Is UC Santa Barbara a party school?
[Originally published on Quora on June 2018]
According to The Princeton Review, yes. Even Urban Dictionary accurately calls it UCSB: University of Casual Sex and Beer. My 4 years attending this cesspool of hedonism (fall 2011 to fall 2015) developed my personality and intellect in mainly positive ways. It challenged me to grow intellectually, socially, and athletically.
Nearly every weekend, parties raged throughout the student neighborhoods. Drunkenly staggering from party to party was easy — the parties were centered in a cluster of UCSB and SBCC students called “Isla Vista”. A densely packed space calmed by the Pacific Ocean next door, a bit isolated the rest of civilization, created an ideal atmosphere for partying. Large, sometimes open parties in apartment backyards were commonplace both day and night. Your next group of friends awaited -- possibly that group playing beer pong. Or your last hookup that you ghosted. Uh on.
Many of my weekend nights were rife with crowds, EDM, and short skirts illuminating the infamous hotspot Del Playa Drive, which I also called “home”.
Now, does this mean that this wasn’t a serious place for academics? Not at all. If you’re worried that UCSB’s reputation will harm your development, it’s more like the other way around. Though parties were packed, so were the library and various other study centers throughout the campus. During exam weeks, the kids reeked more of energy drinks than booze.
I began my journey at UCSB severely socially crippled, almost unable to communicate in any way. I lacked social understanding, hardly having had any friends before college. Timid, shy, and unhappy would have been understatements regarding the thing I was. Aside from participating in a few student organizations (UCSB students also seemed to love organizing and social activism), these parties allowed me to develop social awareness and skills. I experienced a few setbacks after my graduation in fall 2015, but I’ve recently picked up where I left and am continuing to become an entirely new person, ready for a new career. After the networking events I’ve attended and the job descriptions I’ve read, what I learned seems to be crucial to many careers. It’s not just about what you know or who you know, but how you communicate what you know to who you know.
So go to UCSB if you value your academic and social development. After all, the kind stranger walking you home after one or five drinks too many may be a valuable connection in the future. Or they’ll at least get you home for the night (which was only a block away, but you drank too much to tell).
I’ll leave you with another picture I took myself from a party hotspot on an empty day. Wouldn’t you like to party there too?
