It’s Time for Some Extracurricular Activities : Collegians have some choices for off-campus fun. But not having a car can be a bummer, man.

Student organizers charged with whipping out the welcome mat for the incoming freshman at Cal State Dominguez Hills earlier this semester arranged for eight bands, seven deejays, a midget, a fire breather and a human pincushion to greet the new class.

“We’re not known as a sports or academic school, and we’ve got nothing to do out here,” said senior Kyle Ellis. “So we want to be known as a party school so people will come here.”

As with many college towns, Carson doesn’t have much near the Cal State campus, save for a 7-Eleven and the Olympic Velodrome, a cycling arena and entertainment venue.

Though most students have come up with their own alternatives--partying in the dorms and hanging around the student center--staying on campus gets old after a while.

Cool collegians know that there is plenty to do in Los Angeles if you have a car or hold an ID that spells out the magic number 21. But being under-age doesn’t mean you’re underprivileged. Here’s a school-by-school look at where the under-21 set heads when one more night in the dorm just won’t do.

UCLA

The Westside may be the cool side of town, but Westwood can be the last place some UCLA students want to be.

“People are down on Westwood now,” said Cheryl Klein, a junior. “There’s way too much construction.”

Those who can leave often venture to West Hollywood for music at the Troubadour and Whisky A Go-Go, where it’s all ages all the time. The vehicularly challenged stay put and frequent the likes of Jerry’s Deli and the Gypsy Cafe.

Jerry’s offers a retreat for the student who can’t bear to eat the mystery meat served at the dorms. The shabby-chic Gypsy Cafe gives students a place to lounge when they need a place to procrastinate about doing their homework.

And down the street the Westwood Brewing Company is where the under-age hang with older classmates when they don’t want to feel inadequate because they’re not old enough to get a bouncer.

PEPPERDINE

Ask anyone on this campus what they think about Malibu and they’ll tell you the beaches are rad. The view? It’s rad.

Then ask about the night life and they’ll respond, “What night life?”

Without the likes of Starbucks and Malibu Yogurt, Pepperdine students--probably the poorest inhabitants of the pricey Malibu Coast--would have nothing to do.

Those who have cars drive to Santa Monica, and some who don’t bum rides so they can leave the iced mocha and French vanilla behind. But most rely on the campus shuttle bus that carts collegians to and from Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, a perk that has made the outdoor plaza a fave among Pepperdine kids.

“We walk up and down and check out the people and the shops and then see a movie,” said Promenade regular Marek Bute, a freshman who hails from Memphis. “It’s pretty cool ‘cause it’s different every time.”

USC

USC students who leave Exposition Park often make the quick freeway hop to Hollywood, where they hang at the Hollywood Lanes bowling alley and hip Bourgeois Pig coffeehouse on weeknights. Weekends are reserved for under-21 club nights at other Hollywood venues.

The Hollywood Athletic Club’s KROQ Fridays, which turns this billiards club into a techno-house dance party ($15), is a favorite, as is the Palace across town, where yet another KROQ dance party takes place for $10. KIIS-FM hosts the dance party Saturday.

Dancing feet also head to Florentine Gardens, where the deejay mixes it Friday through Sunday, and the Probe’s Club 70s, an all-disco venue for the post-Brady Bunch set. Wear bell bottoms, get in free.

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE

Common Grounds is more than just a place to visit while nearby Kinko’s copies that group project or your clothes are in the rinse cycle at the coin laundry next door.

The laid-back coffeehouse is a home away from the dorm for Valley students. Even those who are old enough to hang at the Broiler, a nearby restaurant-bar where the under-age can eat and the of-age can party, keep coming back.

By day they cram for tests, but at night studying takes a back seat to the bands that take the stage--an eclectic mix of live folk, rock and jazz. Wednesday’s are open-mike nights when wannabe entertainers get 10 minutes of fame.

“The live music is great,” said senior Stacy Rotter. “It’s a cool place to just hang out with your friends.”

The Cobalt Cafe in Canoga Park does the same job for those who dare to drive. The un-coffeehouse cafe features live music almost nightly, open mike poetry night Tuesday, a slew of games and in an equally eclectic atmosphere.

LOYOLA MARYMOUNT

The killer view from this hillside makes most students want to leave. With Venice and nearby Marina del Rey down below, there’s plenty to do, but without a car, students can’t do much.

Venice Beach makes for a good hangout, most students agree. It’s at least a good excuse for sociology majors procrastinating about the paper on human nature that’s due tomorrow.

After a bit of partying, students find their way into Tower Pizza in University Village or Van Go’s Ear in Venice, a funky all-night restaurant in a little wooden house on Abbott Kinney Boulevard.

And there’s always Starbucks or the Coffee Bean in Venice.

CAL STATE LONG BEACH

“If you’re over 21, you’ve got options in Long Beach,” said Patrick Wong, 20. “If you’re younger, it’s dead.”

Unless you like coffee. The caffeine scene is where it’s at, or more to the point, all there is when it comes to life after Calculus 101 for Cal Staters.

Hot Java offers a kick-back place to listen to free music or learn your fate from the psychic and Tarot card readers who occasionally drop by. The nearby Portfolio Cafe is an equally hip hangout where students sip java in a typical grunge atmosphere.

Students looking for a little foot action drive south, where they hang with students from their sister school in Fullerton at places like Metropolis in Irvine or Cowboy Boogie in Anaheim (Sunday’s Eight Track Lounge and Monday’s Doll House) where funk and underage scenesters are the mainstay.

OCCIDENTAL

If it weren’t for Old Town Pasadena, students at this Eagle Rock campus wouldn’t even have a Starbucks to call their own. And if it weren’t for the campus-operated Bengal Bus, many students would have no way to get there.

Students like Jesus Maldonado, 20, hop aboard the bus, which runs every half-hour on weekends until 12:30 a.m., and head for Starbucks. They browse the shops, wishing they had money to buy, eat at the cafes and then check out a movie.

The adventurous head to Virtual World, a virtual amusement park with interactive games like Battletech and Red Planet, a race through Mars. A training mission costs $5; experienced techies pay $7 to $9 depending on the time they arrive.

CLAREMONT

Suburban life on this small liberal arts campus has left students in this neck of the woods with coffee and bowling.

If not for Nick’s Cafe Trevi in the village, where Rastafarian artwork meets open mike poetry and music, there would be no place to hang but Starbucks. Espresso Yourself in Upland, which is not as yuppie-nice as Starbucks, is another favorite of coffeehouse scenesters.

But not everyone likes java.

Cosmic Bowling at Upland Bowl is where the caffeine-free get their kicks. The lights dim, the balls glow in the dark and the music just blares.

“It’s the only thing worth doing out here,” said Quincy O’Neal, 20. “It’s cool.”

Nearby Ontario Mills Mall gets some foot traffic from the students, and places like Dave and Busters and Gameworks, virtual reality arcades, let them in, but the who has money for skee ball?

THE UNIVERSITY OF ANYWHERE, LOS ANGELES

Students willing to leave the confines of their college neighborhoods have almost equal opportunity as their older classmates.

Looking for a good laugh: The Acme Comedy Theater (Hollywood), Comedy and Magic Club (Hermosa Beach), the Groundlings (Los Angeles), Comedy Sportz (Hollywood) and the cult classic the “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” which plays Saturdays at midnight at the Nuart (West Los Angeles).

If you’re not coffeed out: Anastasia’s Asylum (Santa Monica), Impala (downtown), Nova Express (Fairfax), the Un-Urban Coffeehouse (Santa Monica) and Grounds Zero (Hollywood).

Where 18-year-old dancing feet aren’t told to hit the street: Arena (Hollywood), the Roxbury (West Hollywood, Thursdays only), Checca (West Hollywood).

The coolest place to surf the Net: The World Cafe (Santa Monica).

Midnight munchies: Canter’s (Fairfax), Norm’s (Santa Monica) and Swingers (Los Angeles).

Music to the ear: the Roxy, McCabe’s Guitar Shop (Santa Monica), the Alligator Lounge (Santa Monica), Fais Do-Do (Mid-City), Moguls (Hollywood), Canter’s Kibitz Room (Fairfax) Largo (Fairfax), Catalina Bar and Grill (Hollywood).