms, I know a lot of people drink, but we are still a top university so obviously it isn't effecting our study skills. But this is college, let's get real: people are going to drink. The stereotype about everyone being blonde and fit also isn't true, seeing that I am brunette. But we do live by the beach so people are more health and body conscious then normal. As for the STDs, I don't have one and I don't know anyone who has one.

They are but not to the extent that I think most people have in mind. You can definitely always find a party, any night of the week, but there are also lots of really fun, mellow activities going on. There is a lot of hooking up at UCSB because of the huge open parties, both Greek and non-Greek. But it?s also a pretty competitive school environment so I think UCSB kids work really hard so they can party really hard.

Because almost all of UCSB's students live in the one-square mile of Isla Vista, parties are easily accessible. However, it is also very easy to stay away from the party scene and still have fun on a Friday night. UCSB students know the appropriate times to have fun and to do work. We take our responsibilities, such as, school, work, and extracurriculars seriously.

To some extent, sure! We all live in Isla Vista, one square mile full of 70{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} college students; of course all the parties are going to be more visible than other campuses, we all want to hang out with our friends and we know how to have fun. But personally, I don't drink and I still have a blast on the weekends, there's tons to do...and even including those that do drink, we all still know how to get our work done. We're just that well-balanced :D

Yes and no. I am not sure if UCSB students are bigger partiers than students at any other big university, but there is no doubt that they do and know how to party. Whether its Wednesday night or Saturday night anyone can walk around IV (Isla Vista- the community right outside campus) and find a game of beer pong going down or a full fledged party with kegs, bands, and dancing. BUT... what shocked me most about UCSB was how smart the students at UCSB are, and when how serious they are about their studying when its time to crack down. There is hardly any bike or car parking at the library come finals week. For the most part I would say that students here care about their education and they way UCSB is climbing up the prestige ladder proves it. Yes, there are a lot of blondes, but there are a lot of brunettes and red heads too. Yes, there are a lot of surfers who come running from all angles when the surf is up. But, one thing I love about UCSB is that all students of all types can socialize and mingle together. Surfers don't stick with surfers, and the blondes dont' ALWAYS stick with the blondes. Overall, it iritates me when people view UCSB as the "party" school. It may be one of the hundreds of party schools, but there is so much more to get involved in, be a part of, and participate in at UCSB. I could not say if UCSB is really the school with the most STIs/STDs. Personally, I think there is no way of really knowing that. College students have sex - unfortunately unprotected sex as well - that has not changed. But what I have seen is a stronger emphasis on protected sex. The health center and certain groups go out of their way to hand out condoms, safe-sex resources, and hold support and informative forums about it.

Absolutly NOT! -Party school/not very smart stereotype: First of all, every school is a "party school". I have visited many schools (of varying academic levels and settings...including University of Oregon, Emerson, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, & Yale) and they all have students that "party". It is inevitable. UCSB gets the reputation because its students live in Isla Vista, which is a square mile with approx 12,000 students living in it. Such a living situation is bound to be social because students live in such close proximity to each other and they can easily get around by biking or walking. I think of UCSB as an active school. Students are out and about all time, in part because the weather is for the most part great, and also because there are a lot of things going on (sports, clubs, events in IV, etc.) In fact, 85{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of students participate in an extracurricular activity, which is 2x the national average. In regards to the "partying" going on, I believe it is actually safer than most other schools because all social activities are close by (and for the over 21 year olds who go out downtown there is an inexpensive bus, Bills Bus, that takes everyone there and back), which minimizes drunk driving. Second, people completely overlook the fact that UCSB is a tough school to get in to and very strong academically. We are ranked in the top 15 for public research universities, and have 5 nobel prize winners on staff. Just to illustrate the quality of students at UCSB...the average GPA for admitted students for the freshman class entering in 2007 was 3.98 and the average GPA for students who enrolled was 3.76. The students are smart and balanced. They have fun, and also are smart and hard-working. -Diversity: According to UCSB press release about applicants to the freshman class of 2008, "52.7 percent of all applicants for the UCSB freshman class are members of a racial or ethnic minority group." This seems like diversity to me.

To some degree--we definitely have an active social life (especially in Isla Vista) but school always comes first. We know how to have a good time but we also understand the importance of the great education we are getting here and that comes first.