*If you took Spanish 1 or Algebra 1/1H in middle school, make sure to mention it in your CSU Mentor application
*Having ECs that you’re dedicated to helps a lot
*Take a challenging course load
*Note that on CSU mentor when they ask if your school system is a quarter system which means theres a summer quarter, fall quarter, etc. If that’s not what your school has (though it’s broken up into “quarters”), it’s probably a semester schedule
*If your school doesn’t do semester averages, type in your final average for both semesters
*Make sure to note whether your classes are at an advanced level (CSU Mentor includes options to help label them)
*To be considered, you need to have taken:
8 semesters (4 years) of English
4 semesters (2 years) of Algebra
2 semesters (1 year) of Geometry
4 semesters (2 years) of Foreign Language
4 semesters (2 years) of Lab science
2 semesters (1 year) of Performing Arts
4 semesters (2 years) of History
*You can get bonus points (which make you a stronger applicant) for taking:
5 years (10 semesters) of english (Most students are unable to do this so if you can’t, it’s ok) 100pts
4 years (8 semesters) of a foreign language 100pts
4 years (8 semesters) of a lab science 200pts
2 years (4 semesters) of performing arts 50pts
2 years (4 semesters) of advanced math 500pts
*Go slow through the application, make sure to look over it before submitting.
*Report everything accurately, if you’re accepted, you’ll have to verify everything with transcripts
*Send in all standardized test reports (SAT, ACT, AP, etc) from all dates (to be safe) after you submit your application. (They superscore your test results, so don’t panic if you had your best section scores on different dates)
Good luck
DISCLAIMER
Even if you meet all these requirements and go beyond the average applicant’s credentials, you still may not get in. This post is just for helpful tips for applying. I cannot guarantee you success especially since some programs (ie. Biomedical Engineering which has 80 seats and had 1903 people apply to it in 2015) are very competitive
Source:
I went internet surfing and found this little gem
http://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=statsp
My Credentials:
I was accepted into the Cal Poly SLO Biomedical Engineering Program in 2015 (meaning I applied recently) and I had to basically teach myself the ins and outs of CSU Mentor and I wanted to help future Cal Poly applicants.
Also, I got lucky because despite never knowing about the bonus points until after I applied, I managed to earn 850 bonus points just because I tried to take on a semi-rigorous course load throughout HS