Dating : The Rampant Hookup Culture at UCLA

UCLA’s dating culture can be summed up in one word: hookups. Hookup culture is rampant at UCLA, where the gender ratio is 42% men and 58% women, indicating 38% more women than men.

Many studies have shown that in schools with more guys than girls, long-term relationships are more prevalent than hookups, whereas in schools with more girls than guys, short-term hookups are more prevalent than relationships. That certainly is true at UCLA.

At UCLA, Thirsty Thursdays are the night to go out. That’s when you’ll see hundreds of students stumbling around Gayley Avenue looking for places to drink. It’s new and exciting. Most students will either go to apartment parties, frats or Rocco’s, the only bar walking distance to UCLA.

Rocco’s is a cramped and sweaty brick building just below frat row and is rarely ever worth the half hour line to get in, which only exists to make it look busy inside. They’re infamous for their biweekly single’s nights and their overpriced, but potent, cocktail called an “AMF” or an “Adios MotherFucker.” Only on either very desperate or very drunken nights might one choose to endure waiting in that line to meet someone new. And by “meet someone new”, I mean meet your next one-night stand and never talk to that person again. Students at Rocco’s aren’t looking for anything serious. As Owen Braudrick, a third year Geography major, puts it, “People just have sex and never talk again.”

Just up the street from Rocco’s are the frats, but they don’t have much better to offer on a night out. Fraternities at UCLA are like Rocco’s, except the alcohol is free and the DJs are worse. The people you meet are the same: young and attractive students optimistic about finding someone to spend the night with, only to be let down by below average sex and a late night walk up the hill back to your dorm.

When asked about these parties, a third year Biology major at UCLA says, “It’s kind of difficult to really hit it off with someone you meet at these kinds of places. It’s more for sex and nothing else. And I mean that’s cool if that’s what you’re into, but if you’re looking for something more serious I wouldn’t go looking at some party.”

Going out at UCLA means often meaningless and disappointing hookups with no intention of hooking up again. A third year Psychobiology major at UCLA says, “A few months after I broke up with my high school boyfriend, I started going out to meet more guys. It was pretty frustrating at first because every guy I met didn’t want anything serious. There were times I felt like I was being used.”

Of course, people do find relationships at UCLA, but for those of you that are romantics, dreamers, or looking for a serious relationship, it will be a bit more difficult than other schools. Schools with an equal gender ratio (i.e. USC) tend to have a more balanced dating culture, and schools with more guys than girls (i.e. Georgia Tech) predominantly have relationships.

If you’re considering attending UCLA, be sure to consider whether a dating culture dominated by hookups is right for you. It really depends on what you’re looking for. And if you’re at UCLA unhappy about your dating life and inability to find a serious relationship, just remember that the “market” is not entirely in your favor.

There’s nothing wrong with sex, no strings attached. It’s part of experimenting as a young adult and learning more about yourself. There’s very much a bad stigma against having many sexual partners and experimenting with new people. Especially for women. I believe we should normalize this and that, if as long as you’re staying safe and being clear with your intentions, casual sex can be very healthy for young college students. There aren’t many times in life where you’ll be able to meet so many people in such a short amount of time so make the most of it and do what makes you feel great.

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