Chance/Match an Asian male, CA resident 3.5 GPA/1550 SAT interested in CS

Chance Me / Match Me!
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My S24 is building his college list. He is in a highly competitive HS in CA (about 60 with 4.0 UW GPA and 50 NMSF/NMF out of 600 students). He had a lot of issues transitioning from online to in-person school and his sophomore grades suffered. His grades improve a lot in his junior year (all As except Calc BC). Any suggestions/comments about his school list below are welcome.

Intended Major(s): CS

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
Unweighted UC GPA: 3.5
Weighted UC GPA: 3.9/3.77 capped
Class Rank: school doesn’t rank
ACT/SAT Scores: 1550 SAT

Coursework
AP Calc AB (5), AP Chemistry (3), AP Calc BC, AP CSP, AP Psyc, APEnvSci, AP Physics 1*, AP Physics 2*, AP CSA*, AP Gov/Econ*, AP Stats*

Awards
NMSF (confirmed by school counselor)
CM10 (violin)
PVSA Bronze
Biliteracy

Extracurriculars
Cyberpatriot
School orchestra
Science Olympiad coach
Volunteer at a local food bank

Cost Constraints / Budget
none (he is my only child, so I will try my best to support him)

Schools
Likely
UC Merced, Arizona, ASU, Oregon St

Match
UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, Utah, Michigan St

Reach
Purdue, BostonU, Northeastern, RPI, Pitt, UBC

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How did you calculate his UC GPA? Can you double check the math using GPA Calculator for the University of California – RogerHub

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What is his fully weighted UC GPA since the UC’s consider the Unweighted, Capped Weighted and Fully Weighted UC GPA’s in their application review?
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/

CS admit rates if available

Campus CS
UC Berkeley 2.9%-L&S EECS-4.5%
UC Davis No data but <20%
UC Irvine 5.8%
UCLA 3.8%
UC Merced 85%
UC Riverside 36%
UC San Diego No data but <10%
UC Santa Barbara No data Historically 5-6%
UC Santa Cruz 60%
Cal Poly SLO 9%
Cal State Long Beach 54%
San Diego State 40%
San Jose State 31%

Would he be happy at UC Merced or would some of the Cal States be better options?

You might want to check out the NMF discussion thread for more options: http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/t/big-merit-nmf-nmsf-schools-and-their-specialties/

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It would not surprise me if UBC were to ask for his mid-term grades senior year (and maybe ?? final grades). I think that it would be worth the effort for him to keep his grades up for senior year.

Simon Fraser University is also quite good for computer science, and might be a slightly easier admit (it also might cost less for an international student).

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So I can’t speak to UCs but I think Utah and Michigan State are safeties.

I think RPI and Pitt are matches.

You mention no constraints but you’ll do your best.

So given he’s over a 3.5 and a strong SAT, why not consider an Alabama or UAH that will cost you less than $20k a year with merit.

If he’s a NMSF, he can go to Tulsa for free.

If he moves to NMF, he can go to Bama for free tuition and housing and $3500 a year in extra merit. And other schools have great NMF packages too - UTD and more.

So he’ll have options from this list but if money is an issue ahd it sounds like it may be - you have the chance to fully support him and not over strain yourself.

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Yes, I calculated his GPA using GPA calculator at RogerHub. He got 20 A, 5 B, 5 C (12 AP grades) in grades 10-11.

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I can’t comment on all the schools on the list, but my feeling is that UC Santa Cruz would be a reach for CS with this GPA, based on results for my son’s friends who were applying for CS this last cycle. Of course the official data is not currently available for fall 2023 admission, so I’m just going on anecdotal impressions from what my son reported to me.

Also note that at Santa Cruz, there is currently no path to switch to the CS major if admitted as another major; it’s direct admission only.

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What were those 5 Cs in?

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Using GPA calculator at RogerHub, his UW is 3.5, Capped Weighted is 3.77, and Fully Weighted is 3.9.

He prefers SDSU, SJSU, SLO to UC Merced, although he will go to UC Merced if it is the only option.

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I recommend adding SFSU since CS is not an impacted major and its location provides pretty good CS opportunities.

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I understand that U of Arizona also gives a good package for NMSF. I am not sure that he will be a NMF, given his 5C in his transcript.

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The CSUs have non holistic admission based on GPA, so I am guessing that both Cal Poly SLO and SJSU are both going to be difficult admits for CS. Are you located in the local area for either one of these, since that gives an admission bonus?

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If he wants to work in the bay area SJSU is fine. It has a good program and bay area companies give it good respect.

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1 from Chem Honors, 2 from AP Chem, 1 from Calc AB, 1 from Calc BC.

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SJSU will not be an option since the admit CSU GPA hovers around 4.3+ to be competitive for CS. Even with the local GPA bump, the CSU GPA will not be high enough. SLO for sure and SDSU most likely will be not options either. SFSU is a very good suggestion as a Solid Safety.

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I’ve also seen Chico State mentioned a number of times here on CC as a solid option for CS that also offers a more traditional residential college experience?

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No, we live in So Cal. It is too bad that UC and CSU don’t use test scores into consideration for college admission.

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The UCs and CSUs are prevented from considering SAT due to a court order - it wasn’t a proactive policy change. If you are open to OOS schools, may be consider Rose Hulman too for CS. It would be a tough admit but the SAT could help there.

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Cal Poly Pomona is another good CSU option for CS, but I’m not sure of the typical GPA for admits.

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Unfortunately those STEM "C"s, especially in Calc BC will hurt at the reach schools.
I second the alternate schools suggested by others above.

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