University of California, Irvine

 

Coordinates: 33°38′43.26″N, 117°50′33.51″W

University of California, Irvine
Motto	Fiat Lux (Latin) (Let There Be Light)
Established	1965
Type	Public, Land, and Space Granted-University
Academic term	Quarter
Endowment	US $230 million (August 1, 2007) [1]
Chancellor	Dr. Michael V. Drake, M.D.
Faculty	1,453
Undergraduates	20,843 (2006)[2]
Postgraduates	4,387 (2006)[3]
Location	Irvine, California,
Address	University of California, Irvine: Main Campus University of California, Irvine Irvine, CA 92697 (949) 824-5011
Campus	Suburban, 1,489 acres (6 km²)
Newspaper	New University
Colors	Blue and Gold
Nickname	Anteaters
Mascot	Peter the Anteater
Fight song	Anteaters Go! The Big C
Athletics	NCAA Division I
Affiliations	University of California American Association of Universities Big West Conference
Nobel laureates	4 Frank Sherwood Rowland, Frederick Reines, Irwin Rose, Mario J. Molina
Website	www.uci.edu
Public transit access	Orange County Transportation Authority

The University of California, Irvine is a public coeducational research university situated in Irvine, California. Founded in 1965, it is the second-youngest University of California campus and is widely known as UCI or UC Irvine.

UC Irvine's name is originated from the Irvine Company, which donated 1,000 acres (4 km²) (for a single dollar) and sold another 500 acres (2 km²) to the University of California.

Together, the University of California and the Irvine Company planned a city around the campus, which was incorporated as the city of Irvine in 1971.

UC Irvine's location is in the heart of Orange County, California, serving the fifth most-populous county in the United States. Additionally, UCI also maintains the UC Irvine Health Sciences system (with its flagship UCI Medical Center in Orange), the University of California, Irvine, Arboretum, and a portion of the University of California Natural Reserve System.

In 2008, the U.S. News and World Report ranked UC Irvine as the 44th best university in the United States, 13th best public university in the United States, and 5th best (shared with Santa Barbara) of all the UC schools - (after Berkeley, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Davis ^[4]). UC Irvine is also the youngest university that appears on the listing of "Top National Universities" in the United States, and is a Public Ivy institution of higher education. [1]

The UC Irvine Anteaters, UCI's athletic team, participate in Division I NCAA athletic tournaments and have fielded numerous successful teams over the course of their history.

History

Early years

During the 1950s, the University of California saw the need for new campuses to handle both the large number of college-bound World War II veterans (largely due to the G. I. Bill) and the expected increase in enrollment from the post-war baby boom. One of the new campuses was to be in the Los Angeles area; the location selected was Irvine Ranch, an area of agricultural land bisecting Orange County from north to south. This site was chosen to accommodate the county's growing population, complement the growth of nearby UCLA and UC Riverside, and allow for the construction of a master planned community in the surrounding area.^[5]

Irvine was one of three new campuses established in the 1960s under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the others being San Diego and Santa Cruz.^[6] In 1960 The Irvine Company sold one thousand acres (4 km²) of the Irvine Ranch to the University of California for one dollar, since a company policy prohibited the donation of property to a public entity.^[7] The University purchased an additional 510 acres (2.1 km²) in 1964 for housing and commercial developments. During this time, the University also hired William Pereira and Associates as the Master Planner of the Irvine Ranch area. Pereira intended for the UC Irvine campus to complement the neighboring community, and the two grew in tandem. Soon after UC Irvine opened in 1965, the City of Irvine became incorporated and established in 1971 and 1975, respectively.^[8]

UC Irvine's first Chancellor, Daniel G. Aldrich, developed the campus' first academic plan around a College of Arts, Letters, and Science, a Graduate School of Administration, and a School of Engineering. The College of Arts, Letters, and Science was composed of twenty majors in five "Divisions": Biological Sciences, Fine Arts, Humanities, Physical Sciences, and Social Sciences (which transformed into the present-day "Schools").^[9] Aldrich was also responsible for implementing the wide variety of flora and fauna on the campus that fit the local Mediterranean climate zone, feeling that it served an "aesthetic, environmental, and educational [purpose]."^[10]

On June 20, 1964, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson dedicated UC Irvine before a crowd of 15,000 people, and on October 4, 1965 the campus began operations with 1,589 students, 241 staff members, 119 faculty, and 43 teaching assistants.^[11][12] However, many of UCI's buildings were still under construction and landscaping was still in progress, with the campus only at 75% completion.^[13] By June 25, 1966, UCI held its first Commencement with fourteen students, which conferred ten Bachelors of Arts, three Masters of Arts, and one Doctor of Philosophy degree.^[14] In 1965 the formerly osteopathic California College of Medicine, the oldest continuously operating medical college in the southwestern US was joined to UCI. Over the protests of faculty, the University bowed to pressure from Governor Brown and bought the Orange County Medical Center from the government ending ambitions for an on campus teaching hospital. Intermittent attempts over the years to bring a full medical center to the school itself have been frustrated by many factors.

Present day

UC Irvine itself has grown with its surroundings, with the university earning national acclaim in academia that reflects its status as a nationally-ranked public research university. This fast-paced growth has made UC Irvine the educational and cultural center of Orange County, as well as making a popular translation of the abbreviation "UCI" as "Under Construction Indefinitely".^{[citation needed]} The University is also a central component of Southern California's Tech Coast and the OCTANe technology initiative, fueling corporate and technological development that reflects its history as a planned campus. As the -second-largest employer in Orange County (the largest employer being The Walt Disney Company), UCI contributes an annual economic impact of $3.7 billion. Its extramural funding, which has shown exponential annual growth, was a record $263 million in 2005.^[15]

In 2006, UC Irvine operated 68 undergraduate degree programs, 53 minors, 45 master's degree programs, and 43 doctorate programs (including one M.D., two Ed. D. programs).^[16][17] At UC Irvine's 2005 Commencement ceremonies, the university conferred 6,759 degrees to what was at the time its largest graduating class.^[18]

Currently and in the past two decades, the ethnic breakdown at UCI was:

• Asian/Asian-American — 53.1%
• Caucasian/White — 25.9%
• Mexican-American — 8%
• No response or Unknown — 4.4%
• Spanish-American — 3.5%
• African-American — 2.3%
• Other — 2.1%
• American Indian — <1%^[19]

Future growth

As part of its long-term efforts to "attain flagship status,"^[20] UC Irvine has implemented construction projects (estimated to cost $1.3 billion over the next decade) that will accelerate the campus build-out and employ the remainder of the university's land grant.^{[21][22][23][24]} The exponential increase in construction activity is a part of the Strategy for Academic Development at UCI through 2015, a master plan that outlines the vision of making UCI a first-choice university for college applicants nationwide.^[25]

The anteater as mascot

A question that perplexes many students and visitors alike is the motivation behind having an anteater as UCI's mascot. The anteater was chosen in 1965 when students were allowed to submit mascot candidates, which would be voted on in a campus election. An undergraduate named Schuyler Hadley Basset III is credited with choosing the anteater and designing a cartoon representation, having been disappointed with other mascots such as a roadrunner, unicorn, and golden bison.^[26]

The anteater was inspired by the Johnny Hart comic strip, "B.C." Since it was "original and slightly irrelevant," and became the mascot of UC Irvine after winning 56% of the vote. The anteater has grown to become a beloved mascot, and is the inspiration for many of UCI's athletic and campus spirit traditions.

In August 2007, a small stuffed Peter accompanied astronaut Tracy Caldwell on the Space Shuttle Endeavour mission STS-118.^[27]

Academics

Admissions

UC Irvine is categorized by U.S. News and by other collegiate-resource authors such as The Princeton Review as being one of the most selective universities in the United States. ^[28] It is the fifth-most selective University of California campus on the ratio of applicants versus admitted students (behind UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego, and UC Santa Barbara).^[29]

The choice to offer admission is based on the University of California's comprehensive review program. It considers a candidate's personal situation, community involvement, extracurricular activities, and academic potential in addition to the traditional high school academic record, personal statement, and entrance examination scores.^[30] While residency is not a factor in admission, it is a factor in tuition expenses, with out-of-state residents spending more annually than California residents. State law prohibits UC Irvine from practicing affirmative action in its admissions process.

Of the 39,940 high school students that applied to UC Irvine for fall 2007 admission, 22,146 (or 55.4%) were offered admission. 96.4% of those students identified with "Eligibility in the Local Context," a statistical indicator that identifies the top 4% of all California high school graduates as eligible for admission to the University of California, who applied to UC Irvine were admitted.^[31]

Incoming freshmen predominantly represent the San Francisco Bay Area and the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego. The most popular major for freshmen is a major in the School of Biological Sciences (22%), followed by Undecided/Undeclared (20.6%), Social Sciences (17.4%), Engineering (11.7%), Humanities (8.8%), Physical Sciences (6.1%), Arts (5%), Social Ecology (5%), Information and Computer Sciences (3%), and Health Sciences (0.2%).^[32] The average freshman's incoming high school GPA was 3.89. The average SAT scores were 602 (Critical Reasoning), 640 (Mathematics), and 612 (Writing), while the ACT composite score was 26.^[33] SAT verbal scores for the middle 50% were 550 and 660, while SAT math scores ranged between 580 and 700.^[34]

Governance

Like other University of California campuses, UC Irvine is governed by a Chancellor who has significant authority over campus academic and planning affairs. The Chancellor, in turn, is nominated by and answers to the Regents of the University of California and the UC President. Listed below are all of UC Irvine's Chancellors since its founding:

Chancellors of UC Irvine	Years as Chancellor
Daniel G. Aldrich	1962–1984
Jack W. Peltason	1984–1992
Laurel L. Wilkening	1993–1998
Ralph J. Cicerone	1998–2005
Michael V. Drake	2005–present

After the Chancellor, the second most senior official is the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost.^[35] He serves as the university's chief academic and operating officer. Every school on campus reports to the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost through a Dean, and all other academic and administrative units report to his office through a Vice Chancellor or chief administrator. A partial list of these units includes Campus Recreation, Intercollegiate Athletics, Planning and Budget, Student Affairs, UC Irvine Libraries, UC Irvine Medical Center, and University Advancement. The Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost also governs the faculty senate.

Academic units

UC Irvine's academic units are referred to as Schools. There are eight undergraduate Schools, two graduate Schools, one Department, and one field of Interdisciplinary Studies. The most recent academic unit, the College of Health Sciences, was established in 2004.^[36] On November 16, 2006, the UC Regents approved the establishment of the School of Law, with an expected opening in fall 2009.^[37] The remaining academic units offer accelerated or community education in the form of Summer Session and UC Irvine Extension. Additionally, UCI's Campuswide Honors Program is implementing an independent study program, which will allow students to develop their own curriculum across Schools and graduate with their own self-created major.

Current academic units at UC Irvine:

• Claire Trevor School of the Arts
• School of Biological Sciences
• Paul Merage School of Business
• Department of Education
• Henry Samueli School of Engineering
• College of Health Sciences
• School of Humanities
• Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences
• Interdisciplinary Studies
• Donald Bren School of Law (expected opening fall 2009)
• School of Medicine
• School of Physical Sciences
• School of Social Ecology
• School of Social Sciences
• Summer Session
• UC Irvine Extension

Proposed academic units at UC Irvine:

• School of Design

Academic structure

UCI's academic year is divided into three quarters, each composed of ten weeks of instruction and one week of final examinations. The university requires a minimum of 12 units a quarter (about 3 classes) to be considered a full-time student, with the maximum being 20 units. The maximum amount of units can be exceeded by petition or by enrollment in the Campuswide Honors Program. The average UCI undergraduate takes four courses, or 16 units. Courses offered are usually worth between 1 to 5 quarter units. Summer courses are offered in either the quarter format of 11 weeks or two summer sessions of roughly half the time for a standard quarter.

UCI employs the traditional A-F grading scale and GPA system, modified for use with the quarter system. Students may elect to take a course for Pass/Not Pass credit, in which a passing grade offers units towards graduation without positively or adversely affecting a student's GPA. This option is often associated with courses that count for fewer than four units (for example, internship credit) or with courses a student wishes to take without the pressure of achieving a desired letter grade. Pass/Not Pass may be used for one course each quarter, with only 12 units counting towards graduation requirements.

In total, at least 180 quarter units are required to graduate. Most of the units come from the graduation requirements of an undergraduate's major, but a substantial amount also come from the general education requirement known as the "breadth requirement".^[38] The breadth requirement consists of seven subject categories:

1. Writing
2. Natural Sciences
3. Social and Behavioral Sciences
4. Humanistic Inquiry
5. Mathematics and Symbolic Systems
6. Language Other Than English
7. Multicultural Studies and International/Global Issues

The first category, Writing, is separated between lower division writing (three courses) and upper division writing (requiring the completion of a research project). The sixth category, Language Other Than English, can be fulfilled through four quarters of instruction (or more, depending on a student's major requirements). It may alternatively be satisfied by taking three years of a foreign language in high school, passing an AP test on a language other than English with a 4 or 5, or scoring a 620 or better on an SAT II exam on a language other than English. The seventh category, Multicultural Studies and International/Global Issues, contains two subcategories, Multicultural Studies and International/Global Issues. Category VII and the other categories not listed in detail here each require the completion of three courses from a series or subject area. Additionally, students may partially fulfill selected breadth requirements through petition or participation in extracurricular activities.

Of its 76 undergraduate majors, UCI's most popular ones are Biological Sciences (621 degrees awarded in the 2004-2005 academic year), Economics (417), Information & Computer Science (478) and Psychology and Social Behavior (324). UCI also hosts a diverse array of minors and certification programs. In 2005 the university awarded a total of 5,242 bachelors degrees, 943 masters degrees, and 276 doctorates.^[39]

Rankings and distinctions

In the 2008 U.S. News & World Report survey, UCI is ranked 5th among public universities in California (an honor that's shared with UC Santa Barbara ), 13th among all public universities in the U.S., and 44th among all universities in the U.S., public or private.^[4]

UCI's graduate programs also receive top-50 rankings from U.S. News & World Report, earning distinction in literary criticism and theory (2), criminology (4), behavioral neuroscience (5), creative writing (6), health care management (9), organic chemistry (9), information systems (11), drama and theater (12), third-world literature (12), cognitive psychology (13), English (16), psychology – neurobiology and behavior (16), chemistry (18), experimental psychology (19), gender and literature (19), executive M.B.A. (20), cell biology/developmental biology (21), 19th- and 20th century literature (22), psychology – cognitive science (22), sociology (27), aerospace engineering (29), computer science (29), physics (29), mechanical engineering (30), civil engineering (31), biological sciences (32), history (32), environmental engineering (34), fine arts (34), political science (35), business (38), biomedical engineering (40), engineering (41), materials science engineering (45), medicine (46), mathematics (47), psychology and social behavior (47), economics (48), and electrical engineering (49).^[40]

UCI's Master of Fine Arts degree program in creative writing has graduated such authors as Richard Ford, Michael Chabon, and Alice Sebold. The graduate program in philosophy was ranked 17th in the English-speaking world by the Philosophical Gourmet Report, while Chemical and Engineering News ranks UCI fifth (tied with, among others, Harvard University) in conferring doctoral degrees in chemistry. The Wall Street Journal ranks UCI's Paul Merage School of Business fourth in the nation for information technology.^[41]

UC Irvine is a member of the Association of American Universities. As of 2006,in the Academic Ranking of World Universities [2]by Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s Institute of Higher Education, UCI is ranked 34th in the U.S., 36th in the Americas and 44th in the world.

Three faculty have been named National Medal of Science recipients. Additionally, three researchers from UCI's faculty received the Nobel Prize during their tenure at UCI: Frank Sherwood Rowland (Chemistry, 1995), Frederick Reines (Physics, 1995) (deceased), and Irwin Rose (Chemistry, 2004). Dr. Rowland's Nobel-winning research was conducted exclusively at UC Irvine, along with fellow prize-winner Mario J. Molina. Irwin Rose received the Nobel Prize for his work on biological proteins. F. Sherwood Rowland is known for helping to discover CFCs and their harmful effects on the ozone layer, while Frederick Reines received the Nobel Prize for his work in discovering the neutrino. UCI is the first public university to have two Nobel laureates (Rowland and Reines) who received their prizes in the same year (1995).

UCI's faculty are also members of the following U.S. learned societies:

• American Academy of Arts and Sciences (33 members)
• American Association for the Advancement of Science (75 members)
• American Philosophical Society (7 members)
• American Physical Society (30 members)
• American Psychological Association (20 members)
• Institute of Medicine (5 members)
• National Academy of Engineering (7 members)
• National Academy of Sciences (22 members)

Honors and research opportunities

Campuswide Honors Program

Since 1988, UC Irvine has operated the Campuswide Honors Program (CHP) in an effort to attract and retain academically gifted student leaders by combining the "rigor and personal attention of a selective liberal arts college and the opportunities of a dynamic research university"^[42]. The CHP currently has more than 600 students from all undergraduate majors. Students are accepted into the CHP by invitation as a high school senior or by applying as an undergraduate. CHP students are entitled to many benefits that make the college experience more intellectually stimulating, fun, and convenient. Those who complete the CHP graduate with Campuswide Honors and are linked through an active alumni network. Approximately 90% of all CHP graduates have gone on to complete graduate and professional degrees nationwide.

One of the most significant requirements of the CHP is the submission of an honors thesis, a long-term research project. A honors thesis may be completed either through independent study with a professor or one of the 24 formal department honors programs on campus.^[43] These programs offer research seminars, grant application advising, and faculty mentor assistance, and confer department honors upon graduation. These programs, while separate from the Campuswide Honors Program, are administered by their respective academic units and open to all eligible undergraduates. However, honors thesis candidates are mainly comprised of CHP students.

Scholarship Opportunities Program

An outgrowth of the CHP is the Scholarship Opportunities Program (SOP). SOP assists students interested in applying for scholarships. SOP emphasizes personal assistance with scholarship applications, but also offers students the opportunity to work towards merit and university scholarships, most of which are aimed at financing a research project or graduate education. UCI is a prolific producer of scholarship recipients, with students earning scholarships such as the Fulbright, Marshall, Truman, and National Science Foundation grants. UCI students also compete vigorously for UCI scholarships and research grants.

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program

Many students who wish to complete an honors thesis, or other work of research, opt to participate in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, which provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to gain valuable research experience. Better known on campus as UROP (pronounced you-ROP), the program provides funding and credit to undergraduate students who volunteer for faculty-mentored research projects pertaining to all academic disciplines. Launched in 1995, UROP has grown sharply in recent years and has received wide support from the faculty, including the active involvement of the UROP Faculty Advisory Board.^[44] Upon completion of the year-long research project, students are expected to present their findings at the school's research symposium.

Although not a requirement, some students may submit their written reports (ranging from 15-25 pages) to the faculty committee in order to be considered for publication in the university's research journals. Publication in the UROP Undergraduate Research Journal is known to be extremely competitive. In many cases, students are asked to submit numerous drafts to the faculty committee for review, only to find out that their papers are later denied publication. In the past, a mere 5% of all submissions were accepted for publication in the journal. UROP is comparable to similar programs at other large universities, such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston University, and the University of Michigan.

Research organizations

To complement its mission as a research university, UCI hosts a diverse array of nationally and internationally-recognized research organizations. These organizations are either chaired by or composed of UCI faculty, frequently draw upon undergraduates and graduates for research assistance, and produce a multitude of innovations, patents, and scholarly works. Some are housed in a school or department office; others are housed in their own multimillion-dollar facilities. These are a few of the more prolific research organizations at UCI:

• Beckman Laser Institute
• California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (also known as Calit2)
• Center for Global Peace and Conflict Studies
• Center for Unconventional Security Affairs
• Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• National Fuel Cell Research Center
• Reeve-Irvine Research Center
• Center for the Study of Democracy

Academic and professional preparation

Academic preparation programs

UCI is noted for offering 19 programs, collectively governed by the Center for Educational Partnerships (CFEP), that provide academic assistance for K-12 and college-age students. CFEP programs range from K-12 student development, college preparatory outreach, graduate/professional school development, and community outreach. UC Irvine offers other graduate and professional degree development programs also, such as the Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate, UC-LEADS, Summer Academic Enrichment Program, and Student Academic Advancement Services.

Students interested in any major may participate in the SAGE Scholars Program, which offers extensive leadership and business training through courses, events, community service, and extracurricular activities. Additionally, it may provide up to a $6000 scholarship and an internship with a local company (for example Parker Hannifin, Broadcom, Allergan, Merrill Lynch). Another professional preparation program (for students interested in pursuing a career in law) is the UCI Law Forum. This certificate program offers courses, lectures, seminars, and extracurricular activities related to the legal profession. Like the SAGE Scholars Program, the Law Forum also allows students to develop advocacy, public speaking, and writing skills that are relevant both for academic and practical applications.

Internship programs

While most universities have internship programs, UC Irvine is unique in starting two internship programs that have become a mainstay for the whole University of California system. UC Irvine created the UCDC program in 1982 with four undergraduates; today, UCDC has nearly 50 UCI students in its summer program and maintains an equivalent academic year program. UCDC encourages students to seek internships in Washington, D.C., and houses them at the UC Washington Center. UCDC has since expanded to other UC campuses, with each campus administering their own summer and academic year programs. UC Irvine is also responsible for establishing the Sacramento Internship Program (SIP) in 2000. It is structurally similar to UCDC's summer program, but arranges for internships in the state capital and houses interns in a private apartment complex. SIP's academic year equivalent, the Scholar Intern Program, is administered by the UC Center Sacramento office.

Campus

See also: UCI Medical Center, University of California, Irvine, Arboretum, and University of California Natural Reserve System

Surroundings

Although the campus is located in the city of Irvine, it is located very close to the city of Newport Beach; in fact, the campus itself is directly bounded by the city of Newport Beach and Newport Coast on many sides. The western side of the campus borders the San Joaquin Freshwater Marsh Reserve, through which Campus Drive connects UCI to the 405 freeway. The northern and eastern sides of UCI are adjacent to Irvine proper; the eastern side of the campus is delineated by Bonita Canyon Road, which turns into Culver Drive at its northern terminus and offers links to the San Joaquin Hills Toll Road and 405 freeway, respectively. Additionally, UCI's southern boundary is adjacent to the San Joaquin Transportation Corridor.

Despite the suburban environment, a variety of wildlife inhabits the University's central park, open fields, and wetlands. The university has bobcats, mountain lions, hawks, golden eagles, great blue herons, peregrine falcons, rabbits, raccoons, owls, skunks, weasels, bats, and coyotes. The UCI Arboretum hosts a collection of plants from California and Mediterranean climates around the world. The small rabbits in particular are very numerous and can be seen across campus in high numbers, especially during hours of low student traffic.

Layout

The campus was designed favoring large open spaces and decentralized, suburban facilities over the dense, urban layout of older campuses. It is primarily composed of 1960s Modernist/Futurist and Postmodern buildings set in a circle around a large central park. Satellite parking lots lie in another circle outside the main circle of buildings, with UCI's streets roughly laid out in a pattern of circles themselves. This layout is attributable to Chancellor Aldrich and fellow university planners, who conceived UCI as concentric circles of knowledge. UCI's master plan called for the central park (now known as Aldrich Park) to serve as the nucleus of the campus, with academic units moving outward based on educational attainment (most undergraduate schools are in the central campus, while graduate and professional schools are located further away).^[45]

Aldrich Park is composed of a network of paved and dirt pathways that cross the campus. Much of Aldrich Park serves as a home for large numbers of thickly-wooded trees indigenous to the local Mediterranean climate, and as a whole it is landscaped meticulously. Its geographical center hosts a garden and plaque commemorating UCI's founding, which marks the site of an unbuilt carillon tower known as the Centrum.^[46] For students, Aldrich Park is a popular meeting place, study area, and convenient field for sports or other activities. Also, many large-scale outdoor concerts and events are held here; an example of such an event is Commencement, held annually on the southern Great Lawn (one of the few areas of the park without trees).

In turn, Aldrich Park is completely encircled by a pedestrian walkway known as Ring Road, which is the main pedestrian thoroughfare on campus. Ring Road, which measures up to a perfect mile, was created both for its aesthetic beauty and to facilitiate construction on the campus. This tree-lined central artery allows students to reach their classes across campus quickly, while underground one will find all major utilities ready to connect to newly-constructed buildings. Given the hilly nature of the campus, Ring Road is built on an incline leading from the School of Humanities to the School of Physical Sciences.

Each School at UCI (except for the School of the Arts, School of Business, College of Medicine) is located on its own segment of Ring Road. Starting from the main Langson Library and Administration building and going clockwise, Ring Road passes through Social Sciences, Engineering, Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, and Humanities. These Schools also have their own central plaza on Ring Road, which serve as localized meeting areas. These central plazas bisect the Schools and lead to smaller plazas, which in turn lead to paths in Aldrich Park. These smaller plazas usually serve as quieter study areas, with one (in the School of Physical Sciences), hosting Infinity Fountain, a fountain in the shape of a Möbius strip. UCI also employs two bridges on Ring Road (the Engineering Bridge and Humanities Bridge, respectively), which allow for entrances to Aldrich Park; at the foot of the Humanities Bridge is the Jao Family Sculpture Garden, which hosts depictions of notable Chinese philosophers.

Away from the central campus, UCI has a more suburban layout occupied by sprawling residential and educational complexes, some of which are on steep hills. These are linked to the central campus with four pedestrian bridges, which access University Center, the Palo Verde housing complex, the College of Medicine, and School of the Arts. Further expedient travel beyond the bridges becomes impractical without the use of a bicycle, automobile, or public transportation. And despite being heavily built over the past 40 years, a large portion of the outer campus remains undeveloped, with hilly grasslands and brush prevailing. This gives UCI the opportunity to develop for years to come, while many other UC campuses have reached their permanent build-out.

Architecture

See also: Brutalism, Futurist architecture, Modern Architecture, and Postmodern architecture

The first buildings were designed by a team of architects led by William Pereira and including A. Quincy Jones and William Blurock. The initial landscaping including Aldrich Park was designed by an association of three firms including that of the famous urban-landscaping innovator Robert Herrick Carter. Aldrich Park was designed under the direction of landscape architect Gene Uematsu, and was modeled after Frederick Law Olmsted's designs for New York City's Central Park. The campus opened in 1965 with the inner circle and park only half-completed. There were only nine buildings and a dirt road connecting the main campus to the housing units. Only three of the six "spokes" that radiate from the central park were built, with only two buildings each. Pereira was retained by the university to maintain a continuity of style among the buildings constructed in the inner ring around the park, the last of which was completed in 1972. These buildings were designed in a style which Pereira called "California Brutalist", combining sweeping curves that stretched the limits of how concrete could be shaped with elements of classic California architecture such as red tiled roofs and clay-tiled walkways.^[47]

Construction on the campus all but ceased after the Administration building, Aldrich Hall, was completed in 1974, and then resumed in the late 1980s, beginning a massive building boom that still continues today. This second building boom continued the futuristic trend, but emphasised a much more colorful, postmodern approach that somewhat contradicted the earthy, organic designs of the early buildings. Architects such as Frank Gehry and Arthur Erickson were brought in to bring the campus more "up to date". This in turn led to a "contextualist" approach beginning in the late 1990s, combining stylistic elements of the first two phases in an attempt to provide an architectural "middle ground" between the two vastly different styles. Gehry's building was recently removed from campus to make way for a new building, with a design that has been called a "big beige box with bands of bricks."

As of 2005, the campus has more than 200 buildings and encompasses most of the university's 1,500 acres (6 km²)^[48].

Libraries and study centers

The UC Irvine Libraries system consists of four main branches. The Jack Langson Library (formerly known as the Main Library until its benefactor donated $20 million for its expansion) houses most of the university's general media and electronic resources, particularly references involving the Arts, Humanities, Education, Social Sciences, Social Ecology, and Business. The Science Library, the largest consolidated science and medical library in California, is recognized for its excellent collections and unique postmodern architecture (which resembles a large U shape). The School of Medicine is supported by two libraries: the Grunigen Medical Library at the Medical Center, and the Biomedical Library at Gottschalk Medical Plaza on the main campus. The Grunigen Library has 43,000 volumes of material, while the Biomedical Library has more than 156,000 volumes, 2,500 periodical subscriptions, and serves as a resource library in the National Network of Medical Libraries.^[49][50]

UCI is noted for having many excellent special collections and archives. In addition to holding a noted Critical Theory archive and Southeast Asian archive, the Libraries also contain extensive collections in Dance and Performing Arts, Regional History, and more. Additionally, Langson Library hosts an extensive East Asian collection with materials in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

Nearly all departments and schools on campus complement the resources of the UC Irvine Libraries by maintaining their own reading rooms and scholarly meeting rooms. They contain small reference collections and are the choice for more imtimate lectures, graduate seminars, and study sessions. There is also the large Gateway Study Center (across from Langson Library), one of the university's original buildings and under the custody of UC Irvine Libraries. Having served formerly as a cafeteria and student center, it is now a dual-use computer lab and study area which is open nearly 24 hours.

The UCI Student Center, currently under renovation, offers a large number of study areas and is one of the most popular places to study on campus. UC Irvine also has a number of computer labs that serve as study centers. The School of Humanities maintains its Humanities Instructional Resource Center, a drop-in computer lab specializing in language and digital media. Additionally, UCI maintains five other drop-in labs, four instructional computer labs, and a number of reservation-only SmartClassrooms, some of which are open 24 hours. Other popular study areas include Aldrich Park, the Cross-Cultural Center, the Locus (a study room and computer lab used by the Campuswide Honors Program), and plazas located in every School.

Residential accommodations

Main article: Student Housing at UC Irvine

UC Irvine has a number of residential options for students interested in living on campus. Approximately 36% of UCI students are housed in university accommodations; 3,300 live in freshmen residential dormitories, approximately 4,000 other undergraduates live in apartment/theme community housing, and 1,542 living units are available for graduate students and their families.^[51] Part of UCI's long-range development plan involves expanding on-campus housing to accommodate 50% of all UCI students.^[52]

Off-campus housing options vary widely, given a student's preferred living arranagements and budget. However, a common denominator for off-campus apartment housing in Irvine and nearby Newport Beach, Tustin, and Costa Mesa is the fact that most accommodations are maintained by The Irvine Company. UCI offers off-campus housing search assistance and roommate listings through its student housing office.

Notable facilities

UC Irvine has a number of specialized on-campus facilities that support its educational and cultural mission. For instance, UCI hosts the modern Arnold and Mabel Beckman Conference Center, which is made available for events and lectures and is maintained by the National Academies of Science. The Beckman Center also has a garden and museum exhibit featuring the inventions, quotes, and historical records of its benefactor, Arnold O. Beckman.

UCI also has its own performing arts center, the Irvine Barclay Theater, which hosts a variety of musical and performance events in a hall noted for its acoustic design. It is also home to the UCI Symphony Orchestra and plays host to prestigious guest speakers as well. For instance, two recent guests hosted by the Irvine Barclay Theater were His Holiness XIV Dalai Lama and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

The Claire Trevor School of the Arts hosts a number of theaters and galleries, such as the Beall Center for Art and Technology. The school is also known for its redesigned Arts Plaza, which was conceived by Maya Lin and completed in 2006. It serves as a meeting place, study area, outdoor performing arts center, exhibition hall, and lecture area.

For intimate gatherings and conferences, the Dorothy G. Sullivan University Club available due to its full-service banquet and dining amenities. It is also a popular place for students and faculty to have lunch, and its facilities may be rented out for formal events such as weddings or parties.

UC Irvine also hosts a Cross-Cultural Center (the Cross), the first of its kind in the University of California. This facility serves as a multicultural gathering area and venue for events that foster understanding between the various cultures represented on campus. Currently, the Cross-Cultural Center is undergoing a renovation and expansion effort that will double its size and offer more venues for the seven ethnic umbrella organizations and the numerous cultural clubs that operate under them.

Large scale events make use of the Bren Events Center (the Bren), UCI's largest venue and home to many of its sporting events. It offers  square feet ( m²) of space and has seating for 5,500. The Bren Events Center is adjacent to the large Crawford Athletics Complex, where UCI's athletes train and compete in state-of-the-art facilities, which include a recently-renovated baseball park, track and field, and swimming complex.

Much of the southern part of UCI is occupied by the University Research Park, a 158 acre (0.6 km²) office and research property operated by The Irvine Company. The University Research Park attempts to form a synergy between UCI, 44 local technology and business interests, faculty start-up companies, and other campus offices. A partial listing of tenants includes Blizzard Entertainment, Skyworks Solutions, Cisco, Center for Educational Partnerships, and more. The property also includes a Starbucks and is currently under expansion (to 2.4 million square ft).

UCI also has its own observatory, which is hidden in the empty fields behind University Hills. The observatory, which is operated by the Physics Department, is open to the public during Visitor Nights that are held six times a year.

Two notable public health organizations also maintain independent research facilities at UCI. The American Cancer Society has a research complex on the corner of Campus and California Drive. And recently, the Food and Drug Administration constructed a modern complex on the edge of UC Irvine's San Joaquin Freshwater Marsh Reserve. It houses the FDA Southwest Pacific Regional Laboratory and its Los Angeles District office.^[53]

Parking and transportation

The city of Irvine is predominantly suburban and on-campus housing is limited for non-freshmen, thus making most UCI students avid commuters. Additionally, undergraduates living on campus can purchase residential parking permits. These factors, plus a location in one of Orange County's most concentrated urban areas and transportation hubs (near the El Toro Y and Orange Crush), have created a huge daily volume of cars within the vicinity and a severe parking shortage during peak hours.

Traffic is notoriously endemic in the region, with peak hours consuming most of the late afternoon and early night. Conversely, the large scale of the campus, its vehicle-friendly layout, and numerous high-volume parking options makes it possible for students who live off campus to drive to class (or anywhere else) and back during non-peak hours without major concerns for parking availability. Alternative methods such as OCTA subsidies, stack parking, and a carpool pairing program have had limited success, while many parking-related construction projects (such as the recently-completed Engineering Parking Structure) offer long-term solutions.

Student activities and traditions

Main article: Student activities and traditions at UC Irvine

UCI's history as part of a preplanned suburban community, combined with the tendency for some students to go home on the weekends, gives Irvine a reputation as a quieter college town. However, there are a number of opportunities for vibrant and exciting social outings, so long as students take the initiative and have access to an automobile. There are also many storied traditions at UCI, which have helped the young university develop a strong sense of campus spirit and personality.

Greek life

UCI's Greek Life began in 1975 and continues today as a very active and growing community.

Athletics

Main article: UC Irvine Anteaters

UCI's sports teams are known as the Anteaters. They participate in the NCAA's Division I, as members of the Big West Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. Their traditional rivals are Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, and UC Santa Barbara.

UCI fields nationally competitive teams in cross country, track and field, basketball, baseball, volleyball, water polo, soccer, swimming, rowing, and sailing. UCI's renowned Baseball program recently returned to UCI, after a period of state funding crises led to its temporary retirement.

UCI athletics has won 25 national titles. The most recent title came from the men's volleyball team, who won the NCAA Division I national title on May 5, 2007 against IPFW (3-1) at Ohio State. Other titles include 2 baseball Division II titles, 3 men's swimming titles (Div. II), 6 men's tennis titles (Div. II), and 3 men's waterpolo titles (Div. I). Most recently, the men's baseball team impressed the nation, the Anteaters being one of the Final Four teams left in the College World Series, just six years after the baseball program had been formally re-instated after a ten-year absence.

Unlike many traditional universities, UCI does not have a football team, and a football program seems unlikely in the future. A pragmatic explanation is that UCI administrators tend to see a football program as not cost-effective, given the fact that a more diverse number of athletic programs may benefit from the funds required to support a football team. Additionally, UCI wishes to avoid the controversies associated with college football (such as negative academic and social concerns).^[54]

However, students have expressed their displeasure with the administration's stance on a school football team. Some students believe that this is the reason that there is a noticeable lack of unity and lack of school spirit among the students. Without football, they also believe that they are not getting the full college experience. Students also believe that a football team will improve, and not hurt, academics on the campus. ^[55]

Controversy

See also: UCI Medical Center

Aramark

Aramark, a food services corporation, manages nearly all residential dining facilities and restaurants on university property. This includes UCI's three dining halls (Brandywine, Pippin Commons, and Mesa Commons) and three on-campus restaurants (Phoenix Grille, B.C.'s Cavern on the Green, and Bistro by the Bridge). ASUCI, which is partially responsible for negotiating UCI's food services contract, has justified the decision to offer Aramark its business with the argument that Aramark has pledged to invest millions of dollars into the university's food service infrastructure^{[citation needed]}.

Critics argue that offering one corporation the university's food services contract is a de facto monopoly.^{[citation needed]} In doing so, they note all the privately-owned restaurants that are being shut down temporarily (in the case of the Anthill Pub and Grill and Student Center restaurants) or permanently (with Cornerstone Cafe being replaced by a Starbucks Coffee and the Physical Sciences Cafe being shut down).^{[citation needed]} It is also argued that the management of food services by Aramark leads to low-quality food and poor customer service, and that support of Aramark condones its poor employee relations record.^{[citation needed]}

Proponents argue that the new UCI Student Center, to be completed in 2007, will soon offer a larger food court than the former Student Center, thus opening up alternatives.^{[citation needed]} UCI also points to the number of food carts and vendors that may be found on campus as existing food service alternatives.^{[citation needed]} Furthermore, UCI notes the large investment Aramark is making in dining infrastructure, which will outlast its current contract and support UCI's long-range development plan.^{[citation needed]}

Proponents also note that Aramark maintains ownership of a wide variety of brands, and that maintaining one entity for food service lowers cost for the University, which in turn lowers the cost per student. In addition, these services are not "in-house," and therefore employees are not given full UC benefits, thus further reducing the costs per student.

Law School Dean

In hiring an inaugural dean of the Donald Bren School of Law, which opens in 2008, the University approached Professor Erwin Chemerinsky, a well known legal scholar in constitutional law and liberal commentator. After signing a contract with Chemerinsky on September 4, 2007, the hire was rescinded by UCI Chancellor Michael V. Drake because he felt the law professor's commentaries were "polarizing" and would not serve the interests of California's first new public law school in 40 years; Drake claimed the decision was his own and not the subject of any outside influence.^[56] The action was roundly criticized by liberal and conservative scholars who felt it hindered the academic mission of the law school, and disbelief over Chancellor Drake's claims that it was the subject of no outside influence.^[56][57]

The issue was the subject of a New York Times editorial on Friday, September 14. ^[58] Details emerged revealing that UCI had received criticism on the hire from