Least superficial Southern California Colleges

Applying to College
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We have a few southern California colleges on my D25s shortlist for applications next year. (She also has schools in other states and on both coasts as well). I have a few friends with kids in college in SoCal and they are reporting high levels of materialism, superficiality, and body image-focused cultures at their kids’ schools.

D25 really wants to go somewhere with good weather, and there are some schools in SoCal with strong programs for her interests (Physics Major, theater minor), but I am worried about the image-obsessed culture and its impact on a college girl’s psyche.

Are there schools with less of a superficial / instagram culture there? The SoCAl schools on her list are CalPoly, [edited to clarify it is CalPoly SLO] UCSB, UCSD, UCI, UofSD [edited to add SDSU]. Anyone with experience with these issues at those schools?

I think she would feel much more comfortable culturally at a midwest or east coast city, but she also really likes the idea of nice weather.

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That sounds like every high school and college…unfortunately.

Not in So Cal but close - U of Arizona is one of the top physics schools in the county, has a theater minor, and as a Hispanic Serving Institution, maybe it’d be a fit. Like any large flagship it will have Greek and that vibe but it also will have entirely on the other direction as well. And the cost for a smart kid will be great, even if merit is reduced as some fear.

I hope you get answers you need - I would think, based on and it’s been a long time but growing up there, UCSB would be the one that would most likely describe what you did because of the beach access and maybe UCI the least (because it’s likely the biggest suitcase of what you list) - but I think it’s everywhere and i"m interested in what others have to say.

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First off, please note that the California publics don’t offer need-based aid to OOS students, so you should expect to be full pay. (Not worth it, IMO.)

I’d rank them (from least to most): UCI, Cal Poly, UCSD, UCSB, USD.

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Of those, UCSD is the least. There’s definitely a beach culture but not showy, LA vibe. UCI has a good mix of people too. Cal poly would be fine, some crunchy granola mixed in. UCSB is amazing, but it’s not the culture you are looking for.

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Of your list UCSB would be the most image-conscious but it’s such a big campus I wouldn’t worry too much. If you are looking for more options consider Occidental and the Claremont Colleges for smart, down-to-earth students,

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Chapman or LMU might be worth a look. Chapman has a musical theater minor but not a straight theater minor. They offer an interdisciplinary cluster (Theatre Technology for Cinematography) as part of their GE program.

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Though one does not have to go too far off campus from UCI to get to very glitzy parts of Orange County like Newport Beach.

Could theater participants be particularly vulnerable to pressures relating to body image and the like due to the nature of doing theater?

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Newport Beach is on average much older, nearly a quarter over 65. But sure, Corona Del Mar HS is full of kids wearing expensive trendy clothes, and who would be image conscious… Moreover, if you want to play that game: UCSD is actually in wealthy La Jolla, 15 miles from downtown San Diego.

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This is painting a large number of colleges with a pretty broad brush.

Southern California colleges include: UCLA, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UCSD, UC Santa Barbara, UC Santa Cruz, SDSU, Cal State Bakersfield, Cal State Channel Islands, Cal State Dominguez Hills Cali State Fullerton, Cal State Long Island, Cal State LA, Cal State San Marcos, Cal State Northridge, Cal State San Bernardino, Cal Poly SLO, and Cal Poly Pomona, and those are only the public ones. We can add Cal Tech, USC, the five Claremont Colleges, Pepperdine, Occidental, Loyola Marymount, Chapman, and others.

I’m pretty sure that there are colleges among these that do not have any more of a image-obsessed culture than do any of the other colleges in the USA, especially those that have a very large proportion of their students from the relative wealthy segments of the USA.

If, on the other hand, you are saying that you have heard that the specific colleges which interest your daughter have those issues, that’s another thing, and please be specific about which colleges you are worried about. People can also either assuage your fears or confirm them, if you specify.

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I do think there must be some schools in So Cal that are less superficial - hence my question asking for specific suggestions of more grounded SoCal schools.

I also listed the specific schools on her list, so those are the ones I’m interested in getting feedback about (also part of my question). I have heard from my own friends to be especially weary of USC, Chapman, UCSB (though UCSB is still on her list since I’m holding out hope that it’s not true of CCS).

It may be painting a broad brush, but I think it’s folly to suggest that the image obsession and body image issues are the same at all colleges throughout the country. SoCal, especially around LA, are known for it. The combination of beaches and good weather year-round, which pushes campus fashion toward body-revealing outfits, and the overall celebrity obsessed culture, creates it.

I know it isn’t exclusively a problem in California. For example, She’s not applying to any schools in Florida (or to ‘Bama, ASU, etc). Partly for this reason (body image and beauty obsession), but also for MANY others. I also know it’s true that there are other non-SoCal schools on her list that might have the same problem.

But for the purposes of this specific thread, I asked about Southern California schools, and which are the most and least “shallow” and which I may want to add to our list.

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We thought Chapman had very down to earth and friendly students.

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I have two personal data points only about Chapman - one a woman who went there a few years ago who said my D would hate it (due to focus on appearance) and one who goes there now whose parents said “only people who are very confident that they are beautiful should go there, otherwise they will be miserable”. The parents also had to stop looking at her Instagram because it gave them so much anxiety about how beauty obsessed their child had become. :frowning:

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I’m from So Cal and I still spend a lot of time there. I attended CSULB. IMO, most schools mentioned so far are going to have the type of people your daughter wants to avoid. That’s So Cal, generally speaking. But as with all things, not everyone is going to be a stereotype. She can find her people anywhere.

If she wants a more relaxed vibe, the CSU’s might be a better bet. They are probably more diverse and less expensive than UCs. CSUFullerton and CSULB might be worth a look. I think there are more residential students at CSULB in particular.

Which Cal Poly? SLO or Pomona? Cal Poly Pomona might be a bit more down to earth than SLO in terms of what your daughter wants to avoid. Cal Poly SLO is going to have a different climate to that of the So Cal colleges as it’s a fair bit further north. Still nice though.

For privates, she could consider Biola, Loyola, and Whittier. I don’t think Chapman is super different to USC, except for being a lot smaller of course. My parents went to USC, so don’t hate on me folks. It’s a great school, but I admit that it’s full of stereotypical people. Again though, there will be plenty of people at all these schools who don’t fit stereotypes.

One thing to note about So Cal is that smog can be a real problem with any colleges not right at the coast. Probably not too bad at UCSD, USD, and UCSB.

One other issue with So Cal universities and colleges is that there is a very car dependent culture. I think the San Diego and Santa Barbara colleges might fare better in terms of escaping campus. Most of the others are “landlocked.” Summers are hot and dry, and not all dorms have AC. It really does depend on the school, of course. I personally think being stuck in So Cal without a car would be a bit of a nightmare, but then again, driving anywhere in So Cal is a nightmare anyway.

Sorry to seem as though I’m bashing So Cal. It does have good weather, but weather isn’t everything. I think many people have a vision of palm trees swaying in the ocean breeze. They don’t think of driving, smog and strip malls.

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I have been on the campus of UCSD a few times and did not get that materialistic, superficial vibe that you are asking about. The local high school kids in our so cal neighborhood see UCSD as being for smart, driven students who are not prioritizing a social scene.

I have also been on the campus of SLO many times. It is more of a central California vibe. Kids seem pretty down to Earth and happy there. I’ve known a few kids who went there. They were definitely not the materialistic type. SLO has had some diversity issues in the past, they were trying to address them when my child was considering that school in 2015. You might want to look into that aspect.

I have had 4 friends whose kids have attended UCSB. They have all had very negative experiences. The culture there is very image conscious and the party scene is intense. Two kids left (one had to go into rehab :frowning: ) and one is on the fence. Small sample, but these were all serious students. Physics, pre med, etc.

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Not saying it’s the same today but when I graduated HS in San a Diego, it was this. The smart kids - often Asian quite honestly - went to UCSD. The other UCs were Irvine so they could come home on weekends and Santa Barbara - the good looking, cool smart girls and guys who regaled everyone with stories of parties and beaches on their returns. The more regular cool kids went to SDSU and Boulder and shared similar.

We visited so many colleges - East coast mainly - and my daughter knows girls at BYU and BYU Hawaii - and I think you’re going to find this anywhere but yes moreso at some than others.

It’s the tik tok and instagram phenomenon. I’m sure it’s at her HS too.

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There is “good weather” in lots of places, depending on how you define “good”. The Carolina’s? Arizona?

Is she trying to avoid snowy winters (which is one thing) or looking for maximum sunshine (a whole other thing)?

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Arizona (Tucson) will still have this but would be better based on diversity, nature and the city’s vibe - not to mention it’s one of the top physics programs and has theater too.

The flip side to avoiding this in college is - at least when you are a young professional - I’m not sure it ends.

I see it amongst the under 30 crowd at work.

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Sunshine is critical, not too cold would be nice. We ranked all 50 schools on her original list by number of sunny days removed everything in the PNW west of the cascades, UPitt, all Ohio schools, and any other very overcast outliers). She does have schools in North Carolina on her list. And some Northern Cal schools. (We won’t do Texas or the south other than NC). She also has cold but sunny places on her list.

I feel like I’ve honed her list pretty well geographically to what she’s looking for, hence in this thread I’m trying to narrow down just the southern California school specifically. People have provided good insight into the relative “superficial” culture at the various schools.

I’m happy to see that UCSD fares slightly better on this metric based on the comments here. It is strong for physics, so we are hoping to keep it in her list. And she likes CalPoly SLO a lot.

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? There are plenty of colleges where kids of all genders show up in grungy clothes and crocs where you can’t tell the millionaires from the kids on Pell. Don’t understand your post.

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Hmmm - true but unlikely in OPs areas. They are looking in areas with the pretty people. And some of those schools have them too.