Cal State Fullerton might have a fantastic division one baseball team to its name, and the main campus may be just ten minutes away from the Happiest Place On Earth, but there’s so much more to being a Titan than what everyone thinks! From unique majors to vintage architecture to puppy therapy, here are some things that hold true to every student that walks the halls of Cal State Fullerton.
We have to get this one out of the way. The cliches are true. Disneyland is a very short drive away, and once you shell out the initial couple hundred it takes to pay for your coveted year-long ticket, you’ll never be bored again. It really does pay for itself. Seriously, if you live on campus or in the city, anytime you’ve caught up on your assignments, grown tired of the same old Netflix binge-watching, or need a break from finals, you can just head to Disneyland. Grab yourself a churro. You deserve it.
Despite what your parents told you growing up about how there’s no future in acting, almost all the people you know are musical theater majors. Cal State Fullerton has a prestigious Musical Theater program that is recognized as one of the best in the nation and “is ranked with such prestigious schools as Juilliard, New York University, Boston University and Northwestern University”, according to the department’s website. The theater nerds you knew in high school are all grown up and now they’re everywhere. Don’t be fooled by their bouncy ponytails, smiles and carefree walks around campus holding yoga mats, they’re seriously cutthroat.
There’s about 15 parking lots on campus and yet finding a spot is still impossible. Cal State Fullerton is a pretty small school, but it has plentiful parking options, right? Wrong. If you want to park on campus you better plan on getting to school at least an hour before your 8 a.m.! If you’re a resident, you can forget about getting in your car and leaving to run errands anytime during the week, lest you lose your precious spot. I truly wish this bullet point was a joke, but it’s not.
You probably won’t see them outside of school, like ever. Cal State Fullerton is a total commuter school, with around 82% percent of students living off campus. You get to meet people from all around SoCal. The down side is you’ll probably never hang out with your cool new friend from Geology outside of class because she lives in Long Beach. Bummer.
Since they usually don’t live nearby, the students here avoid Friday classes like the plague. Many professors are part-time and teach at multiple other campuses as well, so Friday classes are rarely even offered at Cal State Fullerton. If you do end up at school at the end of the week, don’t worry! Parking is a breeze and there’s a unique peaceful energy on campus. Classes or not, Friday is the day to relax.
Let’s face it, navy blue and bright orange is a pretty horrid color combination. Maybe it worked in the 1950’s, but not today. Thankfully, makers of CSUF apparel know this, and have gifted us with better unofficial secondary school colors! Walk into Titan Shops to find a multitude of cute t-shirts, windbreakers, and hoodies in sensible grey and trendy maroon!
Everyone knows CSUF is one of the top Division I baseball schools in the country. Baseball season is a big deal. We have four national championships under our belt, and it’s not uncommon to watch a MLB game in the common room and point out a few CSUF alumni.
McCarthy Hall is haunted… just like the library’s basement… and the HSS building… actually… the whole school is probably haunted. 60-year-old lecture halls located in historic Orange County? Come on, there has to be secrets hiding in these walls. CSUF has a colorful and sometimes scary history. This includes its fair share of well-documented deaths, suicides, and murders on campus. I’m not definitively saying it’s haunted, I’m just saying you won’t catch me wandering those buildings alone at night!
Feeling hungry? CSUF has a great variety of strip-mall sized restaurants and coffee shops right on campus. Debatably the best grub around comes from the food trucks parked behind the HSS building or in the Quad. We have regular visits from Juice it up, Spudrunners, and Crepes Bonaparte, just to name a few! Bon appetit!
Flame Broiler. Everywhere you look, there is a Flame Broiler. As someone who came from San Diego, I love a good rice bowl. However, I do not like paying ridiculous amounts of money for one. Ever since moving to CSUF, I’ve found a solution to my problem. Flame Broiler. This healthy and cheap fast food chain originated in Orange County. Although it’s a great meal, there is an excessive amount of restaurants in the area. There are, no joke, 15 Flame Broilers within a six mile radius of CSUF.
One may argue no amount of Starbucks shops can be excessive, but do we really need three of them on campus? They’re all also very close to each other, and it’s ridiculous. CSUF is not a big school, and I’m kind of mad my tuition money is going towards yet another frappuccino fuel station.
Half the buildings are still in their original 1950’s condition and in major need of refurbishments. Then the other half of campus including the Titan Student Union and Rec Center is in almost pristine new condition since it is less than a decade old. There’s a clear contrast walking through campus. While it’s nice to have a mix of historic and modern buildings, I think we’d all prefer a more equal distribution of wealth. After all, the elevators in McCarthy really can’t be trusted!
If you go to CSUF, you are never lacking in quality live music opportunities. Popular concert venues like the Honda Center, Anaheim House Of Blues, and Santa Ana Observatory are all less than a 10 minute drive away. Many up and coming acts can be found playing coffee shops and bars in the area. On top of this, CSUF has weekly concert series that are free for students and their enormous yearly Spring Concert. These have previously featured Ludacris, Lupe Fiasco, and LMFAO!
Titan Walk is a picturesque stroll from the Quad to the Student Union, but you will face several tests before arriving to your destination. Constant tabling from all sorts of over-enthusiastic on-campus groups means sorority girls will try to recruit you, event flyers will inevitably get shoved in your face and you will be asked to sign multiple petitions to “save” something. Best advice is to walk fast and never make eye contact.
CSUF is a great school, but it can be rough around the edges, just like any college. The up side is if you ever feel sad, stressed, or overwhelmed, there’s usually always a dog or two on campus you can pet! ASI sponsored Puppy Therapy sessions are held every month or so, outside animal organizations will set up tents in the quad with therapy dogs you can to make friends with, and many staff members on campus actually have furry friends registered as psychiatric service dogs that are up for the petting! You need never lose hope, for there is always a dog nearby.
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