The University of California is not providing its students with equal access to opportunities necessary to succeed. This is largely preventing marginalized groups of students from reaching their full potential in university. The UCs see themselves as one united system, yet there is a disproportionate amount of resources available to students amongst the nine different undergraduate University of California schools. Access to housing is one of the main issues within the UC system. Despite all UCs having the same tuition, there is a large variability in affordable housing availability. The UC system aims to increase the amount of undergraduates, however there is little being done to alleviate the housing insecurity many students face. 

In addition to housing, there are other factors contributing to the inequality amongst UCs. Larger UCs, such as UCLA, are better equipped than smaller UCs to support their disadvantaged students in terms of providing resources. This is even more obvious when underfunded UCs, including UCSC, UCR, and UCM, have the lowest six-year graduation rates. Having more public and private funding to provide programs, such as more academic advising, could help alleviate these statistics. 

Though the cost of tuition at UCLA and UCSC are the same, and include the same level of education, there are clear disparities between the two. An important aspect to look at is the community. Due to the lack of affordable and available housing on campus, students who live off campus do not get to experience the same level of community as those living on campus. Those living off campus may struggle with feeling connected to their peers on campus. It can cause feelings of isolation, which can lead to additional stressors that interfere with their academic performance. Many students on ‘underserved’ UC campuses like UCSC, which lack the resources of campuses like UCLA, are clearly affected by the domino effects of the inability to find housing, specifically affordable housing.

This petition is calling for students and their allies to stand up against the unjust treatment across the UCs.