The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) was founded in 1919, in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. This renowned university offers a strong student life in addition to a top-of-the-line education.

Since UCLA is part of the UC system, it has many advantages over other universities. For example, they share a library with the entirety of the UC system, which allows them to access literature that many other universities do not provide. For me, this definitely gives UCLA a leg up on many other non-UC universities.

Another pull factor for me is UCLA’s gorgeous 419 acre campus. Within this expansive space, there are plenty of student life amenities available. On campus, there are 65 places to eat, 23 libraries, 50 workout facilities, and 17 different housing buildings. Since it has a campus of that size, it could take a while to traverse. Fortunately, UCLA offers their BruinBus Shuttle as a convenient means of transportation to help students get across campus.

UCLA’s student life is complemented by the vast number of clubs on campus. The school has more than 1,200 clubs available for students to join, which help people develop new friendships with ease. This opportunity can definitely be taken advantage of and is a huge standout compared to other schools. As a more introverted person myself, the variety of clubs would enable me to meet new people that are interested in similar things, which definitely attracts me to UCLA.

Although their student life is strong, the biggest pull factor to the majority of applicants, including me, is the extremely rigorous academics. UCLA was ranked 15th out of 436 US universities and was ranked the best public school in the nation according to the US News and World Report. With more than 130 undergraduate majors and 90 graduate programs on offer, UCLA has academic prestige that attracts me and many other students.

With so many positives, it is obvious why so many people apply to UCLA. However, with a nine percent acceptance rate, it is incredibly difficult to get into. UCLA is one of the top universities in the nation and is known for its heavily rigorous academics. With a very strong student life and a huge campus that has many things to offer, the only downside is the very low acceptance rate. In my opinion, UCLA is a school that people should apply to and I know that I will next year.