My daughter has a 3.3 unweighted GPA, taking 7 APs (scoring 4 or better), tons of volunteer time plus leadership positions, and scored a 1480 on SATs and a 34 on ACTs. Is there any chance of getting into a UC school for math or science (UCI, UCSB, UCSD, UCSC or long shot UCLA) or should she attend a local community college for two years and then try to transfer? She doesn’t have a clear career goal yet, but will probably attend grad school. She wants to go to a UC school because they have great science/math programs and will cost less than a private school. My worry is that after two years at a community college, her grades would not be high enough to transfer (and I don’t think the UC schools accept test scores for transfers.). Any Advice?
What is her UC GPA capped weighted and fully weighted?
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 3.00-3.39 (capped weighted).
UCB/UCLA/UCSD: 1%
UCI/UCSB: 2%
UCD: 4%
UCSC: 18%
UCR: 38%
UCM: 67%
Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 3.40-3.79:
UCB: 2%
UCLA: 3%
UCSD: 6%
UCD: 15%
UCSB: 14%
UCI: 13%
UCSC: 59%
UCR: 78%
UCM: 92%
Freshman admit rates (2016) for UC GPA of 3.80-4.19:
UCB: 14%
UCLA: 14%
UCSD: 44%
UCSB: 54%
UCD: 58%
UCI: 65%
UCSC: 85%
UCR: 94%
UCM: 96%
CSU’s also have good science and math programs so they should be also on her list. Cal Poly SLO, Cal Poly Pomona, CSU Long Beach, San Diego state to name a few.
I honestly don’t think she has much of a shot at any of the UCs, even Merced could go either way.
SDSU, CSULB and CPP have very solid programs and are almost certain to accept her.
good luck
Thanks for the info. I don’t know her exact weighted GPA. She thinks it might be around 3.5. Yeah, I didn’t think she had much of a shot, even with high scores. I think she will probably do two years at CC, then try to transfer. (The UC schools seem to have an arrangement with CCs to accept a decent number of transfer students.) She has already taken all of the intro courses for math, science, English and history. Hope they have some interesting/useful higher level classes at CC. I am just a bit worried that she will slack off with her grades at CC, like she did in high school, and won’t make the minimum GPA for UC. I suppose the Cal Poly schools would be a good option, too.
It also depends on her major. UC Merced is worth a try to apply to. SLO and Pomona may be hard depending on the major. If you are concerned about her grades in a CC, I suggest applying to UCM and many of the Cal State schools. That way she will have the “college experience” and depending on the major she may not get into all of the Cal States. My son had a 3.82 weighted and did not get into SDSU, SLO nor CPP. His major was Computer Science and Engineering. He currently attends UCM.
Wow. So hard to get in these days. Kudos to your son. My daughter wants to major in math, perhaps science. She’s very good at math and good at science, but her grades don’t reflect that because she spent too much time volunteering and failed to turn in homework. I am hoping that her work habits will improve.
With a 3.5 - UCM and UCR could definitely happen… I encourage you to open your mind to sending her to a CSU. SDSU. CSULB and CPP have excellent math/science programs. Chico and Sonoma are also worth a look.
With the high SAT/ACT score, which may offset the low GPA, UCSC might be a possibility. Keep in mind, the more impacted the major (engineering, computer science, biology), the more difficult it is to get in. I think with a 3.5+ weighted GPA and the high test score, you D has a chance at UCSC, if she is not applying under an impacted major.
She could apply to UCM/UCR/UCSC, plus SDSU and CPP. All of those have excellent science departments.
If you worry she’ll get lost in the shuffle and slack off, you can try private colleges where her test scores and course rigor will matter more for admissions, and where she’ll get more personal attention due to smaller class sizes (run the NPC on Chapman, LMU-LA, St Mary’s California, UoP - her test score should net her a pretty nice scholarship).
You could also look at UOregon if she could make it into the Honors College (should be less expensive than a private university but still much more than a UC instate) and Lewish and Clark (private college, good for science).
FInally, look at WUE colleges: WWU, Colorado State, Montana State… Those are probably better than UCR/UCM, with better locations, and would not cost too much due to the WUE agreement.
An issue, if she already has a lot of early gen eds, is that the CC may not offer enough classes for her to take. On the other hand, she may start with advanced standing, meaning that she’d be a freshman who registers with sophomores, and would therefore have access to classes that aren’t full, and thus have more choice.
That 34 is really precious in terms of scholarships. Once she’s enrolled in CC, it no longer “counts” and she loses her chance at any scholarships (transfers don’t get the same level of financial aid as freshmen and almost no scholarships). So, make sure you investigate all possible “merit” paths considering that score.
She could apply for a full tuition scholarship at Ole Miss BTW, and their Honors College is excellent.
http://www.honors.olemiss.edu/
Same thing for ASU Barrett
https://barretthonors.asu.edu/
Both are definitely worth an application.
If she has a 3.5 weighted, she’d get a near-full tuition scholarhip and Honors College admissions at UAlabama Tuscaloosa.
Some these schools named, like the WUE colleges, are not better than the lower tier UC’s (UCR, UCM). The fact that the UC’s are highly regarded research institutions and admit the top 9% of CA higher schoolers evidences this fact. I can go on with the US News rankings, etc…
where a college sits on a list has little to do with its appropriateness for a particular student. They often offer something very different than the Huge UC experience, perhaps different weather, a liberal arts or engineering focus, a much lower student body count, a more relaxed atmosphere, or, as with my son, a chance to participate in the top level of a sports program that’s not as big in CA .
The original posting was to ask about UC’s. I understand other options are fine. A UC degree is highly regarded and so are many good CSU’s. UC’s are not for everyone.
I had given up on private schools, but maybe we should take your advice and apply. Thanks for the advice!
@college12347 my DD’s stats is almost identical as your DD. However even with slim chances of top tier, she still wants to give it a try because for top UCs she is applying for Media arts or design, she can uses her portfolio and strong concentration from EC in these areas. She is aiming for UCI/UCSC/UCR/UCM more but also wanted to apply UCLA/UCSB/UCSD/UCD just to try her luck since its same application package. DD doesn’t want to go out of state, so we added 5 CA private schools, and 7 impacted CSUs (more interesting majors).
@college12347 I have almost the same stats! 3.4 GPA weighted, 35 ACT. I’m applying to UCI as a reach if that helps!