Confused about assist.org and is it fine to double major in biochemistry and computer science in UCs

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

Hello, I’m new to the forums, so help me out if I’ve posted this in the wrong section.

http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=2&sia=SCC&ria=UCLA&ia=UCLA&oia=SCC&aay=15-16&ay=15-16&dora=BIOCHEM

I’m going to be a freshman in a California Community college, and I’m struggling with a few questions that my counselor couldn’t answer with the 10 minute allotted time frame. I thought we could’ve talked more, but guess he was short on time. My counselor told me to look at assist.org for the lower division courses that I need to complete in order to get accepted to UCLA with a lower division. I read through it but I got confused with the layout that the site is using. There are classes that are separated with dashed lines, and classes that are not separated with dashed lines. For example, calculus I, calculus II, and calculus III are all individually separated by dashed lines, so I’m assuming that I have to take all three of the courses. But then there are classes like Animal Biology and Plant Biology, which are not separated by dashed lines, what does this mean? Do I have to take both of them or can I just take one of them? Or what about the classes that are separated by the word “or”. What do I do here? For example, it says chem 420 & chem 421 or chem 425 & 426. How am I supposed to choose here?

Another thing that I want to ask is about my major. I know that I can only have one major in my community college, and my counselor said that I can have the choice of double majoring in a 4 year college. In school, my favorite subject is biology, not so much chemistry, because biology was easy to remember. The physiology of humans fascinates me as well. Outside of school, my favorite activity is gaming, and that made me dream of making a console or pc game. If I had to choose either of these two, I really want to do both. So I’m majoring in either biochemistry or biology in my community college, and hoping to add computer science as my second major once I get into my desired college, UCLA. Or maybe Berkeley… Crosses fingers. So I’m wondering if its possible to double major in these categories?

One thing that I noted about assist.org is that the classes are whats required for a lower division transfer, and I looked it up and it’s supposed to be a sophomore transfer with about 30 semester units. So if I transfer with the prerequisites on assist.org — I honestly don’t understand it — I assume I would get lower division transfer, but then I what if I don’t expand upon my prerequisites. For example, instead of going into a higher level chemistry course, I enroll in classes like history and literature to fill up my units, would I be able to get an upper division transfer?

I’m sorry if this is too much questions, SCC is a bit far from here and my counselor didn’t give me enough time.

2

I used assist.org for history, for that major it would divide things by the box. The right side shows what I needed to take at my CC, above each box it would say what I needed, 1 class from this block of classes, 2 classes from this block, and then there’s one that doesn’t have an equivalent so I’d need to take it there.

There were a bunch of random divides within the different boxes, but my understanding was that any class within the particular selection was acceptable.

3

The page you’ve provided is showing you what is what lower division classes are required to transfer as a Biochemistry major from your college to UCLA. It doesn’t factor in things like your general education courses which is what I assume what you’re asking in your last paragraph (history, literature classes). As a transfer, you can fulfill your general education courses through IGETC.

To learn more about what IGETC is, here is a link provided by your specific college:
https://dms.scc.losrios.edu/alfresco/d/d/workspace/SpacesStore/39fde63d-7203-4ed0-adf2-69ff9b270d7e/scc_igetc_14-15.pdf

Community college does not offer upper division level courses, you would transfer having most if not all of your lower division courses complete so that you could take only upper division courses at your desired UC. The terms lower division and upper division don’t refer to the amount of units you have, it refers to the caliber of the course itself.

In regards to your major, what you decide to major in is completely up to you and theres no need to justify why you want to do what you want to do! (: but double majoring is a very difficult thing to do as a transfer. If the two fields are similar, you might be able to do it because some of the major requirements can overlap, in terms of the two fields you selected, it is highly unlikely that you would have much overlap in terms of classes. What this means would be you would have to take Biochemistry classes as well as CS classes at your CC in order to have the major requirements satisfied. To see the requirements for both, repeat the process on assist.org. Because of the fact that these two majors do not overlap in terms of major requirements, I personally would not opt to double major–especially as a transfer, but to each his/her own.

To put things into light, here are what UCLA requires for CS majors:
http://www.seasoasa.ucla.edu/curric-15-16/29curcomsci-15.html

And here is what they require for Biochemistry majors: http://www.chemistry.ucla.edu/sites/default/files/undergraduate/Biochemistry_Major_2014_2015.pdf

It would be in your favor to complete most of Biochemistry lower divisions and possibly begin the lower divisions courses for CS, otherwise you will have to do all of the requirements when you transfer meaning you would be condensing in two years what is intended to take four.

Regarding how to read assist: the left hand column is the course name/title/number at UCLA and the right hand side is what the course name/title/number at your college. If the courses are portioned together and not separated by dashed lines (ie, PHYSICS 1B-PHYSICS 6C) they are part of a series. The way series work at UC’s is for the most part you will be taking it in order as listed. When it says “or,” it means it in the most literal sense, you can do either of the options and it would satisfy that part of your major requirements.

If you have any other questions let me know!

4

Thank you so much!

5

Thank you so much!