University of California - Los Angeles

Hi! My name is Eduardo Perez, an incoming UCLA first-year, from Oakland, California, planning on majoring in Political Science (with a concentration in Race, Ethnicity, & Politics) and minoring in Public Health. I’m going to be honest and say that at the beginning of the college application process, I was not thinking about attending a public university because of the cost. There are huge myths that a public school education is unaffordable, or will leave you in debt, but that is FAKE NEWS. There are an abundance of resources that the UC system offer to all in-state students, including undocumented/non-citizens. UCLA is a beautiful, research university right next to Beverly Hills. (Check out @youseeucla on Insta to peep the gorgeous campus!) With about 31,000 undergraduates, it is a fairly large school. Some of you might be looking at smaller Liberal Arts Colleges, but remember you can make a big school small, but you can’t make a small school big! Most classes at UCLA has under 30 students. Lots of students + lots of faculty = small, personal classrooms.

Something that sets UCLA aside from nearly all other research universities is the incredibly interdisciplinary General Education requirements. Every student must take courses in Arts, Humanities, History, Life/Physical Science and Performing Arts before beginning the coursework for their major. UCLA produces incredibly well-rounded students.

Most of you considering UCLA, might also be considering Berkeley. What made the difference for me was the people at UCLA. Throughout High School, I had never been the most incredibly extroverted person, so I knew the social scene in LA would be good to me. Additionally, there are so many compassionate people who lead so many amazing groups. Personally, the Undocumented Bruin Program at UCLA really blew me away. They are an organization open to all undocumented undergraduate and graduate students, that raises money for scholarships and helps Bruins find mentors who will guide them in their future endeavors. UCLA is known as the school for The Optimists. Anything is possible in Los Angeles.