No one said choosing your college was easy. The stress of high school, entrance essays, and SATs converge to a dramatic conclusion. To some, decision day is full of joy; to others, yet another painful stroke of fate on the journey to an undetermined future. Like many ambitious high-school seniors, I was primarily worried to find out where I wouldn’t be attending. At the time, all that seemed to matter me and many others was prestige. What school had the best “brand” that I could leverage into a better career? I reluctantly accepted my admission to UC Santa Barbara. It may not be Berkeley or USC, but at least it’s on the beach, right? It would take years before I realized that I had unintentionally made a life defining choice.

Hindsight is 20/20. Fleeting feelings and emotions have a way of distorting your present thoughts and perceptions. Over time, these salient features are etched away leaving a core truth. Looking back at my four years at UC Santa Barbara, a clearer picture presents itself. College is about learning. Obvious right? But there are many types of learning that are a bit more difficult to quantitatively measure.

Sure, I could talk about our Six Nobel Laureates across Physics, Economics, and Chemistry or our U.S. News #5 Public School Ranking, but you can read that in a brochure. Even my major, Economics, was ranked #17 in the U.S. according to College Factual. UCSB is certainly no slouch when it comes to academics.

But you could say the same about many universities.

It’s not particularly unique and, although UCSB is moving up the academic rankings, the paradigm of “prestigious” schools is difficult to change. It took me four years of attending this institution before I realized that my school possesses qualities others fail to embrace, intangibles beyond the scope of rankings and the Nobel society.

I have no doubt that remarkable people go to the most renowned schools in our country. However, UC Santa Barbara stands alone in its ability to create these types of individuals, molding impulsive passion into a heightened sense of self. Let me explain.

A friend of mine once described Isla Vista, the small community neighboring the UCSB campus and encompassing the majority of our student body, as our own little “Isle of Tortuga”, amusingly alluding to the lawless port city popularized in Pirates of the Caribbean. At first glance, this seems like a debaucherous comparison, but it goes a bit deeper. To the outside world, we are a party school. Though this image is eroding at the pace of our dropping acceptance rate, you can’t ignore the initial thought that pops into people’s heads when you mention your attendance. But what was the mythical Tortuga really about?

Freedom, passion, creativity, and community.

Out of the grasp of the pursuing European Navies, Tortuga inhabitants sought their own lives and pursued individual desires. Through their diversity of thought and passion, they built a strong community. No, I’m not saying us Gauchos are pirates or share similar hedonistic tendencies beyond that typical of a college student. What we do have in Isla Vista is something much more interesting; a collection of many unique types of people in an environment that fosters creativity and personal learning, all the while parallel to the world class institution which we call home.

Our admission brochures like to share statistics about our four year graduation rate or the number of students gaining medical school acceptance, yet fail to articulate the information that more accurately depicts the uniqueness of our university. What percent of people know someone in a band? How many people does a student meet and interact with over their four years here? What percent of people learn to surf or bike with no hands? Though maybe ridiculous, the interactions, experiences, and memories you make here are simply incomparable to any other university that I know. This isn’t just for fun though. This truly augments our educational experience into one of complete personal development.

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Just from our secluded, little town came the creative minds of Jack Johnson, Iration, Rebelution, and Steve Aoki. They started in their garages playing music for friends, constantly perfecting their craft and letting their passions guide them. Universities can teach you how to solve a problem out of a textbook, but they certainly can’t teach you the intangible elements intrinsic to individuals we admire. The environment of Isla Vista breeds success through the unbridled social atmosphere housing the next experience only a short bike ride away. Being surrounded by other students with many opportunities for triumph (and failure), presents an unparalleled crucible for personal development and pursuit of your true self.

Maybe you’re not a musician or a surfer, but that’s alright. There’s something for everyone here. Like the fabled Tortuga, Isla Vista is what you make of it. As a budding young mind with the world in front of you, you can take the safe route and attend a prestigious school, if you are blessed with the opportunity, but to do so is to put something much more valuable at stake. Like I stated at the beginning of this piece, college is about learning, but it goes beyond academics. By just pursuing collegiate prestige, I risked not discovering myself and allowing my interests to freely guide me. An education at UC Santa Barbara gives you the quantifiable academic knowledge, but, more importantly, the skills to continually learn and pursue your passions outside the guiding hands of parents or institutions. A school can’t make you remarkable, but the habits you develop on your own journey of self discovery in Isla Vista can build you into that extraordinary person.

Hypnotized by my neighbor’s guitar plucks, I take a moments pause from writing and gaze off to the Pacific Ocean. A constant metaphor for the qualities we hope to embody at the end of our time here. Strength derived from our vast experiences, yet able to flow past obstacles with ease and fill new pools of untapped potential and discovery.