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- Hi there, I'm Sam. - I'm Gus.
- And we're here with Crimson at UCLA.
- And today, we're asking some big questions.
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- Fedra. - Fedra, and-
- Zach. - Zach. And Zach,
you're very excited about this interview, I understand.
- I'm stoked. - Great.
- What is the best thing about UCLA?
- Probably the food. - The food? Food's the best?
- Feast. - Feast?
What is feast? - The dining hall.
- Either the people that I've met,
or the dining hall food, because it's super good.
- Oh. (laughs)
- If you want to hold it, you can,
- Okay. Probably the beautiful campus.
- The campus, I think it's really beautiful,
I love walking around here, looking at people,
you know, people that walk their dogs come and hang out.
- I would have to say the sunshine.
Like, 24/7, it's the best thing
about living in Los Angeles.
- It was raining a little bit earlier this week.
- Yes. - And-
- My favorite thing about UCLA is the people I've met here,
and the student organization I'm a part of,
and I've met a lot of people that
have the same values as I do, and
I like being able to spend time
with those that broaden my perspective, so.
- That you can balance partying and studying.
- Okay. - And the campus,
and LA, and just generally living here.
- Okay, that was several things, that's a good answer.
- I would say the best thing about UCLA is
just the amount of diversity here,
not just the skin colors and people's backgrounds,
but just the diversity of people's interests here
on campus, it spreads the gamut.
- From my point of view, coming from Geneva,
to do my Ph.D here, the diversity is huge,
it's very important to find a lot of people,
from different universities, from different cultures,
even in the US, and see how they integrate together.
- I love being able to just get involved with
a Christian organization, a fraternal organization.
- Anything. There's Quidditch here ...
- Are you involved with Quidditch?
- No!
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- Contrast, what's the worst thing about UCLA?
- Are we allowed to curse? - Oh yeah.
- It's hard as (bleep). - It's hard as (bleep)?
- Yeah. I would say my transition
to UCLA was really difficult.
My freshman year, I struggled a lot.
But, and this goes into one of the best things about it,
is that I've grown a lot as a person,
so I've definitely become better at managing my time,
I've learned how to persevere, I've learned how to
fail a lot, I've failed so often,
but now, I've grown significantly more here
than I would have if I would have stuck
with a home university. - True.
- No way, so, it's worth it. - It's hard as (bleep).
- [Woman] The worst thing is the stress.
- [Interviewer] Yeah. The stress. Okay. It's a lot of work.
Yeah, it's a lot of work, I have a major,
two minors, I run a student organization, and I have a job,
so it's a lot. - That's a lot.
- Zach? - Quarter system.
- Quarter system, okay. - I like it!
- So you like the quarter system,
you don't like the quarter system?
- It's awful, yeah. - Why don't you like it?
- Because every few weeks I have midterms,
you care about that, right? - Yeah.
- That's how you learn. - She's got a good point.
- Otherwise, I just wouldn't study ever.
- That's what you were saying before, work hard, play hard.
- True. - Wiz Khalifa?
- It's too heavy. Maybe I can push it? Nope.
- We have a video test about, can you sing a song for us?
- Sing a song? - Just, yeah.
- Yeah.
- The test has started, and I will start.
(singing)
- No words? - No words.
- The fact that the dorms and the campus
are completely separate, so no matter what,
when you have to go to class, you're walking, like,
20 minutes to get there, and it's a lot of hills,
so it's not super bike-friendly,
but, like, it's not too bad. I got a Razor scooter.
- The hills? - Walking, I feel-
- Because it gets exhausting? - Yeah, it gets me tired.
- Does it get you in good shape, though?
- Yeah, because it keeps them, like, more used.
- Okay, that's fair, increase in performance or like that.
- Actually, I think sometimes, just being too crowded,
like the gym, or even, like, the library,
I was just trying to go in, he told me there's no seats,
so I guess that's a bit annoying.
- The worst thing about UCLA is that it's always nice
so I have no excuse to stay inside. I hate that.
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- What does a typical Saturday
night look like at UCLA for you?
- Rocco's. - Rocco's?
Is that a bar? - It is a bar.
- Yeah. - Okay.
Do you also go to Rocco's? - Occasionally.
- You guys seem close. - We're dating
- Yeah, we're friends. Oh. (laughs)
- Sleeping, for sure. Maybe homework,
and then go out. Go out.
- [Cameraman] Let's see what's with these guys.
- They seem like they might be busy.
- Alright. - Definitely.
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- So, I'm an RA, so I'm either on duty on Saturday night,
helping take care of drunk kids, or I am the drunk kid.
- Mmm. - So Saturday night is my-
- It's the circle of life. - It is.
- Sometimes, Saturday night is me doing homework,
but, I'm 21 now, so sometimes it's me and friends now-
- So, sometimes get a drink. Great!
- Sometimes, a little bit more fun.
- What does a typical Saturday night look like at UCLA?
- Well, the most fun nights are on Thursdays.
- Thursdays. So Thursday's the night.
I should change that question to Thursdays.
Change the question to Thursdays. Note for later.
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Okay, great. What goes down on Thursday nights?
- Well, you can do lots of fun things.
There's a lot of action over there, over there,
on that side. - Okay, apartments.
- So it's a lot of fun. I'm not going to go into detail.
- What does your Thursday night look like.
- (laughs) I take it you've heard of Thirsty Thursdays.
Freshman year I was definitely going to ...
I had friends in Theta Xi,
I went there pretty much every week.
This quarter, still a lot of Theta Xi,
but a little bit less fratting,
more hanging out in my dorms, you know, but, yeah.
I'm definitely a Thirsty Thursday person.
I never have Friday classes because of it.
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- What did you write your college essay about?
- I mostly wrote it about what my career goals are
for the future, and how the UC system can facilitate me
in that, but also how I can give back to the UC system.
- I wrote my college essay about my horses.
- You have horses? - Yes.
- That's cool. How many horses?
- Two. - Two.
- Well, I had two. - Okay, I see.
What did you say about said horses?
- Well, I just talked about ... I showed the horses,
and I talked about my accomplishments,
and they really liked that, and they sent me another
essay prompt, halfway through the application process,
asking me to expand on it more.
- Like, talk more about it?
- They liked the accomplishments and talents.
- I remember writing about my cousins,
and how they had an influence on me,
and then the other one was music-related,
it's been a long time.
- I wrote mine about my experience
volunteering at the hospital.
I talked about how I told a ton of jokes to this lady,
and I put a joke in my personal statement,
and after I told my friends, they were like,
"Shame. Isn't that your dream school,
are you trying to get in or what?",
and I was like, "Wow," but, yeah.
- Hey, it worked! - I'm here!
- And, do you remember what your college essay
was about? - It was-
- Fixing a Go-Kart with my dad.
- Fixing a Go-Kart, okay, cool. Did it work?
- Yeah, it worked. - Alright, great!
Any advice that you'd give to high school
students looking to apply here?
- Write your essay about anything you think
makes you unique, it doesn't matter if it's about a Go-Kart,
or about something dramatic, it doesn't
have to be crazy to make you unique.
- I actually wrote my college essay on my great-grandfather,
who I actually only knew for a few years of my life,
but because of stories that I've heard from family members,
legacies he's left, he's actually left a huge impact
on my life, just, about an essay about someone
who I never really met, and the impacts they leave.
- I'm adopted, and I'm super close
with my birth family, so I wrote about that,
just the experiences that I had with it,
and complications with my family,
but how they helped me get through it,
and then I also wrote about sports,
because I was a swimmer and soccer player.
- You think over 100,000 kids apply here,
so you've got to stand out. - Yeah.
- Obviously, having ... I mean, you have to have
the grades, but, it's more about what makes you you.
- Mm-hmm. And work hard, play hard?
- Work hard, play hard. - Right.
- Favorite thing about UCLA? - The people.
- What is your least favorite thing
about UCLA? - Nothing.
- What is your Thursday night like?
- Crazy. - What is your Saturday
night like? - Not crazy.
- And, what did you write your college essay on?
- Pigs. - Thank you so much!
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