The discussion title says it all. To be honest, I just finished junior year, and I’m a bit worried. I heard it that the UCs were very selective for the class of 2022. My overall GPA has a downward trend, but I can explain myself in my essays (I took very challenging courses, but still didn’t get grades lower than a B-). So as I prepare myself for many rejections, will I still have hope in appealing with better grades in the first semester of senior year?
B- sorry, not sure how that turned into an emoji.
I’m not sure about appealing, from what I’ve read, senior year grades are not considered “new and compelling” during an appeal.
That being said. S had uw 4.0 until last semester junior year when he dropped to uw 3.5 equallying an total uw 3.88. He explained that the work got harder and he had trouble keeping up. He didn’t have any real mitigating events and two of his grades were 89% which he shared.
In the end, he was honest about his shortcomings and yet still challenged himself senior year. He was accepted to UCLA/UCSB/UCB. Waitlisted at UCD and UCSD.
However, he knew his chances were unpredictable. He applied early to Oregon State and was accepted in October. Also to Colorado Boulder and was accepted early. He received merit aid at both to bring down the costs to a UC.
In your case, I would appeal if and only if you maintain straight A’s for the entire senior year.
Thus prove to colleges that you have what it takes, despite your past.
Also, if you want help with your essays (saw your new thread), PM me. I’ll gladly help. I was in the same boat (sort of) as you when I was applying last year.
there is no harm in appealing but, be sure to keep your other option alive.
@Aneem00: You are focusing on the negatives and why would you prepare for many rejections? If you compile a balanced list of safety, match and reach schools, you will not have many rejections. You are competitive for so many schools and there is nothing “magical” about the UC’s. As a California resident, you have many good colleges in which to apply so do some more research and find colleges that match your stats and not try to make your stats match the college.
i just re-read your post… and, there is no way you can appeal BEFORE you apply. Your essays can talk about your challenges but, there are a lot of compelling stories among the tens of thousands of aps each UC receives.
I see from another post - you have a 3.92 and 1320 which are both pretty solid. With decent essays, you will probably get into UCR and UCM. UCSC will be a coin toss and the rest will be well below 50/50. That said, you should apply to any UC that interests you -there is a certain amount of subjectivity in their process and - given your stats, none should be ruled out.
I’d also encourage you to open your mind about other schools - SDSU, CSULB, Cal Poly Pomona and depending what you are looking for from your college experience, Chico have solid programs and would be thrilled to have you.
Good luck