There are a multitude of things to say about Pepperdine University, having spent my first semester there. True, I did transfer schools, but it was nothing bad about Pepperdine. Here is all you need to know...

Academics

I have already written a section on academics (see review) so I will only touch on it here. Each of my professors was a Dr. in his or her respective field, and for my freshman seminar (a required class) we took our "final" at the professors house.

128 graduation units, essentially hours, are needed for any degree and each major or minor/emphasis has its own requirement. You can take and transfer summer school hours until you have 60 units complete. Pepperdine does not accept SAT II testing, but AP and CLEP tests do count. There is a total of 63 "GE" classes that must be taken by each student, and some of them will overlap onto your major or minor.

Dorm life

As a freshman, I was required to stay in the on-campus housing. These "dorms" are closer to condominiums than what the stereotypical dorm seems to be. Each suite has one common living area shared by 8 people, 4 rooms of 2, and a bathroom with two showers, sinks, and toilets that is cleaned every weekday by a hired cleaning service. The school allows you to sign up for an Ozarka water cooler (although it is expensive) or you can just get water from the fountain below.

Girls cannot be in guys dorms and vice versa between 1 a.m. and 9 a.m., and this rule is enforced by your RA and SA (two older students that keep you in line).

Everyday life at Pepperdine

I took a 7 a.m. PE class and found myself running on the track with Emilio Estevez on occasion. Tia and Tamara (from the show Sister Sister) were in my humanities class. Living in Malibu, I saw Mel Brooks, Mel Gibson, Jim Carrey, Tea Leoni, David Duchovney, Gary Sinese, Pamala Anderson, and met and shook hands with Ben Stein when he came to lecture on this years election. Simply put, you will see famous people.

The facilities

-Payson library and Law library located on campus
-Gourmet Bean coffee house open 24 hours
-Cafeteria food catered by Meriot (but the hours are short and not so good)
-8 tennis courts
-lighted track
-video editing center
-on-campus mail center

The perks

Of course, celebrities are nice and the food is great (but you will get tired of it). You also enjoy free speech lab and writing center to help you with that speech or term paper. Free university email, and high speed internet connection (put in december), free movie night every thursday, and of course, the cleaning service. Each of these things is pretty good, but there can be no written word to describe the ever-changing, but no less beautiful, Pacific Ocean that can be seen from almost every dorm window.

The overseas study programs are top-notch (but cost more) and give you the opportunity to study in Heidelberg, Florence, London, Buenos Aires, or stay in the USA with a Wachington D.C internship.

The Anti-perks...(clever title, eh?)

1) If you have weak calves or do not like stairs, you will not survive. I mean that. There are more stairs at this place than any other place I have seen in my whole life. They will make you hurt, but you will also develop some nice, sexy legs in the process.

2) The lighting in your dorm roon will be absolutely HORRENDOUS, I can promise you that. There is one lightbulb (and a crappy one at that) per room, and if you don't bring a lamp, you could be in trouble.

3) The rooms do not have air conditioning, and most have malfunctioning heating. The first problem can easily be remedied by a small portable fan, but the second is just tough luck.

4) The money. Just a little over $33,000 for one year.

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Some final tips...

Be ready to pay $1400 for a meal plan that gets you $1000 of food.
Bring a fan and a lamp.
If you hate conservatives, stay far away.
If you are not comfortable with homosexuality, stay farther away. (ok, before I get in trouble, I am not saying one way or another about this issue, but merely letting you all know that it exists and is blatant at this school)


I suppose that is more than you need to know, and certainly more than I knew before I signed my letter of intent. I hope this will help you make a decision that will be the right one. Pepperdine is a fine university and its credentials will speak on their own, but it just wasn't for me.
I don't have $35,000 to spend looking at the Pacific.

Thanks and have a great day.





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