Hi, I am currently a junior in high school and I am currently looking to major in Computer Science in college. My GPA is 4.0 Weighted, 1380 SAT, I am currently in Pre Calculus and AP Computer Science Principles, I am president of my school’s AVID club and a historian in my school’s robotics club and chemistry club. I am also enrolled in taking Introduction to Computer Science 1 at UCLA this summer. I am extremely passionate about getting into UCSD or UCI as a Computer Science major but I have heard a lot of rumors that getting into CS nowadays is little to impossible. How are my chances so far?
The UC admissions for Freshman for Fall 2018 was really crazy this year. Unfortunately, it will be only worse for you when you apply. You have great scores, but my suggestion is to apply to as many schools as possible. Like ALL the UCs and ALL the state schools if financially able. Also don’t be afraid to apply out of state or to privates because they may offer scholarships. The lessons learned from this round of applications for CA HS seniors was that the UCs that were thought of as “safety” schools are no longer safety schools anymore. My nephew got accepted into UCLA but rejected from UCB. My daughter got accepted to UCI but rejected from UCSD, UCSB and waitlisted at UCD. Her friend got accepted to UCB but rejected from UCI?!? Also, it you can get into a colkege as a CS major, even better. I heard that if you get in a school undeclared, it’s hard to change to CS. You are already one step ahead of the admissions process with already planning now. Just keep in mind the UCs are tougher to get into (except UC Merced - nothing is wrong with that school, it’s just new) We’ve got a lot of HS seniors who are highly qualified for UC and Cal States, just not enough funding and room. Good luck!
I can only quote stats from last year and I agree with the above poster that UCI admissions were definitely crazy for this years in-coming Freshman class. Assume the data I am quoting will be higher than for 2017 CS.
Definitely apply widely and include 1-2 safety schools on your list. Your local Cal state is usually a good safety school option but not always especially if CS is an impacted major.
So for UCI CS 2017, the Average UC capped weighted GPA was 4.11 and average SAT score was 1402.
UCI admits into the University first and then into the major, so they will also consider an alternate major or you could get accepted as Undeclared.
2017 Freshman data for all UC’s. The GPA is capped weighted GPA and not major specific, so expect admit rates to be lower than posted for highly competitive majors:
Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 3.80-4.19:
UCB: 12.6%
UCLA: 11.7%
UCSD: 38.7%
UCSB: 53.6%
UCD: 56.5%
UCI: 52.1%
UCSC: 75.7%
UCR: 90.1%
UCM: 96.1%
Be sure to have backups if you are certain you want CS. Even Cal Poly Pomona is no longer a safety for this major. Be sure you add Fullerton, SDSU, and others so you have a location you’ll enjoy if Riverside or Merced are not where you envision yourself living.