<p>
</p>
<p>math and english are 2 different beasts</p>
<p>@r31ncarnat3d</p>
<p>No problem, dude!!!</p>
<p>The admin/student relations arent that bad, in fact they are very good! Especially, the admissions/students first people, I have found them extremely helpful. In fact one lady really went the extra mile for me last summer, by going out of her way to verify my enrollment for a summer internship. This probably allowed me to start working a couple of weeks earlier, which means I earned more money plus she didnt even charge me the BS fee!!</p>
<p>What I am referring to are little, more irksome, things. For instance, the library closes at midnight, opens at 8am, and is only open for 5 hours on Saturday. If you are a student who likes to study in the library (like myself), it can get tiresome to be continually kicked out of the library in the middle of a homework assignment, or to not be able to use the copy machines in the morning, before a class. I have heard that UCM is the only UC, with such restrictive library hours (I have not verified this myself, though). I seriously hope they have improved their hours for the coming year this would be awesome!!!</p>
<p>Also, there is absolutely no food on campus, after the dining commons closes. There isnt even a vending machine (or at least one that the undergrads can access). So, if you are studying in the library late at night, and get the urge for a study snack you have no choice but to leave campus. I seriously hope that they have added a vending machine somewhere in the Koligan Library, for undergrad use this would be awesome!!!</p>
<p>Finally, they are constantly rearranging my class schedule. I spent a lot of time forming my schedule for next year, and they have changed times twice already! I know that this is a fact of life, at all colleges, but I have never seen a college do it so much. At my CC I had heard of this happening to people, but it had never happened to me (and I was there three years, full time). This has happened to me every semester I have been at UCM. Even though, it seems to have been greatly minimized this last year, I have only seen two changes to my scheduled class times and they have been very slight (they even sent me an email, telling me about it) the years before that they were quit drastic, though!!! Once I had a class change from 4 in the afternoon, to 7:30 AM, and they did it at the very last second. There wasnt even an email!!! There were students who had showed up the 2nd and 3rd day of class, because they had no idea that the time had changed. This is something that really needs to be fixed this would be awesome!!!</p>
<p>Having said all that, UC Merced is still a great place to go to school. Like I said above the people at the students first desk are usually very helpful. The financial aid is excellent (full ride, to use a trite expression)!!! The professors are all very good, easy to talk to, and dedicated to helping the undergrads or at least the ones I have had. You can do undergrad research (which looks great on a resume). There are a lot of student projects and clubs, to be involved in. The off campus housing is very reasonable. The area can be very nice (Im a city boy, but I have to say that Merced has grown on me I like the outdoors a lot). I have personally benefited from all of these. </p>
<p>While I am very critical of UCM, I am also one of its staunchest supporters!!! UCM is a great school, even though there are some very silly things about the place. I would encourage anyone to come! In fact, I sort of feel compelled to inform people that a lot of the bad things that people have written about UCM (on this site), are simply wrong!<br>
So, if you have any questions please ask them, I will gladly answer them as honestly and fairly as possible!!! I will not exaggerate the good parts, nor will I ignore the bad, and if I have nothing to say about something
then I will simple tell you that I have no experience with that.</p>
<p>You put me at ease (:
So excited to start now!</p>
<p>I am a current UCM student. I would like to clarify things about classes and their difficulties compared to classes in other schools for example, activities and other UCM msc. </p>
<p>a.) most general req classes are not graded on a curve. example: general chem, writing, etc. Grading in other classes are shifted. Math classes are the only ones here that you can be sure to have a curve. Berkeley, UCD, UCSD and UCLA, they curve almost all of their classes as far as I know. We have it harder here. Let’s say that I got a 70% in my gen chem class here in UCM. That would be a C. If I was in UCLA, then that could perhaps have been a B.</p>
<p>b.) just because UCM accepts almost all applicants does not mean that everyone here is less intellectually adept compared to students attending other UCs. Sure, there are a lot of newer students here who should not have been accepted. It’s ok. They get kicked out by the end of freshman or soph year. Unless they cheated their way to getting acceptable GPA.</p>
<p>c.) I took OChem, and our class average was 60%. In UCD, my friend also took the same OChem class, and their class average was a 25%. The same material was covered. For their second midterm exam, they covered mostly nomenclature and one or two reactions. Our second exam consisted of a little bit of nomenclature, a lot of reactions and mostly mechanisms. Mechanisms being the toughest part of OChem. And our class average was a 60%. Two people even got 100% on midterms and final exams. Think about that. If UCD students are smarter/better than us UCM students then how did we fare better in OChem? It’s one of the hardest chem classes.</p>
<p>d.) if you are afraid of attending UCM because it has not yet been accredited, do not worry. UCM will soon be accredited by this year! You can read about the report online, just search for it. I actually read the whole document that the reviewers wrote about UCM, and it was really good. They gave UCM an amazing review. See, I am not the only one who thinks that UCM is actually doing a good job in terms of providing good quality education.</p>
<p>e.) there are a lot of research opportunities here for you especially if you are a chem/bio major. Since it is a small school, there is less competition and more room for doing research. I have a friend here in UCM who is getting her work published! You can even be accepted to do research here even if you are just a sophomore. Just make sure you take all the classes required like gen chem and ochem. It is such a great opportunity.</p>
<p>f.) It’s not true that there is nothing to do here. Yosemite is really close so you can commute there to go camping, skiing in the winter, hiking etc. There is also a lake near the campus. I used to go there all the time to watch meteor showers. It is so beautiful. I guess if you are a nature lover you will love the activities here. If you prefer the city and shopping, then don’t go here and spare us your whiny attitude.</p>
<p>g.) UCM graduates actually got into really good grad schools. One recent UCM alumni is now a Harvard law student. </p>
<p>UCM gets a really bad rep for I don’t know what reason. Just because it is in the middle of nowhere does not mean that UCM offers bad quality education. College is not just about having fun and partying with your friends. College is meant to be a place for education. If you are complaining about not having fun classes, then why did you apply to UCM in the first place? You should have done your research. Don’t whine about being here in UCM. You chose to be here even though you knew that it is a new school and therefore will not have as many “fun” classes as other older and more established UC’s. </p>
<p>If there are people smoking pot and getting drunk, report them. Do not just whine and complain to us and everyone around you about it. It’s your own fault you’re not doing anything about it, and you are stuck living with those people.
I don’t understand how people can complain and whine about this school when it is their choice to be here. Be gone if you don’t like it here. I don’t like whiny people, and UCM definitely does not need anyone like that here. </p>
<p>FYI: I got accepted to UCB and UCD. I chose UCM because UCM offers better opportunities for me as a chem major. I would not have to worry as much about getting my professors to notice me or finding a really good research opportunity.</p>
<p>Update:
- At UCLA now
- Had a friend video tape me peeling out of UCM giving it the finger
- UC Merced still sucks. Its hilarious to see so many people get suckered into it; then they convince themselves that it isnt bad. Most of these people are close-area/Nor cal locals…what a surprise.</p>
<p>Thanks for the honest input about UCM. My son and I visited the school in the spring and he ended up applying there. He really liked the small size and the ability to have a private school experience for UC prices.</p>
<p>I’m assuming he will be admitted, but still waiting to hear. He also applied at larger schools and we will be visiting them to see how he compares a large to a small campus.</p>
<p>THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING THIS.
this is exactly what i say when people ask me why i want to transfer/why i came here</p>
<p>Hey, I’m attending uc Merced in the fall and took the time to read over this entire threads comments. Before I get to questions, I just wanna say, wow… some of these former students sound like UC Merced is like a concentration camp or something, (no offense to Jews). Ok, UC Merced was not for you, but don’t make it sound like the school raped you or something. Try to make the best of a bad situation. That being said, I have some questions as a future Bobcat. 1) I realize that Merced is in the middle of nowhere, so I plan to bring my car? Is SanFran or Fresno reasonable weekend or spots to have fun, or are you at the city of Merced’s mercy when in comes to fun? 2) Is a medical school really in the works at UC Merced? I plan on going into medicine, by putting more focus on my. Studies than I did in high school, and a med school at Merced would seem to be a good addition, 3) what is the racial makeup of uc Merced? I’m just curious. And 4) what is dorm life like? I live in SoCal rite now and obviously plan to dorm. Answers would be much appreciated. Thanks</p>
<p>@warrenani93 I have the same questions too! I don’t know if I’m going to live in the dorm or apartments. I want to bring my car but I don’t think I’ll have a secure spot to park my car when I live in the dorms. Since UCM doesn’t secure any spaces for freshman; I read the upperclassmen has the prioritize parking spaces. So I’m leaning on going to get an apartment and just drive to the school from Merced it’s just 10~15 minutes drive. I honestly believe UC Merced is a good school and will grow better. I looked up at the faculty of the department I’m going to be in they’re mostly alumnus of the UCLA, UCB, UCD, and UCSD. Some of them are even from MIT and Cal tech. I was like in awe when I saw the professors that I’m going to work with. I feel like I’m going to learn great knowledge from the one the best. I also take challenge of proving other people wrong on how they perceive UC Merced. My back up plan is if I don’t like it there… after 2 years I’ll just do an intercampus transfer. I know someone who went to UC Riverside transferred to UCB. I maybe hard but it’s not impossible.</p>
<p>Yea StudentEd, I feel the same exact way about Merced. Mocking it is like mocking a baby, it needs to to grow. I really hope i can bring my car, because a rural town isn’t my definition of a fun weekend at college</p>
<p>Hi everyone, new to the forum. I’ll be starting in the fall 2011-majoring in Biological Science. I’m very excited despite the negative comments.</p>
<p>1) Freshmen won’t be able to have cars (unless you have a reason for health etc. or you live off campus). SF is about 2 hours away and Fresno is about 1 hour away. A lot of people do like to leave during the weekends. </p>
<p>2) Yes, I believe a med school is in the works but it won’t be established during my or your stay here probably. </p>
<p>3) I found this link here at the UCM website. It contains the racial makeup of UCM along with other things. I remember the UC booklet telling you this info though. The booklet should be available to you at your high school?
<a href=“http://ipa.ucmerced.edu/docs/facts/UC%20Merced%20Profile.pdf[/url]”>http://ipa.ucmerced.edu/docs/facts/UC%20Merced%20Profile.pdf</a></p>
<p>4) I would highly recommend living in the residence halls (they are supposed to be called residence halls instead of dorms, weird I know). I believe it to be a part of “college life”. You may/may not like it, but I think it is at least something to experience. It’s different for people that live off campus because they tend to go to class and then leave, whereas on campus people are always on campus. </p>
<p>There will be a new residence hall 2013 (they are going to start building it this Fall). It is for Freshmen only (you guys came a bit too soon!), but it will be exciting to see as it will have 7 floors (which will make it the tallest building).</p>
<p>Thank you ucmercedlife for answering. Freshman can’t have cars, lame… Oh well. Anyway, a concern I have about going to Merced is enjoying myself afterclasses. It’s in the middle of nowhere, so what do students do for fun during weekends or down time?</p>
<p>I just started snowboarding this year. I love it. Next school year, if I’m not busy on the weekend in the Spring semester, I’m going snowboarding every weekend lol…</p>
<p>If you live on campus you can go to the Den and play pool/pong/air hockey. You can go to the lake and play around on the jungle gym lol… Or you can study.</p>
<p>That sounds cool, Im just afraid if Merced being as mind numbingly boring as people make it out to be. If worse come to worse, I know how to make my own fun anyway.</p>
<p>Is it easy to transfer from one UC to another UC? Premed4life above indicates transferring to another UC…I know they give priority to community college students for junior transfer students into UC’s…don’t know how easy it is to transfer from one UC to another UC or from a 4 year college into a UC as a junior? Anyone out there been successful in transferring from a UC to another UC or a 4 year college to a UC as a junior?</p>
<p>Earlier on in UCM’s lifetime, didn’t the UC system try to attract students to Merced by making it easier to transfer from UCM to another campus? I seem to remember that they were treating UCM as a favored CC.</p>
<p>Anyone remember that? Was it ever, or is it now, that way?</p>
<p>In the past a UC’s that rejected / waitlisted you could offer a 2 year guaranteed admission, if you went to UC Merced for 2 years, then transfered to the UC you originally got rejected / waitlisted from. As far as I know the UC campus’s offered this to students, they couldn’t apply for it. (unlike TAG from CC, where anyone can apply for a transfer guarantee).</p>
<p>HOWEVER, this was because UC Merced was new, now it has a decent amount of students, and is getting more and more students every year, so this transfer program has probably been discontinued. </p>
<p>Lastly, my friends say its impossibly hard to transfer from one UC to another, as they favor CC transfers, and there are TONS of CC transfers with TAG forms (Transfer Agreement Guarantee’s). However, it is still possible, if you work hard, show improvement, and show new academic, and personal achievements on your application, you can have a shot at transferring. (this is assuming you want to transfer to Cal or LA, going to the mid-tier UCs will definitely be easier than the top-tier ones) :)</p>
<p>I know that UC Berkeley still has the Bear to Bobcat program(or whatever it’s called) in place for some freshmen at UC Merced that allows them to transfer to UC Berkeley after two years at UC Merced</p>
<p>Interesting conversations…I have a different view as a parent of a UC Merced student and a 12th grade AP teacher. My students go all over, and I hope they choose a college that is the right fit for them. My son was accepted to UC Irvine and UC Santa Cruz as well as UC Merced. It wasn’t about prestige; I firmly believed he would receive a better education at Merced, but the choice was his choice. I earned my own education at UC Riverside for my BA and earned my MA at UC Irvine. Riverside was not esteemed as much as Irvine, but the small class sizes were a tremendous benefit. I knew my professors. My professors knew me. In the long run, I was better educated, though I could have gone to “better” colleges. I want my son to have the foundation a smaller university will give him.
I don’t worry about “name” colleges as much as others. My father went to Iowa State and ended up receiving NASA’s highest award. My ex-husband went to UC Riverside and won the Navy’s highest award for DoD. These aren’t people who are worried about appearances. These are people who were pragmatic and hard working. They are intelligent people who made practical decisions. People who have choice, but who choose Merced are the people who look at the labs and the small class size and think, “I can really do something here.” People who just look at the name of an institution hoping it will buy them the appearance of success might not be the people who actually are apt to succeed in the long run. When my students apply in the fall, I hope they choose an environment that will make them the best scholars they can be. I always find it ironic when students talk of applying to colleges for their social qualities—many times the very things that will keep them from succeeding. It’s sad when I hear of the students who failed or floundered their first year. With the devastating drop out rate, students should select with more prudence.</p>