Formerly known as Cal State Hayward, Cal State East Bay is located across the bay from San Francisco. Perched up on a scenic hillside, CSUEB has about 16,000 undergraduates, about 1,600 of whom live on campus. Housing is not guaranteed, but CSUEB has continued to build new, modern dorms to meet student demand. In 2018, the campus transitioned from the quarter system to a semester system. Over half of the students here are the first generation in their family to go to college.
Cal State East Bay has strong programs in business, nursing and psychology, but business and nursing are impacted. Class sizes are fairly small; the average class size is about 30. The largest lecture hall on campus holds about 200 students. Our tour guide Enrique was a third year business student from the Los Angeles area, and he spoke glowingly about his experience with professors in the business program.
Kinesiology is also a strong program; the campus has ties to the Golden State Warriors, so students can gain hands-on experience with physical therapy as undergraduates. As a part of the CSU system, Cal State East Bay aims to prepare students for the workforce, so students in most programs are strongly encouraged to obtain professional internships before they graduate. CSUEB offers 51 majors and 65 minors, listed here.
A new wellness center complements the existing athletic center, providing good athletic facilities for all students. Cal State East Bay sports are Division II. There’s a small Greek system, with about two dozen fraternities and sororities, but it does not dominate the social life at CSUEB. There are hundreds of other clubs for students to join. Additionally, Cal State East Bay provides free shuttle service to the Hayward BART station, so students have easy access to all that the greater San Francisco area has to offer.
The Cal State East Bay campus has had a bit of a facelift in the last few years; the modern welcome center sits at the new entrance. As you move through campus you’ll realize the vantage point a view of the entire San Francisco bay. CSUEB is focused on guiding students to graduate in four years; students have advisors just for their general education classes, and then move on to separate advisors to help them stay on track with their upper division courses.
Diana and Evelyn visited Cal State East Bay in August, 2018, and we loved it! You can scroll through our photos below.