To find the perfect study spot at UCLA, students have to race for available seats and wrestle one another for power outlets.

UCLA has 22 outdoor study spaces, 30 indoor study spaces and eight libraries, according to the UCLA website. Students said finding a space that balances one’s individual studying needs is difficult but possible with the variety of study spots available on campus.

Kathleen Wijaya, a fourth-year physiological science student, said she has experimented with several study spaces at UCLA. She added that she finds it frustrating to study in locations where people around her are talking.

“Recently, I haven’t been using headphones while studying so there’s nothing worse than trying to lock in, and people are taking calls or having full-blown conversations in an otherwise silent room, or realizing that there aren’t any outlets at your table,” Wijaya said.

First-year electrical engineering student Ian Nelson said he averages 14 to 30 study hours per week and has also tried several study spaces. He added that many of these locations are rowdy, overcrowded and are occasionally coupled with foul smells.

“I will sometimes study in a study lounge, but the one in De Neve Fir always has a weird compost smell that makes it hard to focus,” he said.

After sampling these spaces, Austin Wong, a first-year molecular, cell and developmental biology major, said he opts to study in his dorm room because of the several external distractions that come with the common study spots on campus, such as noise or crowdedness.

However, other students, after some searching, have managed to find study spots away from home that meet their needs.

“Powell’s the best spot to study – there’s open areas if you want to see people and cubicles when you need to lock in,” Nelson said. “It’s quiet, close to food and bathrooms and never too crowded, so it’s perfect for long study sessions.”

Nelson also said he frequents The Study at Hedrick’s Blue Light Room, Olympic Hall, the study lounges at Sproul Cove and the tables outside Bunche Hall. He rotates through these specific spaces for a change in scenery and when he wants a quick study break between classes and hangouts on the Hill, he added.

Wijaya said she has studied everywhere from the Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library and the Music Library to dorm building study lounges in her four years at UCLA.

Wijaya said several of these locations tend to have at least one off-putting trait. For example, she said the shared elevator for the Science and Engineering Library, located at the eighth floor of Boelter Hall, is often unreliable, slow, out of service, operating without lights or stopping on every floor, causing her to avoid the spot.

For Wijaya, the Charles E. Young Research Library stands out as the best option.

“The main reading room doesn’t get too loud, the tables are big so I can spread out all my devices and other study materials and I never have trouble finding a working outlet,” she said. “The best thing about it though is that the cafe is inside the library, so any time I need a break and want to grab a coffee or something to eat, it’s right there.”

Wijaya said she believes that a study spot can significantly impact one’s academic performance.

“In my experience, your study spot directly influences your focus,” Wijaya said. “If you’re studying somewhere where you’re constantly breaking your focus or where there’s a lot of distractions, it can hinder the amount of work you’re getting done.”

Nelson said UCLA and its resources for studying have helped him build stronger study habits and perform better academically. A great study place surrounded by dedicated peers motivates you to work at the level of a top-ranked university, he added.

“Study habits are choices, not given, but a study spot that works for you, that sends you in the best possible direction, that’s where you should be going,” Nelson said.