University: University of California Los Angeles
City: Los Angeles
Country: United States
Continent: North America
Field of study: organization and leadership
Study type: Summer Sessions
Application process
MicroEdu made the application for the Summer Session a lot easier, you actually only had to fill out the forms. In any case, a big thank you goes to Annika, who was always able to help me very quickly, no matter how trivial my questions were. A lot has been taken over from MicroEdu, such as proof of the required English language skills. There was no TOEFL test required, just a “good” knowledge of English, either through the Abitur certificate or through courses completed during the course. After I had submitted all the forms, I received the welcome package including the I-20 form after a short time. After that, only the last hurdle, the visa, had to be cleared. It wasn’t difficult in itself except for the time required to fill out the visa form and for the appointment at the consulate. But as soon as I had the appointment behind me, it actually only took a day or two until I got the visa sent to me. Visit existingcountries.com to get information about University of California Riverside student review.
I lived off-campus with my German flatmate in the Westwood Palm Apartments. The apartment was furnished and very large, each of us had our own room with a bathroom. We also had a living room and kitchen, which was actually well equipped with appliances such as a stove, oven, microwave and dishwasher (laundries with washing machines and dryers are available on each floor). But you couldn’t really use the kitchen because there were no kitchen utensils. We bought the essentials (plastic plates and cutlery) in the supermarket. That’s basically enough for the six weeks, of course only if you don’t want to cook yourself. On campus, as in Westwood Village, there are countless opportunities to get food or go out to eat.
Our apartment building was actually right next to the campus, but unfortunately the direct route to the university was blocked from the second week due to a construction site. Firstly, it was very annoying because of the long detour that we now had to make and secondly, the construction noise, which could often be heard from 6 a.m. onwards.
The UCLA campus is incredibly impressive, especially the main building built in the Romanesque style, the park-like green areas and the sports facilities including sports facilities. UCLA certainly deserves its reputation. I don’t know if any German university can keep up. And not to forget the UCLA Store, which provides the typical American college feeling with all the merchandising articles.
Lectures
I took a management course (127B) and an ESL course. About the ESL course: The English course was very interactive, we had to record weekly listening logs, prepare discussions, do various group work and write a final paper. All in all, the course was fun, but I thought it was a pity that we didn’t get any direct feedback or improvements to our work. For this reason, I also found the final note very opaque, as it did not disclose exactly how it came about. In any case, if you take an ESL course, you have to reckon with the fact that the majority of the course participants come from China and their English level is often lower.
The taxation course was a classic lecture, i.e. without group work, participation and homework. Nevertheless, it was interesting to see how the lecture was delivered, especially compared to the lectures given by my German professors.
The course grade consists of the midterm and the final exam. Continuous learning would be advisable in any case, as prior knowledge of American tax law is unlikely.
My courses were all in the morning, which had advantages and disadvantages. The advantage was that I usually finished university by midday, but most of their courses only took place during the day, so having the whole afternoon off wasn’t really worthwhile.
Life and leisure activities
Westwood is a really great neighborhood location-wise, being east of Santa Monica, west of Beverly Hills, and south of Bel Air. Westwood Village is a neighborhood with some shopping, restaurants, movie theaters and convenience stores. From our apartment you could walk to Westwood Village in about 20 minutes, but the way back after shopping was always a bit annoying because it was uphill. A car in LA would definitely be recommended if you don’t want to be dependent on public transport. Nevertheless, everything is easy and, above all, cheap to reach with the various bus lines. You just have to be prepared to be on the road a little longer and just to wait.
We did a lot on the weekends, such as trips to Las Vegas and San Francisco. Renting a car is recommended for both Las Vegas and San Francisco, as this way you get to see a lot more of the landscape than by plane. A must is of course Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Downtown. Trips to Santa Monica have always been very popular, as the beach is simply impressive and of course not to forget the shopping street including Santa Monica Place (Mall). In addition, you were there with the right bus line within 20-30 minutes, which is very fast for LA bus conditions.
I also found our visits to the Dodgers baseball game and “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” at the NBC studios with guests Kim Kardashian, Carrot Top, an unknown Congressman named Barney Frank and Norah Jones interesting.
If you want to visit Universal Studios, you should definitely buy the tickets in the UCLA ticket shop. They are a lot cheaper there and you get a free second entry with this ticket.
Since UCLA students get free admission to the Hammer Museum in Westwood Village, it’s worth checking out the contemporary European Impressionist exhibition there.
In conclusion, I can say that the Summer Session was absolutely worth it and I had an unforgettable summer in California. In any case, you should take into account that the six weeks are actually much too short to discover Los Angeles and the surrounding area. In addition, life there is sometimes very expensive, but the experiences and adventures are definitely worth it!
