Soka University of America User Reviews and Ratings
Small School - Worth It
By Sy, Class of 2022, From LA, CA
It's definitely a niche school for niche interests, but if it appeals to you, then it's definitely worth checking out. This campus is for those that want to be involved, learn more about social movements, and broaden their perspective of the world. We have a variety of courses that people can choose from, and despite the small amount of students and faculty, I can always find someone I'm interested in. The area around campus is a little boring at times, but there are a lot of things to do on campus and a shuttle that takes us to the Irvine Spectrum once a week (fridays!) so that's always nice!! I am especially excited about the study abroad opportunity. The cost is built into the tuition (I know it looks expensive, but people get a lot of financial aid!) so it's not actually any extra. Most students I know are paying less than 10k a year. I didn't even have to take out loans so I am very relieved about that. It's a newer school (2001 I believe), so it's still sorting out the kinks, but it's really great to be a part of such a campus and see it develop. It's by no means flawless, but it gives lots of room to improve on the great things it's already doing.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：4
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
SUA is very supportive for its students
By Minori, From Aliso Viejo
Overall, SUA is very supportive. SUA provides students with multiple types of scholarships, including income-based and academic-based. Soka's financial support enables me to study in the United States. Soka's great financial support attract a lot of students coming from 40+ countries.The diversity of students makes Soka distinctively unique from other universities in America. I grew up in a relatively homogeneous community; therefore, it was challenging for me to step out of my comfort zone and interact with diverse people. However, SUA encouraged me to create friendships beyond the country borders. It's not easy to live with various people with different backgrounds, but I feel blessed with having this special opportunity to widen my perspective and create great friendships.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：4
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：4
Small Class Size at Soka
By YH, Class of 2021, From Aliso Viejo
I appreciate the small class size at Soka. The average number of students in each class is 8, which allows students to participate in the discussion and to get help from professors individually. As an international student, I struggled with participating in class discussions in the beginning, but gradually I became able to share my experience and opinions with my classmates. Through class discussion, not only I improved my public speaking skills, but I learned from my classmates about their experiences and views. Soka students have come from over 45 countries and 23 states with different backgrounds, which allow them to learn different perspectives in a classroom setting and campus life. I really appreciate the opportunities to learn from my classmates, which, I believe, have enabled me to integrate different perspectives and develop my thoughts.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：4
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Soka University -- Student's Perspective
By Kareem C. '21, From Phoenix, AZ
Being a third-year student at Soka University of America has been an adventure in the best sense so far. In my three years here, I have met many people from all around the world; I can now call these people dear friends. I have also studied a foreign language, culture, and grown as a human being. The different topics I have discussed in my 8-12 student classes have impacted my perspective of the world. I have learned so much about different cultures and histories; my ability to empathize with others has dramatically increased. The more I learn about the incredibly diverse life experiences my classmates have undergone, the more I can learn and relate to them. The development I am going through will most definitely benefit me in my post-college adult life. Through the different experiences I have had and will have, I am sure to become a global citizen, committed to living a contributive life. For example, I am going on a study abroad in Japan next semester. This is mandatory for all students to complete their junior year of college. My tuition already includes study abroad. In the meantime, I will continue to study and practice Japanese with my friends. I believe that my experiences in Japan will significantly influence the rest of my life. I hope whoever reads this post considers Soka as a college to attend.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Soka diversity fosters the global citizenship of students
By H.Y/ Class of 2021, From Orange County, CA
SUA provides us with incredible opportunities to explore our interests and pave our path to grow into a true global citizen. When I was in my freshman year, I took a course "The Culture of Peace" offered by the former Ambassador of Bangladesh to the United Nations, ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury for an entire month. His passion for peace, gender equality and education made me get into the field very much. Since then, I have been taking courses related to peace, such as Intro to Peace Studies, Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities and so forth. Meanwhile, I studied about peace looking from other lens of different subjects. For example, psychology class taught me how humans can be so irrational that they can be controlled by environmental factors. Anthropology class on gender and sexuality taught me that there is so many cultural assumptions without noticing. The perspectives from various subjects often help me become more critical and creative. Also, I have been taking Spanish class for the past 2 years, and I will go to Valencia, Spain for 5 month from this coming January. In addition, the friendship I built for the past 2 years is amazing. Honestly speaking, SUA is the best school I could ever choose. If you're looking for global citizenship, come to SUA. We're waiting for you!!!
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：3
City & Setting
Score：5
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
SUA: Place to Make My Dreams Come True
By newhouse, From CALIFORNIA
Since I am from a poor family in a rural area, I never thought that going abroad would be possible. I started studying English after meeting a teacher who is an SUA alumnus in Japan. However, after I studied hard, I was able to get a full-tuition scholarship from SUA and now I am studying with great friends from more than 45 countries in the world at an extremely beautiful campus in California, US. In the future, I want to contribute to the culture of peace by helping children in the world as a teacher.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：5
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
The Perfect Fit
By VY, Class of 2019, From Santa Rosa, California
Coming to SUA was the best decision I could have made for my undergraduate education. I was initially drawn by the incredibly generous scholarship the university awarded me, but I very quickly fell in love with the incredible students, staff, and faculty, as well as the huge range of resources. I have deep, personal relationships with many of the professors and staff at the university, and I'm on a first-name basis with pretty much everyone on campus —this really isn't an exaggeration. The ability to work personally with any faculty member on campus, the inclusion of study abroad in the (generously subsidized) cost of tuition, and the flexibility of the liberal arts curriculum made Soka the best undergraduate experience I could have wished for. Obviously, a school of this size and nature isn't a great fit for everyone. Folks looking for a high degree of specialization in fields such as engineering or accounting should look elsewhere, though the addition of the life sciences concentration will certainly improve the offering of STEM classes. This also isn't a party school. Students definitely like to have fun, but parties are relatively casual and basically all students know each other. That being said, I don't think you can find a more warm and caring campus community than SUA's.
What best describes you? Alumni
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：3
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
A Great School
By Kevin, Class of 2022, From Aliso Veijo, CA
I am a second-year student here at Soka University of America(SUA), and I must say this is a great school. We have a very small student body here, which encourages students to interact much more often with faculty here. More importantly, 100% of our students receive financial aid, and some of our students do not even have to pay tuition to attend SUA. There are so many nice things here happening at our school, and I am really looking forward to my junior and senior year!
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：5
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Great University
By H, Class of 2021, From Orange County, CA
I just completed my second year at SUA, and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in studying liberal arts! Because of the great student-faculty ratio and the small class sizes, the quality of the education that SUA provides you with is extremely high. The close contact that students get with their professors at SUA creates a unique class experience and opens many doors for the students. On top of the guaranteed study abroad semester, there are many opportunities for students to go on international field trips, enriching their experience and giving them a global perspective. Concerning financial aid, SUA is one of the most generous universities you will find making attending SUA affordable for anyone. The location of SUA is another advantage, as many beautiful beaches and a variety of interesting communities are in close proximity.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：4
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Genuine people !!
By shiro, From California
People at Soka are genuine. Faculties and staffs are willing to give out things to students. Some faculties even make a homemade cake for us. Also, it is common for them to share many things because all the students are usually given an equal opportunity. A small community can be hard for some people, but the benefit of it overpowers the disadvantage.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Identity Exploration
By Lili, Class of 2022, From Aliso Viejo, California
My time here at Soka has challenged me to explore my identity because of the international community that is here. I have questioned my passions and beliefs which allows me to understand who I am even more. The small class size allows me and the rest of my classmates to participate comfortably in class. I also love the genuinely friendly community.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：3
City & Setting
Score：2
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：3
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
I love Soka community and I call it my second home
By Hide/ Class of 2021, From Aliso Viejo, CA
SUA is a liberal arts college with only 450 students, despite its diversity in students. We're from more than 30 different countries and 23 different states. Since average class size is 12, we get to learn from each other, thinking from different perspectives and sharing our own ideas. Classes are often based on discussions, and a lot of professors encourage us to think and speak up, besides providing the well- articulated explanations of subjects. To be able to explore four different concentrations, we expose ourselves to various ideas and develop critical thinking skills in order to grow into global citizens. Also, professors are very dedicated to teaching students as well as their own researches. They often host office-hour, which encourages students to ask questions and broaden their curiosity about subjects. This helps me a lot to know about professors and clarify my questions in class. In addition, all the students are required to take four semesters of language class and to study abroad for an entire semester in their junior year. Spanish, French, Chinese and Japanese are offered and, we can choose a destination from different cities and countries. I am currently taking Spanish, and planning to go to Spain. I am very excited to be able to see something I've never exposed to and improve my Spanish. As well as its Academic outstandingness, I love Soka community. Due to its small class size, we know each other very well. Cafeteria is always a great place for us not only to have fun, but also to exchange our experience because all the students live on campus. We do homework together after class, hang out at night or share some concerns each other. I strongly feel the sense of community where we truly trust exposing ourselves and help each other. This aspect also makes me love the school more. Overall, I really like this school, and I would like to recommend it to the people who would like to change their perspectives completely in their college life!!!
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
good scholoship
By k, From LA
I'm currently a 2nd year student here at Soka. Soka gives me a lot of opportunities. More than anything, I like Learning Cluster, which is 3weeks-intensive course. Students learn variety of things and go to field trips even to outside of USA.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：3
Classes & Teachers
Score：3
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：4
Health & Safety
Score：5
GREAT DIVERSITY
By K, From ORANGE COUNTY
I'm currently a second year student at soka university of America. Soka truly embraces diversity; students come from more than 45 different countries. I learned many different cultures in terms of food, manner, and values. I have so many friends who are religiously, culturally, and nationally different from me, but I can say that all of them are wonderful human beings. I believe that Soka represents a world, where people can understand each other and create friendships beyond any differences. If you want to become a global citizen who contribute to a society as a member of humanity, I would recommend this Soka university.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：5
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：5
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
Very Unique, Diverse College- You'll Love it!
By Class of 2020, From Aliso Viejo, CA
I love that we call ourselves "Soka family" because of its small size (only 450 students) and supportive environment. People at Soka, not only the students but the faculty and the staff, are always friendly and warm. 8:1 student/faculty ratio encourages students to often visit professors' office to ask questions/ have discussions, which is very rare to see in other larger colleges. I believe Soka is not just a place to acquire knowledge but grow as a human being. At Soka, you will learn a lot about cultural diversity- Soka is ranked as #2 Ethnic Diversity among the U.S. Liberal Arts colleges this year (2018). Students from over 45 countries live and study on campus together. Before attending Soka, I have never imagined that I would be able to make friends from more than 40 countries! In addition, all the students are required to study abroad in non-English speaking countries in their 3rd year. Soka also excels in its financial aid- all students with under $60,000 of family income receive full tuition scholarship and, last year, 100% of students received some form of financial aid. Thanks to the support, many students who cannot attend other colleges yet eager to study are studying at Soka.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：5
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：4
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：4
SUA
By Ralph, 2021, From Aliso Viejo
Great school! While certainly suited to those who prefer a small campus atmosphere, the relations betweens students and professors is incredible, there's a lot to be learned in class discussions.
What best describes you? Current Student
Activities & Social Life
Score：4
City & Setting
Score：4
Classes & Teachers
Score：5
Dining & Food
Score：4
Dorms & Housing
Score：5
Health & Safety
Score：5
