UCSB Dorms Ranked

"Majority international students from when I lived there in 2019. Really quiet if that’s what you want, but it does get boring. I ended up switching to Anacapa and enjoyed it much more, a lot more social there."

"Honestly, it's such a good location, super close to the ILP+Library, beach, dining halls, and UCen. The location made it a huge plus for me. I lived on the 8th floor, it was a pretty quiet floor. Personally, I've never had any issues with the elevator but there was a terrible ant problem. There were lots of ants in the bathroom, sometimes even crawling on the toilet seat. With my room being right next to the bathroom, there were lots of ants in my room too! The communal bathroom is not bad at all! There's always cleaning staff in the morning every day, and the showers are not scary at all lol! I would recommend this dorm as long as they don't have the ant problem!"

"If you're in a double, the space is nice and comfortable, but if you're in a triple it feels more crammed than the triples in other dorms like manzi or so. Something I personally didn't like is that two rooms (a triple and a double) share restrooms, and the restrooms are only accessible through the inside of the room, so it's not like you can use another if your restroom is occupied. Other than that, San Cat is pretty nice, the pool is great, and portola is imo better than the other dining halls (except ortega god i love ortega)"

"Really dark and gloomy. Extremely loud. Close to two dining halls and all your classes and the beach though."

"I enjoyed my time at Santa Cruz. There is a great community, good vibes and a supportive staff. I liked the various lounges and community spaces, the architecture also felt modern enough and sufficient."

"Wonderful location, small but manageable rooms. The RAs take their job a little too seriously, going as far as to knock on my door at midnight and accuse me of smoking weed because they smelled it in our general hallway. But if you don’t break the rules it is convenient as you are near campus and IV."

"It was a great experience overall. I had a triple in my freshmen year and, although space they don't have the biggest rooms, the space is definitely adequate. Great location right on campus, close to everything, and a great community with other residents/RA. The only issues I can remember were getting used to the communal bathrooms and sometimes not having a better area to study in. "

"Manzanita is probably one of the top 3 undergrad dorms due to its size. I really like how the buildings are 4 floors and have a little kitchen/living room area. One of the things that some people won't like about Manzanita is its location from all the classrooms."

"Very nice furnishing, rooms are clean, living room is very spacious, but bathrooms are a mess. No divider between toilet and shower. Location is pretty far from campus but is right next to Portola (the best dining hall)"

"Very nice and clean. Easily the nicest UCSB apartment option. The location is not good however and is extremely far away from the campus."