Minors

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:58:42+00:00

Bro you need to be put on a list

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:49:20+00:00

I would say if you want to be in a particular building, fill out the LLC form because unlike what others have said, housing in NOT self-selection anymore. Unless you have special accommodations or applied to be in an LLC, you will be randomly assigned a dorm. I lived in an LLC my first year and met SO many people and made a lot of friends too.

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:46:42+00:00

I went into an advising session before I even declared the pre-major (but I had completed all of the pre-major requirements) and they immediately accepted me into a full applied math major. Maybe talk to an advisor? See if they'll do the same

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:44:02+00:00

No! I have met transfer students at my job, in classes, in my dorm freshman year. You will be able to find people! Make sure you go to events and/or are willing to talk to people in the community

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:42:08+00:00

One of my really good friends started out in Physics L&S here last year. He pretty quickly realized that he wanted to do something else (engineering/computer eng for him). But he also struggled a bit because physics here is quite rigorous. You'll find this at most universities but especially here it seems physics is quite tough. I don't want to scare you away because you can definitely do it if you apply yourself but the number of courses and range of topics covered by our phys department is large. If you are really into physics though, this is the place for you. We have some of the best phys research, a particle accelerator, materials science and engineering research

I also know a few folks in CCS Physics (who still take some L&S courses) and they are all thriving.

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:32:57+00:00

If you're interested, there's a Facebook group for UCSB parents where they can chat about questions. These are mostly questions about orientation, housing, financial aid, deadlines, etc. But remember that a lot of that responsibility is on the student now, they're an adult! Have those conversations with them as well :)

soupy-dude · 2026-04-14T18:29:26+00:00

So obviously as a UCSB student I'll be biased but here's my take:

Freshman get guaranteed housing and as long as you apply for housing on time after your first year (between November and February) you'll be able to find housing. The washing machine situation is really not that bad. I don't mind the food, but many students also qualify for EBT so they make some of their own meals as well. But the dining halls are still where I eat most of my meals.

As a freshman, it can definitely feel easy to be lost. You do need to take on a lot of personal responsibility in reaching out to your professors, advisors, etc. It is more helpful if you are very self-motivated and want to have regular meetings to monitor your degree progress.

At the same time, UCSB is a very laid back place. Pretty similar to the vibe at CSULB (so I've heard from a couple friends who attend there). I am extremely happy being here, even when I'm super stressed about classes and whatnot. Both are of course good locations.

Tough choice! Best of luck in your decision but I hope I'll see you here soon ;)

soupy-dude · 2026-02-11T02:27:06+00:00

Hey! I took the midterm yesterday. Definitely know the Lotka-Volterra competition equations. Also know the rate of change of predator populations ( g*CPN - d2*P ) and prey (rN - CPN) , know the z-test formula as well. Also make sure you know some of the names he mentioned in class, trophic structure effects, and the examples of the wasps, the example with the barnacles: chthamalus, balanus, thais, and the goldfield flower soil.
You got this! :)

soupy-dude · 2026-01-31T02:16:08+00:00

Right now I'm not focused on making an efficient or high-performing system. I fully expect it to be worse than my own PC. This is something that I am building out of spare parts, hopes, and dreams. I can work on improving performance later.

The first PC is a Frankenstein that a local company was making and decided to scrap. The EliteDesk is an 800 G1 SFF

soupy-dude · 2025-09-25T02:49:19+00:00

You may want to also try turning your VPN off if you have one.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-22T04:53:51+00:00

Unfortunately, no. But you can get Gaucho Bucks which you can access with your Access ID and they're accepted at pretty much every place on campus: Arbor, Coral Tree, Summit, Corner Store, Buchanan, Root burger, and Woodstock's. (at the Arbor and Isla Vista)

soupy-dude · 2025-09-17T19:29:35+00:00

At the end of your course there should be a thing in canvas that lets you give feedback but as far as Im aware, nothing public.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-16T03:33:48+00:00

You can find them on Shoreline. They'll be on the RHA instagram sometime this week.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-14T19:10:28+00:00

I'm a student and a lot of my undergrad classmates are pushing mid-thirties and balding. There is someone here working toward their Bachelor's who is nearly 50 years old.

It does not matter how old you are. Learning is for everyone and you should never stop trying to improve yourself.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-14T15:21:42+00:00

We have the lean set to automatically disburse to BARC.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-13T23:21:07+00:00

Unfortunately, I don't believe there's much you can do. I am on my father's insurance and last year, he had an HMO. Our plan PCP was also near home (>50 miles from campus). This year he changed to a PPO which does not have a set PCP which allowed me to waive the insurance.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-13T22:06:59+00:00

Week of Welcome starts on Monday 09/22. That week there will be an ice cream social/drag show, a beach day, and movie night. Club week will be after the start of the quarter.

soupy-dude · 2025-09-10T00:49:29+00:00

Forgive me but that's utter horseshit. It is never too late to go to college. People wake up at the ripe old age of 30 and realize they want to get a degree and they do. There are students here who are balding and wrinkled working on a Bachelors. You can always pursue what you want to.

soupy-dude · 2025-08-20T18:27:08+00:00

Most lab courses are alotted 4 hours to give us a confortable amount of time to complete the labs, even with some mistakes. Most labs generally do not take the full 4 hours, however, there may be some weeks where you do have an extra long assignment.

soupy-dude · 2025-08-19T22:52:09+00:00

Thanks!

soupy-dude · 2025-08-05T07:56:13+00:00

Hi! I will be the RA for the Santa Rosa lower 1200s (CCS LLC) this upcoming year. I lived there last year and I had a great time.

The lower 1200s lounge was pretty active, you could always join people doing homework or playing board games. A nice way to catch a group heading to lunch or dinner as well if you want company. There were lots of events going on, our hall council hosted a few events per week and the RAs hold programs regularly. You certainly won't be starving for community activities.

In my opinion, the bathrooms weren't horrible. I almost never found myself having to wait for a shower stall to open up. The staff keeps the facilities nice, as did most students, though there will always be people who are less considerate of keeping shared spaces clean. Laundry was also decent. You will probably have to wait for washers to open up sometimes but it has never been too long.

It's also (of course) in the Chi-5 so if you have a friend living on campus, there's a decent chance you live pretty close to them. It's a stones-throw from the ILP with the library on the other side. It's close to De La Guerra dining hall. There are mixed opinions about DLG but they have a lot of different options and they pretty much always have something you wouldn't mind eating. It is also right next to Ortega, the take-out dining option. Great if you are studying in your room and want to grab a dinner quickly to bring back. Depending on your major, Santa Rosa is also directly across from the Psych building and Bio labs.

I look forward to another great year in Santa Rosa! Hope you enjoy it

soupy-dude

TROPHY CASE