Academics

UCSB is ranked as the 10th best public university in the United States (US News and World Report)!! Classes here are challenging but definitely manageable!

UCSB is ranked one of the Top Public Universities in the Nation for a reason. Working on the quarter system is no joke, by the 5th week of classes you have midterms and by the 10th you have finals. There is no time to procrastinate and screw around, you have to keep up with your work in order to prosper here. You are in charge of how much work you make for yourself throughout the quarter, so make sure to pick classes that will keep you interested enough to want to do the work. Keep in mind that each professor understands that you have other classes and responsibilities but do not go easy on you because you made it into this school for a reason. Nothing that UCSB throws at you will be too much for you.

general education classes are usually fairly easy if you put the work in. major-related classes are, of course, tougher. the shift from high school to college is something that a lot of freshman are warned about but still don't take seriously. a few of my friends are currently on academic probation and may not be able to return for their sophomore year at ucsb. it can happen to you, especially if you don't take the classes seriously.

the quarter system itself is brutal. just fair warning. that's three rounds of finals in one year, and not to mention the constant barrage of midterms. most classes have at least two midterms, if not more. there are classes with four midterms, and a final. which means a test every two weeks of the class. so if you slip up even once during such classes, your grade will suffer.

that being said, all the professors and tas are extremely helpful. i've never encountered a professor or ta who refused to help people, either by answering questions after lecture or during office hours. it may be intimidating to approach either one of them, but if you're struggling, that's the best way to understand the material. there are also tons of campus and departmental resources for help with academics.

tbh, i have heard that this really depends on the major. engineering and hard sciences will be harder than some of the social sciences, especially if the classes are honors. but, as long as you have a balanced life, you should be golden.

Plenty of challenging assignments, but have yet to come across a situation which in which I didn't have enough time to complete course work. Plenty of extra curricular activities offered, and plenty of time to participate in them.