UC Davis—UP
I don’t think S26 had given a single thought to UC Davis before arriving so I guess his positive impressions after our tour mean that it went “up.”
We live about an hour and 15 mins away from UCD, so this is a local-ish tour for us.
The tour began with about 30 mins of a slide presentation by a senior student. She was engaging and the info was good—pretty typical fare but done well. We broke off into groups for a 90 min walking tour. (Definitely wear comfortable shoes if you go.)
Our tour guide was a Plant Sciences major and her passion for plants definitely came through. She told us where all the food is grown, about her research and the farms. But she also shared other stories about the school, and we all came away charmed by the characters that seem to make Davis a fun community. A butterfly expert who looks like a wizard, a haunted building now used for “gross anatomy” — which is where the cadavers are kept, though that’s not why it’s haunted. A popular class called Tractor Driving (and yes, you get a special license if you pass the class). Two vintage double decker buses from London that carry kids around campus.
My S26 also liked the free rock climbing wall, the NASA and former astronaut professors in the Physics and Aerospace Engineering building, and all of the Egg Head sculptures around campus.
The bikes are a force to behold… hundreds—probably thousands—of them all over campus, and our guide noted that she doesn’t ride during the first 2 weeks of the year bc the freshmen don’t know the bike rules of the road and there are accidents.
We didn’t see dorms (though you can take a housing tour after the main tour—we were tired and hungry so we skipped it). Freshmen live on campus and it’s guaranteed. Most move off campus after that and there are options very close to campus and all the fun in downtown Davis.
The very cute downtown is just across the street from campus and we had a great lunch at Pizza and Pints. There were a handful of blocks with plenty of thrift shops, boba tea, coffee, restaurants, music right there. Plenty to keep a college kid occupied.
Architecturally, the campus is not much to look at. But there’s plenty of charm in all the trees, grassy places to relax and walking and bike paths. Lots of people were walking around, music was playing and downtown Davis was quite busy.
While my S26 has hopes of being in a city with a cold climate, this instate option is a great one for him. Glad we made the trip!