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What are the cons to attending UCLA?

What are some things that you wish you knew before attending UCLA? How did you adapt to these surprises? What advice would you give to a prospective freshman? If you had known these cons, would it have changed your decision to attend UCLA? How is life after graduating from UCLA?
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Gurpreet’s Answer, CareerVillage.org Team

Hi Seneca,
I am a proud UCLA Alum (Go Bruins!!) and was really excited to see your questions. I came to the school as a transfer student so my experience is a little different than that of a freshman but from the two years I spent at the school, I got a good sense of it's pros and cons. I completely agree with everything Paul mentioned in his post but wanted to expand on some of those points.

One of the cons is the large class sizes and the lack of personalized attention you get from professors. Coming from a community college, the average class size was very similar to that of a high school class so I was accustomed to having a close relationship with my professors. Not only did they know me by name but they understood my goals. As a psychology major at UCLA, I sometimes had hundreds of students in my class so it often times felt like I was competing for the attention of my professors and TA's.

One pro that is also a con is that there are so many activities (clubs, organizations, events) on campus that it's hard to pick just a few to focus on! It is a blessing to have so many options but I found myself wanting to do everything, especially since I knew I had such a short amount of time there.

Overall, I loved my experience at UCLA and wouldn't trade it for the world. The community I found there has shaped me to be the person I am today and really helped support me as I made the transition from community college to a new campus.

I hope you find this information helpful and please feel free to reach out should you have any further questions!

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David’s Answer

Hi Seneca,

I am a HUGE advocate of life long learning and personal growth. I am more and more concerned with people going the route of college these days however.


I have a master's degree and paid quite a bit of money for my degree. That being said degrees often don't guarantee or really increase pay in today's economic climate anymore.

There are now some universities that are starting to go the route of income share agreement models for pay for your tuition.


I think when considering the high costs of tuition enrollment at a school like UCLA you need to weigh whether or not that degree can actually help you earn more money as well.


Money is certainly not everything and education is valuable in itself always. Huge student loans are always a challenge and set back to your future financial well-being.


I work for a company called PreHIRED. We help people get the skills and training they need to secure six figure sales jobs.

For me considering college at your age should really be a question of one of two routes. One do I want to go get this college education for my own personal edification and knowledge? Or two do I want this college degree for better earning potential and income later on in my future? If the motivation is for higher income you can work with great training boot camps for many careers in the software and technology industries that can help you land high paying careers for far less than a college degree will cost.

David recommends the following next steps:

Research sales training and coding bootcamps as a college alternative on a third party site like coursereport
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Jessica’s Answer

Hello, while I did not attend UCLA (I am an Emory alumna), I can say you should look at the overall picture. Has UCLA given you a financial aid package? Is it generous? Can I get back to and from home relatively easily? Does it have the major(s) I'm interested in? Do I know anyone who has gone there? Can I try to connect with them?

I hope this helps!

Jessica

Jessica recommends the following next steps:

Attend a UCLA interest meeting near where you live. Ask your guidance counselor.
See if you can plan a trip and take a tour.
Ask your guidance counselor for any tips he or she might have for you.
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Paul’s Answer

Hi Seneca,

My name is Paul, and I'm currently attending UCLA as a third year (junior) Business Economics major. As a student and a person, I absolutely believe that college is a self-crafted experience. I'm sure you've heard this time and again but it is and will be what you make of it. That said, UCLA definitely has its own pros and cons:

PROS
Very good school
Recognized name
Extensive alumni and job networks/opportunities
A ton of different majors, clubs, and people
Amazing dining hall food (best in the nation)

CONS
Not very diverse - very asian-dominant demographic
Arguably expensive (w/o financial aid)
Too many people (lecture halls)
Solitude (w/o a solid friend group - you start to feel like you're on this journey alone)
Parking (LA so parking is absolutely terrible for students)

There's a ton more - but this just a basic outline of what I experienced at UCLA so far. As a freshman - definitely reach out and make friends. At the beginning of college, essentially everybody will want to make friends with everybody else so it's just about reaching out! Have a wonderful time at UCLA and good luck!!

Sincerely,

Paul
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