<p>I'm applying to most UC schools as a Dodea student (meaning I'm living out of country attending a school on a military base). My parents have residency in-state if that counts for anything. Berkeley and LA are my goals.</p>
<p>GPA: 3.95 unweighted, 4.1 weighted
Senior courses: 6 APs
Rank: 1st at a really, really small school (but moderate size for a DoDDs school)</p>
<p>SAT: 570 Writing, 760 Math, 600 Reading (1930 yeah I know it sucks)
SAT IIs: Haven't taken them yet, but expecting 700+ in Math II and Physics
AP Tests: 5 Computer Science A, 4 US History, 4 Language</p>
<p>EC:
1. 3 years of NHS, one as treasurer, one as VP
2. 4 years Boy Scouts, Life Scout and Order of the Arrow member
3-5. 1 year of Varsity tennis and baseball, 1 year of JV soccer
You can only list 5 ECs on the UC app, so I chose these over FBLA and MUN.</p>
<p>Work:
Recently began paid internship at an on-base engineering district</p>
<p>Awards:
AP Scholar Award
(this section is depressingly blank and I blame my inconvenient location for lack of things to participate in for a chance at awards)</p>
<p>Essay:
Yeah...I haven't started yet.</p>
<p>I am applying with CS as my major for all schools. I don't know if anyone has experience/knowledge of how DoDDs students are judged, but I expect it to be a slight advantage (and I hope to use it to justify my poor ECs in my essay).</p>
<p>Need to clarify my work: I am switched to a new division every so often. My first one was in CAD. Now I am in web-design (which is in-line with CS).</p>
<p>Be aware that engineering majors usually demand significantly higher SAT scores for admittance. Given that your SAT score is already mediocre, this will only increase you likeliness of rejection. Here is how I would describe the UC schools.</p>
<p>SUPER REACH:
UCLA</p>
<p>REACH:
Berkeley (L&S not Engineering)
UCSD</p>
<p>MATCH / LOW REACH:
UCI
UCSB
UCD</p>
<p>SAFTIES:
UCSC
UCR
UCM</p>
<p>Your biggest problem is that both your GPA and SATs are rather low. The WPA averages of both UCLA and Berkeley students is ~4.38. The admitted SATs are ~2030 and ~2085, respectively. </p>
<p>For Berkeley, you are fortunate that the college peculiarly offers CS in both their College of L&S and Engineering. For UCLA, however, the fact that your major requires the UCLA school of engineering implies you will require 100 or more additional points SAT than the average as well as excellent SAT II scores.</p>
<p>CS is a difficult major to get into and it may severely deter your chances of admissions. While you would normally be a match for UCSD, it has now become a reach as well as the rest of the mid-tier UCs. </p>
<p>The best you can do is work to raise your SATs but, even then, the odds are against you for Berkeley and UCLA due to your lower GPA.</p>
<p>Thanks sentiment. I had no idea that schools have different admission boards/processes for their different colleges. Thus, I am surprised UCLA is an even bigger reach than Berkeley. Also, I am under the impression that my SAT math score would hold much more weight than reading and writing given the context of engineering. </p>
<p>Exactly what is the difference between L&S and engineering in terms of CS? Secondly, does the 4.38 GPA include senior grades or only freshman-junior grades? Thanks again.</p>
<p>UC’s love essays about overcoming “adversity” and living as a military brat usually counts (unless the app reader is a die-hard anti-war activist).</p>
<p>Second the suggestion to apply to Cal’s L&S for Comp Sci at Cal instead of the Engineering School (which is much more selective), unless you are a gal. L&S requires a few more liberal arts courses, such as English & Poli Sci for graduation. But both Colleges offer a ‘Comp Sci’ degree from Cal.</p>
<p>Try the ACT. You might find it more to your liking.</p>
<p>I think your math SAT score of 760 will definitely get you into the CS programs at all the UCs with the exceptions of Berkeley and UCLA. I think you have a fairly good chance at those schools but your problem is that UCB and UCLA get a large number of applicants to their CS/Engineering programs that not only score in the 700s in the math section of the SAT but also have scores in the high 600s or 700s in the CR and W sections of the test as well.</p>
<p>Hey Hopeful, I am copying this from a similar thread last month:</p>
<p>To see exactly where your stats would compare at the admitted class at each of the nine UCs, go here:</p>
<p>[University</a> of California: StatFinder](<a href=“http://statfinder.ucop.edu/statfinder/default.aspx]University”>http://statfinder.ucop.edu/statfinder/default.aspx)</p>
<p>Then go through the prompts… pick the first prompt choice for the first 7-8 pages, then pick
- UCLA and Berkeley, then pick
- COMPLEX TABLE for the report format, then pick
-
- High School GPA weighted-Capped and 2) Total SAT Reasoning Score, and 3) Intended Field of Study as the three metrics to use in the report</p>
<p>You can then see the % who were admitted within your SAT and GPA ranges for Computer Sciences or related majors at UCLA abd Berkeley. You can also change the search criteria toward the end for different data in the report. For example, look at Engineering in the 4.0 - 4.2 GPA band with SAT 2100-2400… and see a 29% admit rate. Jumping up to 4.2+ GPA with the same SAT and the admit rate goes way up to 70%</p>
<p>Clearly Bekeley cares very much about GPA being over 4.2 UC weighted, capped.</p>
<p>Thanks blue for your essay suggestions. I just started working on mine and I’ve leaned towards your ideas so far.</p>
<p>It’s a bit late for the ACT. I actually just retook the SAT after studying grammar to boost my writing and I expect a score in the low 2000s this time.</p>
<p>Thanks Lemaitre and Dunninn. Looks like I’ll be appling to Berkeley’s L&S college. As long as I study computer science, I’ll be happy even if I won’t be achieving a B.S.
The StatFinder was especially helpful.</p>
<p>This is a bit tangent, but is the GPA listed on there the applicant’s GPA upon entrance or GPA during the application filing period? My 4.1 is my current, meaning it’s the same as end of year-junior. By 1st semester senior, I expect to have around a 4.2 with my 6 APs.</p>
<p>Edit: Are senior classes GPA capped? In which case…it would be like I’m only taking 4 APs…assuming I’m not taking them too late to boost my GPA for that 4.2. =(</p>
<p>re: grades - UC Berkeley undertakes a holistic review. That means that even though the “UC GPA” is a weighted, capped (at 8 semesters of +1 classes) GPA from summer of 9th grade through summer of 11th grade, the adcom will actually also compute your UNCAPPED WEIGHTED UC GPA from your ENTIRE transcript, including freshman year and first semester of Senior year. You might have a weighted, capped UC GPA of 4.2, but a weighted UNCAPPED UC GPA of 4.4.</p>
<p>Not UC GPA is only for academic courses… not for Personal Health, Physical Education, etc.</p>
<p>Weighted, Capped UC GPA is an administrative GPA used to determine eligibility to the UC system… it is not the only GPA adcoms use, nor the most important one.</p>
<p>Awesome thank you! My situation doesn’t seem so bleak now. I just have to maintain As in 6 AP courses…</p>
<p>Bump.</p>
<p>I just received my October SATs and received a 2170. I also just realized that since capped UC GPA does not include freshman grades, my weighted GPA is really 4.21 Would anyone consider UCLA/UCB a match for me? </p>
<p>Looking at UC stats finder, if High school GPA-weighted capped means UC GPA, the group of applicants I am in historically have had a 77% chance of admission. However, I’m not sure that’s my case and I doubt many of them had ECs as weak as mine.</p>