Chance me for UC/Cal State Campuses

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

The time to apply is right around the corner, so I thought I’d do one last chance me before then with updated info.
UW : 3.3 GPA
10-11 A-G (W): 3.5909
SAT (1600 Scale) : 1210/1600 ( 1 more sitting for the Oct. 1st test.)
ACT : 24 Composite (Writing Score not released yet.) I will not be taking it again.

AP Scores

AP World History : 4
AP Eng. Lang : 4
APUSH : 4
AP Env. Sci : 2
AP Lit. Comp : 3

12th (In Progress)
AP Comp Sci A
AP Government and Politics
AP Art History

CSU EI Index : 4082 (from my calculations using most recent SAT score.)

Extracurricular Activities

Key Club (Member) - 2 years (Jr./Sr.)
Politics Club (Member) - 2 Years (Jr./Sr)
Programming Club (Club President) - 1 year (Sr.) -
Investors Club (Member) - 1 year
Library Tutor - 1 Year
General Community Service- (i.e- volunteering at community events, cleanups, etc.)
Sales Job (Part-time)

Location : Southern California
Ethnicity : Asian
Grad Year : 2017

Target Majors : I have all but narrowed down my decision on what to major in down to CS, Geology, or Electrical Engineering
Target Schools :

CSU

Sacremento State - Computer Science , Computer Engineering , or Geology
San Jose State - Software Engineering ,Electrical Engineering,Geographic Information Science, or Microbiology
CSU San Marcos - Computer Science
San Diego State- Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or Geology
CSU Fullerton - Computer Science or Electrical Engineering
Cal Poly Pomona - Computer Science or Geology
CSU Chico - Computer Science
CSU East Bay - Computer Science

UCs

UC Merced - Computer Science ( 2nd Choice on app : Toxicology )
UC Riverside - Geophysics/Geology OR CS
UC Davis ( Reach School ) - Geological Sciences or CS
UC Santa Cruz - Geological Sciences or CS

Once again, thank you in advance to who ever responds.

2

Give a try to UC Irvine. You would walk through any of the CSU’s.

3

Duplicate post. Already chanced you on another thread. Other than UCM and UCR, the rest of the UC’s are Reaches for CS. SJSU for CS is slso a Reach. Definitely not a shoo in for SDSU or CPP for CS/EE.

4

I agree - you have a shot at UCM and UCR but, the other are pretty unlikely. SDSU and CPP could go either way. CPP looks at your 2nd choice major so, choose an alternate that is not impacted. SJSU varies widely by major so, choose carefully. Last year’s Eligibility Index threshold for CS was 4300 while EE was just 3300.
http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/narr/static/admission/frosh-f2015impact.html
The rest of the CSUs are very likely to admit you.
Good luck

5

@Gumbymom My apologies regarding the duplicate post. I understand that many of the other UCs and certain CSUs such as San Jose are in fact, reaches. However, for those unis mentioned as reaches for cs (sjsu,ucsc,etc.) I plan instead to apply for different majors with Soft. Engineering or EE at san jose with regard to impaction and EI thresholds. As for the other two UCs on my list, i will solely be applying to UCSC for Geology, and the same for UCD although I understand those are my biggest reaches amongst the schools I am applying to. If I can recall, you did say that Geology would be a easier admit at certain campus. Would it be better towards my admission chances at certain campuses where CS is heavily sought after or not ? Thanks, and once again I apologize for the duplicate post.

6

Sounds like you have a good handle on your chances and a good plan in hand.

Good luck

7

@WongIV: If CS is what you want to study, then I would apply for CS. If you are happy to study Geology, then apply for that major. What you need to decide is getting into the major more important or getting into a particular school more important.

8

@Gumbymom I suppose in my case that depends on the school. For certain schools, location seems to play a somewhat strong role and I wouldn’t mind not majoring in CS to go to a school such as San Diego State if it means I can remain within close enough distance to visit friends and family on occasion. However, for other schools majoring in CS is also a prefrence of mine, hence why I’ve targeted certain schools in the Bay Area, precisely certain CSUs where I seem to have a solid chance and CS at UCR which is close by . Luckily, I also happen to have family up in Northern California, and I was very impressed by the campuses I was able to visit. Realistically, CS remains my top choice, but Geology a close second. If I stay in California I suppose it will work out. I will take your advice into account as the CSU apps are set to open soon since I am still 50/50 on prefered major or desired school.

@ncalrent Thank you !

9

Fit is important when selecting a school. You need to find a school that “fits” you academically, socially and financially, so the best of luck. “Bloom where you are planted” .

10

Remember that if the CS major is substantially harder to get admitted to initially, it will be hard to change into the CS major later if you enroll in some other major or undeclared.

11

Agree with previous posters. Apply where you wish to apply—shifting majors is quite tough, especially for CS.

You can still retake the ACT, so why don’t you? Your SAT is not bad, but it is not that high either. Maybe get it to a 1400 for better chances at your desired schools.

Good luck.

12

@htms13ytk I have been working on the SAT to improve my score, and have put more focus into that rather than the ACT. Contrary to some of my colleagues in school, I am more familiar with and more acclimated towards the SAT then the ACT, and found it much easier in a way. But, thanks for the advice !

@Gumbymom @ucbalumnus Will take note. I will apply for CS at the CSUs and at the UCs mentioned above and hope for the best, but will put a 2nd choice major just in case as I am more interested in majoring in a CS/ CS related major rather than some of the others I was looking through. Thank you for the advice !

13

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1903428-faq-uc-historical-frosh-admit-rates-by-hs-gpa.html may be of some help with the UCs, but since CS is typically a more competitive major, you should assume that admission will be more difficult than may be implied by past admission rates for the campus.

14

@ucbalumnus thank you, i will check it out and take note of the demand of the cs major.

@Gumbymom Quick. but urgent question. I started filling out the CSU App, starting with CPP. In regards to the A-G GPA, my transcript shows a Weighted and Unweighted 10-12th A-G GPA, but is different from the GPA found using the CSU GPA calculator : should I use the weighted one (3.59) or the other mentioned ?

15

Use the CSU GPA. The CSU’s will recalculate based on your self-reported grades if you make a mistake, but decisions are made based on the CSU GPA and test scores.

16

@Gumbymom I also took the SAT on saturday october 1st. I left that portion blank on the applications I was filing out. Should I submit it without the Oct. 1st sitting and only report my 1210 sitting in June, or should I wait until the scores for the most recent SAT come out ? I intend on reporting all three of the sat scores I recieved, but if I can, I would like to not report my ACT score.

and when I send Score reports, do I send them directly to CSUMentor, or should I send the scores indiviually to each CSU campus im applying to ?

Many thanks in advance.

17

If you send your SAT scores to CSUMentor code 3594 (which happens to be SAT code for CSU Long Beach, all CSU campuses will receive the scores. No need to send one by one.

18

If you want to submit your application now, you can put planned on the SAT test for Oct 1 and submit. Once the scores are in, you can then send in the scores. You only have to send SAT or ACT. Just do not report the ACT on the application if you do not plan to send.

19

I have used my free SAT Score reports to send out the scores to the colleges Im applying to. All of my CSU apps are finished and submitted. All that remains is the UC Application for certain schools. How long should I expect to wait to hear back about admissions decisions ?

also thanks to @Gumbymom and others for giving me advice throughout my posts on CC. I really appriciate it !

20

Some Cal states will let you know as early as Mid December but the majority of Cal state decisions will be February-March. UC’s notify in March. Some do rolling acceptances: UCR/UCI which can let you know late Feb-March. Most notify you on one specific day in March. You need to set up a application status portal for each school. You will be sent information and how to set these up in a few weeks.