<p>^the 6 revisions, are they the norm or just something I need to take note of when push comes to shove? Also, were you under the honours program or the early registration when that happened?</p>
<p>I would want to take USC/UC approved courses as well. the USC/UC transfers are most attractive part of SMC tbh. How is the scholar’s program like? Do they help you get internships, special academic advisors, different classes etc? I know SUNY Rockland has this mentor/talented student progrom where they (supposedly) assign you a mentor that has experience with your declared major and helps you with all that(academic planning, internships, rec letters). But I felt that Rockland is a bit shady/making exaggerated claims about sending students to ivy league colleges/tier 1 colleges. They don’t really state as clearly as SMC what tie ins with universities they have.</p>
<p>From my interactions with fellow scholars students, making multiple revisions just to end up with some necessary classes is not uncommon.</p>
<p>As part of the Scholars program you gain access to special Scholars counselors. They are unbelievably more helpful than regular counselors and so much more knowledgeable. According to my Scholars counselor, the Scholar’s program is essential for UCLA admissions. It looks perfect on your transcript. However, while it reflects well for USC, they don’t care as much about Scholars courses.</p>
<p>And of course you get access to special Scholars courses which are highly regarded by UC schools. However, as an international student, you are not extended priority consideration to UCLA. But you do receive the other Scholars program benefits such as a special English tutor and essay writing help etc. There aren’t any mentorship programs in place as far as I know.</p>
<p>I’m attending smc this fall and have some questions.
When will registrations for classes begin. As an international I’ll attend an international seminar, but I attend it as late as the 19th aug. because I’m unable to be at the one on 27th juli. Will this hurt my chances in choosing the classes I want?</p>
<p>I don’t know when registration for internationals begins. Since you are attending a later seminar, it is likely that many classes you want will be filled already.</p>
<p>Hey! im basically doing the exact same thing in terms of transfering to USC except the Scholars Program doesnt benefit my major boooo, but im still taking it because it could help me in the long run. Goodluck! oh and this thread is old so your probably already taking classes but my experience with it during summer even though its just started has been pretty good! If your 18 female and need a roomate next year I might be available after my lease is up because im currently living on my own so the rent would be cheaper with a roomate lol</p>
<p>Hey! I’ll be in the Scholar’s Program this fall too! My name is Priscilla (or Devin- depending on who calls me what). Hope to see you there! Maybe I saw you at orientation? I’m a little scared about attending… Hope all goes well.</p>
<p>Cool! What orientation date did you go to? I was at the 12th and dont be scared! the staff has been pretty amazing, especially the Scholars counselors! I recommend Denise martinez, shes a total sweetheart!</p>
<p>@elkgrove - gluck transferring to USC
i start this fall. are you some sort of arts major?
and you’re right, the scholars program certainly wont hurt you so def go through with it.</p>
<p>@riverside - wow! i didnt know SMC scholars get priority registration thats awesome. i should send my little sister to SMC instead of mtsac haha</p>
<p>To Dainese or anyone else who is a current cc student:</p>
<p>How is the rigor of classes at your CC? Is it reasonable to expect a 3.8+ GPA if you focus all your energy on studying or is it impossible?</p>
<p>I’m trying to see whether I’m just chasing a far fetched dream of attending UCLA or USC. I’m not sure if it’s practical to trust that priority admission will take care of me and help me get into UCLA at least. I have the opportunity to attend an honors program at a well regarded 4 year university out of state and I’m trying to discern between my options.</p>
<p>sounds like a tough decision…
i honestly didnt have that much trouble at mtsac. i dont know if im just smart but lazy (from someone who graduated hs with a 2.07 LOL!) or i know how to get by…but i didnt really study much. i had a social life haha</p>
<p>i only studied for tests (imma crammer). but i think my bad study habits will catch up when i start USC lol so ill have to readjust. i transferred with a 3.88 GPA and i pretty much coasted through mtsac. aside from finals weeks, it was pretty stress free. </p>
<p>i think the key to getting good grades is finding out what your limit is. i took 4 classes during fall/spring and only 1 during summer/winter. i know some honors students who do 5-6 classes and can still pull a 4.0 and a social life. when i took 5 classes i died haha (never again ._.x)</p>
<p>i know what you mean how it seems like UCLA, USC, UCB are so out of reach…
i still cant believe im going to USC in 13 days…i mean…its USC! </p>
<p>but anyways…where do you think you will be happier? are you going to ask yourself…what if? any regrets? i think its really important that you feel at home at your dream school and that you feel this is where your heart is. </p>
<p>i know UCB and UCLA were better schools for my major, but i felt at home at USC so i chose to go to USC.</p>
<p>i think the dream of getting into UCLA,USC,UCB etc…is much more attainable than you think.
dont forget this is only undergrad. still got grad school to be picky as well if you choose too.</p>
<p>I don’t really know what to do because there’s so much uncertainty about the whole transfer process. I’m terrified that I wouldn’t be able to attend UCLA or USC because they would reject me in spite of all my efforts. Also, commuting to SMC from the best apartment I could find would mean being stuck in an hour traffic everyday.</p>
<p>If I knew for sure that UCLA & USC were attainable goals to transfer to from SMC, I wouldn’t feel any uncertainty. But I’m afraid of what I’m giving up by going to SMC instead of taking that university’s offer. The university has the social life, sports, housing and everything I could ask for except for the prestige of UCLA & USC. Which is why I’m torn.</p>
<p>Thanks so much Dainese for being such a considerate person and always helping me out. I wish you much success in your future endeavors at USC.</p>
<p>1 hour commute is killer…
my gf was also in your situation sort of. she did IB in hs and did really well but got rejected from UCLA and UCB but got accepted into UCI and UCSD. but isntead of going to UCI and UCSD she decided to opt out for mtsac for 2 years and she ended up going to USC lol.</p>
<p>u know USC only needs a minimum of 30 units to transfer…so thats only 1 year :D</p>
<p>but i do feel like i have a lot of “college experience” to catch up on…IE greek life, sports etc…</p>
<p>i hope you figure out things soon. if anything you could always transfer from that 4 yr institution. it will just be much harder haha…looks like you have a lot to contemplate about. i suggest talking to as many people as you can, including those who are attending each school so you can get a better feel. its a 2 year time investment you dont want to mess up. </p>
<p>try going to SMC and talking to some transfer students who gave up their oppurtunity to go to a nice school so they could transfer to UCLA/USC/UCB. talking to people in the same boat helps a lot. </p>
<p>best of luck. and take your time to think this through! gl!</p>
<p>Do any current cc students have any experience with getting into classes at the last minute?</p>
<p>I believe I read somewhere on this forum that alot of classes open up with a few openings almost before the semester starts. Is this true? Are there mass openings of classes as people drop them for whatever reason before term starts?</p>
<p>yup. people will drop when the semester starts due to lots of reasons/excuses
it isnt MASSES of people…more like 5-10 depending on the class and class capacity.</p>
<p>biggest 3 reasons
cant financially afford it
lazy
prof scared them off </p>
<p>if you want to add a class, always show up on the first day and check it out. if it looks good go again even if you dont get the add slip the first day! gluck!</p>
<p>Hey Dainese!
Congrats in getting into USC. I am planning to transfer from SMC to USC and have a few questions. Did you have alot of EC while in CC? Like volunteering, sports? I have barely anything and Im scared its going to work against me. Also, were you happy with the financial package you got? The price of the school is really scaring me especially since my career plan does not make the six digits. I’m planning to transfer to the BA/MS occupational therapy program, btw.</p>
<p>i was thinking about doing OT as well for a while…and i took a brief moment of speaking to someone on campus about it, but decided to stick with psychology. </p>
<p>she is really nice and smart so here is her info.
im not an expert in OT and the OT program offered at USC, so i think talking to her would be much more beneficial for you :)</p>
<p>as for the rest…i did have an ok amount of EC’s but the ones that i think mattered were…
VP/ICC rep of a club, did research and presented it at a conference, high school outreach ambassador…and a few other small ones.</p>
<p>i wasnt super excited about my FA package, but it was what i expected. it was fair. i was hoping to win the lottery and get some super big FA package but never happened haha. if you feel like your FA package isnt good enough, you can always appeal the circumstances and it will be reviewed. my friend got a really bad one and he appealed and it came back much much better. sometimes they make mistakes.</p>
<p>For anyone considering SMC, I have figured out that after semester starts, so many classes open. So it is not impossible to add, though certain sections are so popular that they never have openings. Keep this in mind when enrolling.</p>
<p>Also, the parking situation is atrocious. Spots fill up very quickly in the parking buildings (which is the only place you can park anyway). It is worthwhile, however, to purchase a parking pass for $85 per semester as meter parking is expensive and street parking without a Santa Monica city permit gets your car towed. Get there early enough before your class in order to search for parking and allow time for intense traffic spanning a mile before you even reach the school.</p>
oh and this thread is old so your probably already taking classes but my experience with it during summer even though its just started has been pretty good! If your 18 female and need a roomate next year I might be available after my lease is up because im currently living on my own so the rent would be cheaper with a roomate lol</p>