Guan visits UCLA for "Bruin Day"

With the start of spring comes rain, flowers, and the deadline for seniors to decide on which school to attend in the fall. This is already a challenging decision, but it gets even more complicated when one of the schools you are considering is located 3,000 miles away.

Senior Michelle Guan is one of the lucky 17% who were accepted to the University of California, Los Angeles. Guan wanted to apply to UCLA her entire high school career. After beginning her college search freshman year, she found UCLA and fell in love.

“It has been my dream school since the start. I have looked forward to college ever since a young age, and had my eyes set on California.”

After studying hard, volunteering, and demonstrating leadership as the captain of the Aurora Flag Line, Guan sent her application off for review. On March 28th, she and over 111,000 applicants heard back from UCLA, and learned of her acceptance.

While UCLA had always been at the top of her list, it does not have an undergraduate business school. For this reason, Guan has decided to attend The Ohio State University to major in finance.

Though Guan will not be moving to the West Coast this fall, she and her father decided to attend UCLA’s “Bruin Day”, a specific visit opportunity for admitted students, on April 13 for fun.

After attending OSU’s visit day for admitted “Buckeyes”, Guan saw differences in UCLA’s “Bruin Day”. She says OSU was very organized, with a set schedule and a group welcome. At UCLA, everything was set up like a convention, with different organizations tending booths you could visit at your leisure.

Another difference Guan saw between UCLA and other schools she visited was the environment of the school. Guan explains, “It was absolutely gorgeous, and the prettiest campus I have ever seen. It was like a completely different world from the rest of America.”

Guan also visited several hotspots around Los Angeles, such as the Hollywood Walk of Fame, downtown LA to try black ice cream, and the Santa Monica State Beach.

As someone who was accepted to UCLA, she has advice for anyone interested in applying. She says it is necessary to set your goals early, get involved in your school and community, and keep your GPA up. It is also important to remember all schools in the University of California system require the essay section of the ACT and SAT. Lastly, she advises creating unique essays that will make you stand out.

Even though Guan won’t be attending UCLA to complete her undergraduate degree, she plans to attend the university for graduate school. No matter where life takes her, she will always have the memory of completing one of the biggest goals of her high school career.

“I’m glad I am able to feel on top of the world.”