The year is 2050. State funding for the University of California has dwindled to mere pennies. UCLA departments are forced to grovel for donations with flashy titles and perks, and department chairs vie for philanthropists like players in the Hunger Games do. If only the nation’s top public university weren’t so private. State support for […]
Category Archives: Opinion Columns
Focus on individual academic counseling is necessary to amend freshman orientation
New Student Orientation exemplifies exactly what the next four years will be like for incoming first-years: friends, fun and total confusion over class planning. Orientation is a three-day session during which new Bruins get to explore Westwood and the campus. Incoming students take part in many activities, from an after-hours scavenger hunt to a four-hour […]
Mind Your Business: UCLA’s business-like practices create exploitative environment for student workers
UCLA is an institution with many moving parts. Something that goes under the radar, though: its side business ventures that don’t directly relate to its educational mission. In this series, staff columnist Mariah Furtek looks at how the blue-and-gold laden university’s often questionable cash grabs affect the campus and local community. Think of the University […]
The TOEFL cheating scheme: A college admissions scandal you didn’t hear about
If you’re looking to get into your dream school the right way, you’re out of luck. If you happen to have a couple of fraudulent test-takers at your disposal, though, it looks like you have options. The Operation Varsity Blues college admissions scandal dominated the public conversation from March through April, and rightfully so – […]
Greek life must break cycle of poor sexual assault reporting with institutional change
Each year, UCLA goes through the same cycle: Fraternities come under fire for sexual assault allegations. There is a renewed cry for action. And then, after a slap on the wrist, everything goes back to normal. And UCLA Greek life’s wrists are pretty bruised. But that isn’t crashing the party. The past year has featured […]
Club Sports’ hands-off management approach allows gender discrimination of teams
Everyone hates a referee who makes unfair calls. The only thing worse is a ref who doesn’t make any calls. Welcome to Club Sports at UCLA. The UCLA Competitive Sports program consists of both Club and Intramural Sports. Club Sports consists of 55 different teams – including sailing, Quidditch, archery and rugby – with 2,500 […]
Amid measles outbreak, UCLA needs to improve students’ public health awareness
About two decades ago, vaccinations made measles a disease of the past. But we’ve brought back the world’s most contagious virus – and it’s all courtesy of ignorance. Despite being in the information age, Americans have a distinct lack of information about the basics of science and health care. The misconceptions have run amok: People […]