Hello everyone! I am a senior high school student in a french school. I applied this year in the UK and got into UCL where I’ll be studying economics next year. However, I just realized that I don’t really love Economics and I don’t want to study Econ for the next 3 years. I saw that some school (the UC system and Cornell) will not ask for my SAT results because of COVID-19.
I really want to become a doctor and I am willing to work so hard and study day and night for it. I just want to know if I can apply in November for the 2021-2022 admissions. Can UCLA consider my high school transcripts as well as my French Baccaulereat grades?
Throughout my high school, I had an overall average ranging from 18.5/20 to 19.59/20 and I also have some extracurricular activities on my cv. I don’t know if you all know how the French system works but there are three levels of honours are given :
A mark between 12 and 13.99 will earn a mention assez bien (honours);
A mark between 14 and 15.99 will earn a mention bien (high honours);
A mark of 16 or higher will earn a mention très bien (highest honours).
Some students who score over 18 can be awarded by the jury the unofficial and extremely-rare félicitations du jury (highest honours with praise).
I don’t care at all about transferring my credits, I just want to start a biomedical major and have a chance as a future med student.
Please I just want to know if UCLA can allow me to apply and consider my high school transcripts and my official french baccalauréat grades. I will explain in my essay why I took this decision and I will do my best to be convincing.
Do I have any chance?
If you attend UCL for a year and then apply to UCLA, you would be a transfer student. UCLA only takes Junior level transfers at 60 semester units or 90 quarter units and HS grades/test scores are not a consideration if you are a transfer. Being an International transfer would be extremely difficult since you would need to have all the required general education and major prep courses completed and they need to be UC transferable.
If you take a gap year and not attend UCL, then you would apply as a Freshman and your HS transcript would be considered. If UCLA is your goal, your best chance is to attend community college and then transfer with the appropriate course work or apply as a Freshman but not attend any school this next year. You would still need to take the TOEFL.
Okay. Thank you for your answer. But I will apply in the coming fall… only 2 months after starting my course at UCL.
And if my high school transcripts won’t be taken into consideration, what will UCLA look at in this case?
Hard to say since Covid has severely impacted the US universities and no one can predict how things will stand next year.
If your goal is to attend a US Medical school, your chances as an International applicant are slim to none. US Medical schools take few International applicants and most from Canada. UCLA is highly competitive for “pre-med” and California overall is one of the most competitive states. You might want to consider the French speaking Canadian universities instead if Medical school is your goal. Tag @MYOS1634 for more information.
@Gumbymom Canadian medical schools are less welcoming to international students than American schools.
@Gumbymom Would it be possible to apply if I was choosing a major that is less competitive? I know I only have a slim chance but I still want to know if I CAN apply and if UCLA will consider my HS grades in this case, since I will not have any transcripts from UCL yet.
Why are you so focused on UCLA? There is no financial aid for out of state and international students. You will be full pay.
You can’t transfer into UCLA after 1 year- only after year 2.
Admissions for international students is always hard, and transfer admissions are harder for everybody (fewer spaces). If your plan is really to go to the US for 4 years of undergrad and then go to medical school (in the US?) - and your family has $275,000 + med school costs to spend on this adventure- your best bet is to take a gap year and apply as a first year.
1° UCs are generally a terrible idea for OOS students who want to go to med school because there’s already an oversupply of talent in California compared to the number of places in CA med schools, let alone for any other US citizens.
2° UC’s don’t offer any financial aid and only admit students straight out of high school or after 2 years of higher education with specific courses taken. An economics “course” at UCL would NOT meet these requirements.
3° MANY MANY universities are going test-optional for Fall 2021.
4° Non citizens can’t attend a US med school. A few Canadian citizens do but non Canadians can’t.
5° If you want to attend a med school, you MIGHT have a shot IF 1° you didn’t study S AND 2° you attend a CEGEP (collège universitaire québécois) for Natural Sciences AND 3° rank at the highest level AND 4° get either permanent residence or a job linked to medical work.
Your French grades are really excellent.
If you apply to a US university and can afford to be full pay, there’ll be several universities that’ll admit you, but I’d recommend you aim either for universities with honors colleges or for LACs. Finally, you could try and apply to UdeM, Laval, McGill…
@TomSrOfBoston Because it has an excellent med school. I know I don’t have any chance in Johns Hopkins, Columbia or Stanford etc. and UCLA is such a great school. This is why I am “so focused on UCLA”.
Thank you all for your answers!
Where you attend undergraduate has NO bearing upon where you attend med school.
For US citizens, the process is two-fold: 1° an algorithm processes and “cuts” anyone who doesn’t have a certain GPA, science GPA, and MCAT score. Your university, major, name… don’t enter into the equation at all. 2° among those, and those only, the applications get to “human eyes” - actual med school professional read the applications and look for courses, grades, interesting statement, valuable activities [I simplify greatly because as an international you wouldn’t be allowed to apply in the first place.]
@MYOS1634 Thank you for your answer. So what’s the best option for me now if I want to study biology or biochemistry? I got accepted in McGill but in the faculty of Arts (Back then I wanted to study Economics). Should I take a gap year and reapply in the US next year? go to UCL ? or forget about med school?
If you “really want to become a doctor and are willing to study night and day for it” - why are you not applying to medicine programs in France? Why all this hoopla for foreign universities where you cannot train to be a doctor?
@CollegeMamb0 Because in France you don’t get to choose your speciality. The med school exam is a “Concours” (very competitive examination where you are ranked). And according to your “ranking”, you’ll have to study a speciality (that you don’t choose)
It is very competitive for many specialties in the US as well, med school students are ranked all the time, including on national exams (USMLEs) that are important in residency placement. Many physicians become primary care physicians because that was their only option.
It doesn’t seem you are understanding that very few international non-Canadian students are accepted into US med schools…whether they studied in the US for undergrad, or not. Some US med schools don’t even take applications from international students as Myos1634 said above…please re-read her post #9.
You were accepted at McGill and turned it down? Even as as Arts major you could have taken the required premed courses there and paid the low Canadian tuition rate since you are a French citizen. If you are looking for a route into North America that would have been your best avenue. It would have given you the best option in competing for the very limited number of foreign students admitted to North American medical schools.
I assume that you are aware that to become a doctor in the US or Canada there is 4 years of undergrad study followed by 4 years of medical school followed by 3-7 years of residency.
@TomSrOfBoston I didn’t turn down the offer. I have until June first to accept it. But I didn’t find any “scientific” majors in the faculty of Arts that could help me prepare the MCAT.
You don’t have to be a science major to prepare for medical school. You can major in anything as long as you take the required premed courses.
https://www.temple.edu/healthadvising/documents/Timelines/PreMed.Timeline.pdf
Unlike in the UK, in North America a bachelor’s degree does not consist of only courses in your major. There are requirements to take electives in other areas.
Here are the requirements for a major in economics at McGill. It requires 36 credits in economics courses. The degree requires a total of 120 credits over 4 years. Plenty of room for electives.
https://www.mcgill.ca/economics/undergraduate/majorminor
You could also petition to transfer from Arts to Science after your first year. It is competitive but with high grades it can be done.