UCLA students to have monthlong winter break

UCLA students will have a monthlong winter break during the 2016-2017 school year to accommodate university holidays.

Winter break for UCLA students will last for four weeks, from Dec. 9 to Jan. 9. UC San Diego will begin break Dec. 10 and UC Santa Cruz will begin Dec. 8. All UC quarter-system universities will begin winter quarter Jan. 9.

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day will fall on a Saturday and Sunday, respectively, but the holidays will be observed on the following weekdays. As a result, the winter quarter calendar will be pushed back one week.

Lara Jhaveri, a third-year French and global studies international student from Singapore, said traveling home for holidays is difficult when the break is three weeks long because it takes her two days to fly, and one week to recover from jet lag.

“I can spend more time with my family during the school year (with a longer winter break),” Jhaveri said. “There’s also a higher chance we can go on a family holiday.”

Malavika Raju, a third-year biochemistry international student from India, said shorter winter breaks kept her from returning home in the past, but she will definitely see her family in December.

“(Home) is so far away and expensive,” Raju said. “(A four-week break) is something I think all international students would appreciate.”