<p>I am a high school junior and I'm wondering what classes to take next year and stuff like that. I want to go to a college in California, Cal Poly SLO and UCLA are my top choices (USC too). I have a weighted gpa of about 3.7 and am looking into architecture or commercial/advertising art (maybe psychology). I have taken many honors classes (precalc and physics this year) and am wondering if I should take AP Calc and AP Physics or just AP Stats next year. I'm also taking a design class and an architecture internship to build up a portfolio or experience. My SAT scores aren't great, but I'm thinking of retaking them (CR:520, M:610, W:580). I still haven't taken my ACT or SAT II, but I'm not concerned since I've heard they are easier. I also don't mind going to community college first (since I still want to have a life my senior year) but i just wanted to know my chances first. I would appreciate any advice but i would like to hear from people who know what they're talking about (i.e. actually GO to the school or at least know someone who does). Thank you.</p>
<p>I’d say apply to both from high school, and if you don’t get into either one then try community college. Also if you’re not 100% sure about your major yet, I’d say do the community college thing too.</p>
<p>SLOW and UCLA are two verrry different architecture schools, and I would definitely recommend doing some research on the difference. To start, SLOW offers a Barch which is a 5 year professional degree in architecture, with UCLA offering a 2 year B of architectural studies. The UCLA degree tends to be a lot less focused on the maths and physics of architecture and structure, while emphasizing theory and visual communication. </p>
<p>It really just depends on what you want out of your education and how long you intend on being in school…I’d look into the specifications of each schools department and its philosophy as a department within the school itself.</p>
<p>(ps…I just took the CC route myself and am currently attended the open house within UCLA’s program, and that may be the route for you too. When I was in HS i had nooo idea what it was I wanted to pursue)</p>
<p>to be very competitive in the college process i would take ap calc and ap physics, as this would put you in a much higher level of competition amongst candidates. I would also recommend trying your luck at the SATs again. </p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>hey you may want to first research on B.Arch and B.S. Architecture. They are very different programs, with the prior one being a 5 year program and the latter one a 4 year program. With the four year program you’ll have to do another 2 years of master degree to be eligible for the licensure exam. both cal poly slo and usc offer the B.Arch (5 year) program and cal poly slo is very, very highly ranked in architecture. usc isn’t bad either (within top 20 in the US). for more info on the difference between the two programs you can look around CC and many people have done very clear analyses on them.
ucla has the 4 year program, but know that the program is pretty new and thus may not be entirely developed. if you really want to do the 4 year program in california, i would recommend ucberkely. its master program for architecture is highly ranked.
cal poly slo is very grades-oriented in the selection process. basically all you need is a really high GPA and do very well especially in maths and phys. i would recommend you to take as many of those honor classes as possible. SAT scores are very important in their selection process too.
as for usc, i’m not so familiar with their selection process but i believe that high scores would be a huge plus. they may require a portfolio so if you can take a few art classes in high school so to have a collection of portfolio materials that would be very helpful. </p>
<p>you may want to look into the following schools as well. they should be less competitive than the ones you’ve mentioned
5 year program: sci-arc (so cal), cal poly pomona (so cal), california college of the arts (nor cal), newschool of architecture (so cal)</p>
<p>
Cal Poly admissions is very numbers driven, based mostly on sophomore & junior yearend grades of your UC a-g classes, and CR & M SAT score. So… do everything you can to boost your grades in your current classes, also study for and re-take the CR & M SAT this summer to increase those scores. They do give you a boost if you have a summer job and a double boost if it’s in a related field. You can confirm this info yourself at the Cal Poly website and the CSMentor site (you should scour both). There is also a Cal Poly SLO forum on this site where you can post questions.</p>
<p>
If you go for architecture and you take AP Calc and/or AP Physics next year, and do well you can get credit for both and won’t have to re-take them at SLO. The architecture department will look at the coursework you’ve chosen including your senior year courses as part of admissions. They like to see calc and physics. </p>
<p>
If you want architecture by way of a CC->Cal Poly SLO, you’ll have to go to Cuesta College where they have a transfer program with SLO. Go check out Cuesta.</p>
<p>Best wishes to you.</p>
<p>ok…I am officially ■■■■■■■■…
SLOW as in SLO …wow!! lol</p>
<p>don’t listen to me!</p>
<p>with those stats, maybe you should look at this thread.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/architecture-major/693535-cal-poly-pomona-architecture.html?highlight=cal+poly+pomona+architecture[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/architecture-major/693535-cal-poly-pomona-architecture.html?highlight=cal+poly+pomona+architecture</a></p>
<p>SLO is a very difficult program, but the sister program at Cal Poly Pomona may also be quite a stretch for you…I head they only accepted 5.8 percent of the applicants. I am not sure what the rate is at SLO, but I suspect it may be even lower.</p>