When I was applying to colleges, it was at the height of the COVID pandemic in 2020. As an incoming senior in high school, I felt so intimidated by the premise of choosing a college to go to without ever having been on a tour while students were in session. In order to make me slightly less nervous about college applications, my parents offered to go on a road trip with me so I could see some of the campuses I was applying to. 

When we arrived at UC Davis in July 2020, it was 98 degrees outside and looked completely deserted. However, something about the colorful buildings of Tercero made me want to get out of the car and explore. As we looked around the dorm area, we saw a single door propped open, so my parents and I decided to investigate. On the other side of the door was the Tercero mail room, where five students looked up from the front desk with huge smiles. They not only raved about UC Davis as a school, but also how wonderful the campus itself was. That July day, I told my parents that if I got into Davis, I wanted to see just how beautiful the rest of the school was. 

Nine months later, after getting accepted to UC Davis, my flight was booked to visit the school. The excitement I felt was unlike anything I’d ever experienced. However, there were still no in-person tours, and the campus still felt relatively empty. It was hard to get a feel for the school when everything was still online. As we meandered through campus, we came across two giant, white, egg-shaped heads, one on its side and the other upright.

We were completely fascinated. After stopping to take pictures besides the figures, we looked up on the UC Davis website what exactly they were. We came to discover that these were the UC Davis Eggheads created by the late Professor Emeritus Robert Arneson. These two Eggheads titled Yin & Yang were located by the Art/Music/Theatre complex, with the colorful Wright Hall and Main Theatre centered behind them. As it turned out, there were four additional such sculptures scattered around campus. The rest of the day, we attempted to find the rest of the Eggheads, which took us through campus in a more interactive way than the other schools I visited. 

After a full day of running from Egghead to Egghead, I felt a real connection with the school. The Eggheads gave Davis a warm, welcoming presence that made me feel at ease during such a stressful time of college decision-making. However, my decision was made so much easier by the way my family and I interacted with the Eggheads. In my heart, I knew I was going to Davis.

Jamie Gelfond is an Communications major with a Sociology minor at UC Davis and is expected to graduate in 2025. She is the UC Davis Media Relations Intern and writes for the Arts Blog. 

Learn more about the Year of the Egghead at UC Davis, including the history of the artist, items for sale and more.