You asked us questions at our tabling last week, and we’ve got the answers! Find out the FAQ’s of UCSB! Then, keep reading to discover simple solutions to the common problems of UCSB. Relationship issues? We’ve got you covered. Tips for school success? You’ve come to the right place.
Q: How do you eat a balanced diet in the dining commons? Anonymous
A: 1. Drink water only. 2. Underestimate the amount you eat. It’s sometimes tempting to eat everything in the dining commons, but start with a salad and work your way up to your cravings. You would be surprised how little you need to eat to be full. 3. Don’t eat dessert every time. You only need it once in awhile, not every day. 4. Always eat all the fruits and vegetables before you head towards the carbs. 5. Eat what you want, but remember dining commons serve in the correct serving sizes, so don’t get more than that if you don’t want to overeat. Mable Truong
Q: How soon do people normally start studying for an upcoming test? A week before? A day before? What’s the norm? Anonymous
A: Three days before the exam. It’s not too early to forget stuff you learned, but it’s also not too late where you are cramming stuff in your brain. If you have attended lectures, but have not done the readings, three days is usually a good amount of time to study. If you have been following along with readings and going to lecture (which is rare tbh), then I would imagine less than that. If it is a hard class, then one week in advance in small increments is a safe way to go. This is specific to Comm majors. Mable Truong
Q: What’s the best career advice for an undergrad going to grad school? Anonymous
A: Make sure you are not just going because you don’t know what else to do after undergrad. Figure yourself out, and then choose someone in a college institution you want to learn from. Don’t go “just because”. Grad school is an investment, and if done right, it may be the best investment you make in your life. But first, you have to figure out if grad school is really the step you want to take to get where you want Sometimes, your dream job doesn’t actually require a M.B.A or PHD to get there. Mable Truong
Q: What would you do differently in college if you could do back to freshman year? Anonymous
A: If I could go back to freshman year, I would definitely try to get involved more around campus. Now that I am a senior… graduating in six weeks… I have realized that I wish I had gotten to know more professors and other students more. I think the best way to do this is by joining clubs and organizations around campus. Being a transfer student, I spent my first year trying to get acclimated to the university system and the campus… and honestly I was scared to put myself out there and, say, attend a club meeting by myself if none of my friends wanted to go. Now that I am nearing the end of my undergrad career, I wish I would have just attended some of the meetings that I was interested in. I did get involved with a few different organizations towards the middle of my senior year and I have made some great friendships and connections while also participating in events and activities that interest me. However, if I would have taken it upon myself to get involved earlier.. I would have had even more opportunities and friendships arise. Plus, as I am applying to jobs and sending out resumes, I am realizing that employers like to see resumes from involved college students. Just like Nike endorses… Just do it! Go out and Get involved with UCSB! Hannah Bellich
Q: How do you decide your major? Anonymous
A: I was undeclared up until the spring quarter of my sophomore year, and started to think oh man if I’m gonna graduate on time then I better sit down and do some thinking. I started by going through the catalog of majors on the UCSB website and just writing down the ones that looked interesting to me. I had about 4-5 ideas at that point. From there, I looked at the requirements for each major (like which classes you’d have to take) and if those interested me. I looked at the faculty! Did they do any cool research or publications I’d be interested in? (I got that idea from my dad, thanks dad!) Lastly, I went in to the advisors for the two majors I narrowed it down to, and met the professors who were the heads of the majors. But, here’s my most important advice… At the end of the day, unless you want to do something in STEM, what you do as your major does not need to directly correlate to your future employment. Being a diverse applicant and being passionate about what you study will translate to a great job. Jackie Gerson
Q: How did you meet your current boyfriend? Anonymous
A: It was love at first swipe. Just kidding, but I did meet him on Tinder though. We’ve been dating for nearly two years and our relationship has endured many lengths, like actually, we successfully maintained a relationship more than 6,000 miles away during his studies abroad in South Korea. Tinder does have the notorious reputation of being a “hookup app” and sometimes it is that, but there are some quality people on there— you just have to be open to it. Remember: don’t take Tinder too seriously. The motto to follow on Tinder is that you shouldn’t take it seriously until it becomes serious. Trust me, it makes sense. It is wild to think that a simple right swipe on a photo has led me to countless memories and love. Vivianna Shields
Q: How do people find time to go to the beach so often with such a heavy workload? Karen Trinh
A: I think it will help to make a routine of going to the beach. Figure out how often you actually want to go– once a day, once a week, once a month. Find a good day that works for you. Personally, I like to walk on the beach after dinner on Sundays or on weekend mornings! It all comes down to balance. Remember the motto “work doesn’t work without play.” Even if you’re stressing about all the work you have to do, taking breaks can increase your productivity and help your mental health. Ashley Boren
Q: How do you have a successful long distance relationship and what are some tips to do so? Anonymous
A: Nobody ever said long distance is an easy thing, but with that being said, I have been with my high school sweetheart going on six years now and I am going to be honest, it takes a lot of communication and team work. Adjusting to long distance takes time, but you guys are in a partnership and it takes both sides of effort to make things work. Make sure that you guys are continuing the little things like sending a random text here and there just to remind them you are thinking about them, or calling them on a daily basis just to hear each other’s voices! Even though you two are separated, keeping each other updated with your lives and making the other person feel as they are still apart of your life is truly important. And when you do meet up again, make it special and plan time to be with each other! Adar Levy
Q. Is joining a sorority really worth it? Sarah Overndorf
A. This is a tough question because you’re going to receive biased answers no matter who you ask. I personally am in Greek life, and absolutely love it. It immediately gave me friends when I came to school freshman year knowing no one and it’s been an absolute blast going to all the fun events my sorority plans. I feel like it’s been one of the best decisions since coming to UCSB. However, I also have close friends outside of Greek life who are totally fine with not being in a sorority. They’re super active and have have incredibly busy social lives, and they feel like being in a sorority would be a time commitment they couldn’t work into their schedule. It all depends on your personal choice and what you enjoy. Anonymous
Q. How do I pass my chem final? Anonymous
A. Ah, chemistry. The bane of my existence. Take it from someone who barely passed chem her freshman year: it can be tough. However, studying in advance is the best tip I can give you. Go over the practice problems until you don’t only get the right answers, but feel confident in how to do them. Also, go in to your chem teacher’s office hours. This was my LIFESAVER. I would go in every week and ask about 5-10 questions, and talking it out really made me understand the concepts more than just reading it. Plus, having someone slowly teach me how to solve the practice problems I had difficulty with was invaluable. Don’t be afraid to reach out to extra resources as well, such as friends, RAs, CLAS, or chem tutors. Personally, CLAS helped me the most. Anonymous
Author Cred: The Her Campus UCSB Editorial Team
All photos via Giphy.com