The kids I know at UCSB are mostly the opposite of shallow: pretty nerdy actually. A kid who was in CCS, majored in CS, now having multiple job offers thrown at him. A physics major, kinda nerdy, but I suspect also a partier. Another nerdy CS major. All nice kids BTW. Another girl who might meet the definition of superficial in that she’s very pretty, likes to have fun, but is also in a STEM major.
UCSD has never been known for shallow, superficial people. It’s a school for brainy people.
UCI to me is a boring suburban suitcase school. In fact, I would not pay OOS tuition for any of the UCs. Just not worth it.
I would have loved if any of my kids chose Cal Poly SLO. Lots of kids from our high school do, and I don’t describe any of them as shallow or superficial.
My D was accepted at SDSU a couple years ago and when we toured I noticed a highly attractive student body. But they all seemed happy. And it’s a gigantic school, so all types of kids are represented.
I know in your other post you were interested in “prestige,” and neither USD nor Chapman offers that IMO. But my own kid is at a school not known for prestige (not in CA) and she’s having a wonderful experience there.
You and she may want to investigate whether (at any college) theater participation is associated with an increased risk of an unhealthy obsession with body image and beauty, much the way sorority participation commonly is associated with that.
You and she may want to investigate whether (at any college) theater participation is associated with an increased risk of an unhealthy obsession with body image and beauty, much the way sorority participation commonly is associated with that. >
Will do. At least in our local high schools that doesn’t seem to be much of the case. The theater kids are often more quirky “theater nerds”. The dance teams, however, are often very toxic and image-obsessed. We know quite a few very talented dancers who don’t affiliate at all with the dance or cheer crowds for those reasons, but who feel very supported with the theater kids.
Meh, only kind of at this point. She cares that it has a strong physics program and that she can participate meaningfully in theater, but because she is chasing merit, her list has very few T50 schools. In fact, her list is currently about 70% safeties, 20% targets, and 10% reaches. Not typically the suggested approach, but merit changes things a lot. She’s a strong student, but she needs to be in the top 10% of the accepted class to get big merit. (Yes, we know the UCs don’t give OOS Merit, so they are not at the tippy top of our list. CalPoly is more affordable, even without any $).
(USD is on our list because of decent programs for her interests, and because it provides decent merit. Chapman has never been on our list - Not strong in STEM and not her vibe. It was mentioned here by people as an option, but it isn’t on her list.)
I should have also put SDSU on the original list, since it is one of the SoCal schools still on the consideration pile. I’ll edit to add it above.
Well, I think you are putting the cart before the horse. She wont be on campus for two years. These are extremely competitive schools, so even if she searches for a particular school, there are no guarantees that she will get in. She needs to visit the campuses.
I agree with @Ally’s interpretation of the SD schools. These schools have a nice mix of commuter and resident students. They are huge and there is a nice mix of students from all cultures and incomes.
Both SDSU and UCSD are large schools with public transportation access for a number of kids who use the “SD Trolley” to get to their campuses. Although the price of gas has gone down, a lot of kids are on budgets living off campuses ($3k per month 1 bedrm rents). There is a large Hispanic population at both schools with access to the border cities.
You can find snooty kids on both campuses, but the vibe on those campuses is pretty laid back.
I am in frequent communication with students from both schools and they don’t really mention those kinds of issues.
USD typically has kids from families with higher incomes (based on current students and my experience from decades ago.)
Oh, not at all. My parents lived in LA for years, my brother still lives near there, and I worked in Riverside for a year and in Pasadena for another year.
While typifying all students in all colleges bothers me, the weather, and traffic are basic facts of life.
I would also not recommend UC Riverside for any student who has respiratory issues. The air quality there is extremely low, though it’s more due to dust than to pollution from cars or industry. Thet town is nice, the university is great, and there are lots of things going on, but anybody who has asthma will have difficulty living there.
In general, that’s the case for much of the Inland Empire, so that would include Cal State San Bernardino, University of the Redlands and a couple other around there.
As for “superficial”, the Southern California and Florida superficiality is not really different than that which is typified by, for example, the “preppy” cultures of the South and of New England - they just wear less clothing, since they live in a warmer climate. It is related to income and class, as well as admissions patterns of the college.
Los Angeles does have more than its share of younger adults (ages 20-30) who are like that, but it’s because it’s the center of the entertainment industry. But these come from across the USA, and they are mostly not colleges students.
I may be wrong, but I get the feeling that you don’t want her to go to school in California. That’s okay. However, I would caution you to choose your words carefully. Using adjectives such as superficial, obsessed, shallow, toxic, etc. to describe any population of students is pretty offensive.
Is your daughter a leader or a follower? Is she outgoing or an introvert? Will she reach out to make and foster friendships or does she wait for others to approach her? If she is confident in herself and her values, it won’t matter what others think or do. She will find friends with similar lifestyles and have a happy and healthy college experience. Or, are you concerned that she doesn’t have that strength inside her and that she is easily influenced by others?
Maybe she (and you) can prioritize what attributes in a school she is looking for as opposed to what stereotype of person she is trying to avoid. I saw strong physics program, theater participation and merit. Based on your comments, those features appear to be a priority over campus culture.
Regardless of the campus culture, she is keeping USD on her list because of merit, and UCSB because of CCS. CCS is very competitive and very small (400 of the 24K undergrads). The students aren’t isolated or in a bubble from the rest of campus. CCS students live in the dorms with everyone else. They take classes with everyone else. They ride bikes, go to the beach, hang out in IV, and party with everyone else.
I honestly believe that this must be a theater thing. Native southern Californians are not obsessed with celebrities. Maybe tourists are.
California is one of the most healthy states in the nation, in part due to the nice weather. Californians tend to eat healthier and be more physically active. There are fewer smokers and less obesity. Making an effort to be healthy isn’t the same as being body or image obsessed.
Warm weather means less jeans and parkas. In southern California, students tend to wear shorts, leggings, dresses. You’ll find fewer students wearing jeans or jackets. Even in the rain, you’ll often see students wearing a hoodie rather than carrying an umbrella.
Since your daughter is a junior, I think it would be wise to plan a spring break trip to the southern California to visit the campuses she is considering.
The party kids at our NorCal HS go to SDSU (or OOS to Arizona/CU Boulder). They would go to UCSB (UC Sex and Booze) or USC (U of Spoilt Children) but usually aren’t smart enough to get admitted. LMU is a backup to USC for some of the wealthier ones. However, UCSD (UC Socially Dead) certainly wouldn’t be on their list, and UCI is not a favorite for anyone (seen as more for SoCal locals who go home at weekends). I don’t think CalPoly SLO is really seen as a party school either, even though it’s fairly close to the beach (much like UCSC is far from being a party school and has more of a surfer vibe). The colder water and coastal fog probably plays into that.
Umm, you mean the University of Spoiled Daughters? (that’s what a colleage calls it – his D is a recent grad of the Catholic school. And no question, they have plenty of pretty people.)
If anything, we try to avoid being anywhere near someone who is holding up traffic. We love our cars, but we strongly avoid traffic.
I was recently surprised by the “pajama-wearing” students. Covid seems to have influenced the younger set to wear what they’ve slept in and roll out of bed, to walk into classes like that.
I didn’t know, initially, that you are OOS which comes with a hefty price tag for California publics. If that’s an issue, you need to let her know NOW about the budget for California.
I think OP has in the past acknowledged being full pay and not seeking full pay but for the right case not 100% opposed.
In that regard, when it comes to the realization of paying 2x per year, plus overpriced rent each month, and it’s just a guess, any accepted into UC will make the early cut pile.
I’m a value shopper (and a champion one at that) and I was happy to be full pay at the colleges my kids chose. So I wouldn’t presume that the OP doesn’t understand what the family would be paying if the kid goes to a UC.
I was not interested in paying more for nice weather, fun leisure activities, fancy dorms and frats, proximity to skiing, surfing, or sailing.
I was happy to pay more for academic and intellectual rigor.
Everyone’s mileage varies on this one- even the value shoppers…
I think most of the posters have covered their opinions about the schools listed. I really do not like to stereotype since all these schools have a fairly diverse student body.
I will say that I have found that the female students that obsess over body image tend to students involved in the Greek scene. I saw it at SDSU when my younger son was in a Fraternity and had joint events with their sister Sorority and I see with my niece at CSULB whom is involved in her Sorority.
I am a strong believer that every student can find their tribe at pretty much any school if they are willing to make an effort. That said, the best way to determine which schools would be good choices for your daughter @UTmeritseeker, is to visit and form your own opinion.
The least: UCSD, Cal Poly SLO and UCI. (In no particular order)
The most: SDSU, USD and UCSB (In no particular order).
