<p>I don't see too many people are transferring as engineering major. So I just want to start a thread for these who are applying for UC engineering schools. So we can share some information and maybe help one another out when we have questions.</p>
<p>Ok, I do have a question which I've asked in another thread. But i just want to ask it here as well. </p>
<p>Is IGETC not required for engineering students?</p>
<p>Even though I’m no engineering major myself, I’m also curious since I’m looking to transfer into biological sciences. It also has a very long and dense list of lower-division courses and would be impossible to fully complete while fulfilling the IGETC in 2 years at a community college.</p>
<p>If it’s any help, I’ve been told both on here and by a counselor that it’s best to complete the IGETC while tackling as many pre-requisites for your major as possible. And it does make sense, considering the TAG agreement for transferring to a UC school includes completing the IGETC.</p>
<p>^^^Agreed. If I was a liberal arts major I could have easily done everything in 2 years or less. But with the vast list of GE’s and pre-reqs, also with fewer classes due to budget cuts, it’s pretty much impossible to get it all done in 2 years. Unless of course you start with all the college classes and not the introductory once. And let’s face it, most of us going to CC probably didn’t do so hot in high school so we’re starting out in lower math/science classes.</p>
<p>I’m personally staying for 3 years which is alright, but potentially a 4th because I can’t fit physics into my schedule at all and I’d really like to get it out of the way. Plus with fewer classes there’s a chance I i’d have to delay everything else.</p>
<p>Keep the thread up.</p>
<p>Ok, it seems IGETC is not required as a must for engineering students. </p>
<p>What kind of engineering are you going for? Mind posting your stats? and schools you want to go?</p>
<p>IGETC is not even recommended for engineering students nor bio students if one knows for sure that is what they want to accomplish. Also don’t be intimidated by people being rejected by the popular UC’s. At least half to 3/4 of the applicants who were rejected were so because didn’t have the requirements and applied prematurely.</p>
<p>Hi Kmazza, thanks for your reply. But what do you mean by applied prematurely?</p>
<p>I think what Kmazza means by applying prematurely is that these applicants had not completed most of their pre-reqs at the time of application and most likely didnt finish them by the semester prior to transferring. Therefore, they were placed in the back of the applicant and rejected because others have these classes done and will be on track to graduate sooner.
Back to the original question. IMO most UC’s (the high tier UCLA/BERK/SD) will definitely not want you to follow IGETC simply because its not practical for Eng students. Although I’m pretty sure there are lower division GE classes you still need to complete as an engineer, the universities want to see that youre actually a competitive student in the fields of math/science/logic, whereas GE classes aren’t given much weight because (not to sound condescending but) they really are simple compared to physics and computer engineering. Also, these GE classes can easily be scheduled in once you have transferred as an engineer, which will lighten your courseload/stress and promote better progress through your major.</p>
<p>No matter what though you still need at least the primary 7 course GE breadth classes which has come more in synch with IGETC over the years. It helps but doesn’t matter if you do not know what Engineering degree you plan on pursuing when transferring. The UC’s aren’t concerned if you are a ‘competitive’ student, all they care about is that you can make it through in TWO years these days. It makes no difference to them if you got straight B’s as their primary concern is maintaining a high matriculation and graduation rate and opening up a seat.</p>
<p>Thanks SH4DOWZ. I see what you mean. It is true that finishing as much as pre-reqs is a very important factor.</p>
<p>For most engineering students, we are asked to finish 100% of the core classes which are basically math, physics, plus english. There are also quite a few strongly recommended classes which you take then your more competitive during their selection. But things may also get complicated when there are so many applicants coming in with different packages. Suppose one student has 4.0 with 100% core completed, but due to time limitation, he only managed to finish very few recommended classes, while another student finished 100% core plus 80% recommended classes but having only a 3.7ish GPA? Who stands a better chance?</p>
<p>Isn’t education about quality? How can school like UCB not to select the brightest just because the matriculation concern. But anyway, maybe it is how school runs nowadays. Fact is often not ideal. As students we can’t take care of that part.</p>
<p>It’s more the concern of the impacted programs and Berkeley will only let you petition one additional semester if are close to finished and even don’t like doing that anymore. Realize that UCB judges applicants on a holistic basis in regards to your academic struggles and life obstacles and how you approached them in a creative problem solving manner. From my experience it wasn’t all that unusual to see prospective UCB students spend 5 years at a CCC to properly prepare them for Berkeley’s COE. It is one of the best public University engineering departments in the US and yes difficult to get into but certainly not impossible. All my friends who put in the time and effort all got accepted in Berkeley’s COE. If you completed the 5 course Calc sequence, 4-5 Physics, and at least 2-3 Gen Chem it shouldn’t be all too difficult for a CCC student plus will save you money. The only other requirement is completing the Arts/Humanities and Social/Behavioral GE requirement. They like and tend to favor when you know what you want to major in prior and you only get 1 semester to decide which Engineering track you plan on going down. I really like Cal’s Civ and Environmental Engineering program but tend to think think there are better paying and more opportunities for Chem and Mech Engineers out there these days over Electrical, Civ and Comp Engineering.</p>