Reviewed on Sep 12, 2025(Enrolled 2024)
What Students Say
Likes
- The laid-back and calm atmosphere in Davis.
- Since Davis is a college town, the community is very student-friendly, with helpful and kind people outside the university as well. Very much a city run by students.
- Main mode of transport are bicycles and e-scooters and the only allowed on campus other than college buses.
Dislikes
- Not as many fun group activities as the main cities.
- Since it is such a large campus, the distance between your residence and class can feel too long, especially when cycling in the summer heat.
- Not many grocery shopping centers like Target and Walmart.
Course Curriculum
10
- The first year was not hard if you've done cs before . It was a mix of both, depending on the classes you take. The positive aspect of the course is the variety of branches of cs you get to explore and understand. The negative aspect of the course is some classes have a large batch size so there are a lot of people for the TAs and professors.
- Depending on your choices, you might have days with no classes at all or up to 4–5 in a day.
- In my year there are around 300-400 cs students. among those around 100 are indian
Admission Experience
-
I applied for the following universities:
- UC Davis - Admitted
- UW Madison - Admitted
- UofW Seattle - Admitted
- Boston University - Admitted
- Santa Clara University - Admitted
- UIUC - Admitted
- UCSB - Admitted
- UCLA - Rejected
- CMU - Rejected
- Cornelle - Rejected
- Georgia Tech - Rejected
- UCSD - Waitlisted
- USC - Waitlisted
- I feel the main reason I wasnt accepted into these colleges was that my profile wasnt very core CS but had bits of Math in it as well.
- It was a really tough decision as the universites i was admitted to were very similar. I chose Davis because its quite close to the Bay Area. Another reason was that I didnt want the snowy weather like that in Wisconsin, Madison and Boston.
- First was filling the form with all your details and writing the essays (there are 5 main essays for UCs). After paying the fee and submitting the applications by november, you just wait for the decisions in March.
- SAT scores are not required. But they need an english proficiency test like TOEFL/IELTS. They need a 100 in TOEFL (i am not sure about required score in IELTS).
- Writing the essays gave me a really tough time. there were way too many and also the numerous drafts for each. Still, at the end you feel like the essays werent good enough. But, at the end no matter the decision from the universities I felt happy with everything I did.
- I applied for the Fall of 2024 term. - It was a really tough decision as the universites i was admitted to were very similar. I chose Davis because its quite close to the Bay Area. Another reason was that I didnt want the snowy weather like that in Wisconsin, Madison and Boston.
- Process: First was filling the form with all your details and writing the essays (there are 5 main essays for UCs). After paying the fee and submitting the applications by november, you just wait for the decisions in March.
Faculty
10
- The UC Davis student-faculty ratio is 22:1 overall. In CS there are around 15 students under 1 TA but the class size varies
- The first year was just the beginning and i believe the upper divisions that I'll take from year 2 will be quite helpful for me for securing a job.
- Faculty members do assist students in finding part-time or full-time jobs but for that the student needs to build a relationship with them or do some work under them.
- For me the advising team in the CS department are really helpful and give you both sides of the situation for a decision you can't make. for example if you want to opt for a second major.
Campus Life
8
- UC Davis has only one campus in Davis. It is a 20 minute drive from Sacramento and a 90 min drive from SF.
- Facilities: ARC which has a huge gym and multiple indoor sports like basketball, squash, badminton, racquetball, rock climbing, swimming pool, etc; Library; Football Stadium; Multiple Soccer grounds; Beach volleyball; Tennis courts; a huge Medical Centre in the middle of campus; Memorial Union which has games and cafes; and much more.
- Picnic Day is one of the longest-running and a campus-wide student-run festivals which happens every April. It is an open house with a lot of activities and displays happening all over the campus. There are around 800+ clubs for people to explore their interests and hobbies. Every sport has its lower-level tournaments for the students happening every year/quarter.
Part Time Jobs
- 4005 to 5000 students typically secure TA and RA positions. The pay range varies depending on the course and how many hours of work in required from you. The range is from 1900 to around 4000 USD. These roles are offered to only graduate / phd students and very rarely to 4th-year students.
- Other on-campus jobs are literally every other work, like cashier, working at library, Dining commons, tour guides, unitrans, servers, etc.
- Maximum hours of work allowed for F1 students is 20 hours
- It's not easy to secure these part-time jobs, as not many get them.
- Students are paid from 16 to 20 USD on an hourly basis. It's not easy to secure these part-time jobs, as not many get them. You apply for these on Handshake. You submit your resume and a cover letter. Then if they are interested, they reach out for a short interview.
Placement
8
- I don't have the best idea right now about the percentage and average salary. But many students find jobs by campus recruitment and internships, which they acquire during the campus fairs where many companies come in. You need to just interact and introduce yourself and work from there on.
- Major companies hiring from davis are Google, meta, tesla, Seagate, etc.
Accommodation
Off Campus
8
- In the first year i was in the college dorms as we were assigned. now in the second year i will be living off campus in Sol at West Village. i found out about this from seniors at my college. Many international students choose to live here. Monthly Rent varies from 700 to 2000 depending on what type of room you opt for. All utilities are included for an additional fee of 55 USD.
- There were no such challenges while signing a lease for my second year. It was a pretty smooth process and all my doubts were cleared by them at the house tour and on the phone. I'd say there are a couple more like The Green, The Orchid and Identity, which are pretty good as well.
- So it is a 5-10 min bike ride from campus and this is where most indian students stay.
Exams
- SAT scores are not required. But they need an english proficiency test like TOEFL/IELTS. They need a 100 in TOEFL (i am not sure about required score in IELTS).
- Documents: high school certificates, LOR, Statement of Purpose, CV(optional), certificates of any extra exams you might have given
- There is no interview as part of the application to UC Davis
Fees
- Total cost over 4 years is around 330,000 USD for a non-resident
- Each quarter the cost is about 25000 USD
- First Year Cost Breakdown for each quarter:
- Equitable Access for All Books: 169
- Housing: 4300
- Meal Plan: 2400
- Insurance: 1200
- Tuition: 4400
- Non-Supply Tuition: 11400
- Campus fee: 800
- Student Services: 430
- Fees is charged Quarterly
- Monthly Spend varies a lot in the first year. You realise you need things and other requirements. But just based on basics, you can spend 200 USD a month.
Scholarship
- I did not receive any scholarship. They do not offer it to international students. But very few do get scholarships on merit.
- Some of the California Residents did get scholarships based on their background and stuff. Some also got by applying for financial aid.
