Does anyone know how it is hard to get into CS (upper div) classes at Davis? I’m concerned that I won’t be able to get the classes I need for a long time, and it would delay my plan.
I am also torn between UCSC or Davis for comp sci. I am going in as a third year CC transfers. Any help/suggestions/recommendation/tips on where I should go? I would also like to know how the CS program is at Davis. Pros and cons? Thank you
It’s hard to get classes during pass 1, depending on your class standing. I just registered for fall on Wednesday morning (third day of registration), and it’s the first time in a while that I’ve gotten all my classes during pass 1…even then, I got one of the last seats in one of them. I’m going to be a senior in the fall.
I just looked to see how open seats are doing, and it’s largely full. ECS 120, 140A, and 154A still have seats. Everything else is filled.
BUT! Once pass 2 hits you can waitlist. The department has proven to be pretty accommodating of the waitlists; they’ll expand classes if at all possible if there’s a large waitlist. This quarter I was waitlisted for ECS 150 (required class), I believe I was #13 or so. There ended up being 130ish people on the waitlist, and the department managed to expand enough to let everyone in. The main thing here is to waitlist ASAP, so as soon as your pass 2 time comes up you need to waitlist to have the best chance. Even if a class doesn’t get expanded, keep going to class and keep in contact with the professor and many of them will do what they can to work with you. That happened to me last fall with ECS 120 and the professor eventually gave me an add number because I’d been keeping up with the class and going to office hours.
So honestly, it shouldn’t be much of a problem for you once you’re registering for your second quarter. Especially once you hit senior standing, you should be able to get your classes either during pass 1 or by getting in off the waitlist. You might have some issues getting in for fall because you’re registering after everyone else, but your pass 2 will be in line with everyone else’s and you can waitlist then.
I don’t know how it is at UCSC, but one potentially big negative here is that classes are getting pretty big. A few years ago the classes were a more reasonable size, but now we have around 1100 students in the department (according to the department website) and the class sizes reflect that. Professors for the most part do genuinely care how their students are doing, but with the class sizes it’s on you to actually talk to them. Again, I don’t know how it is at UCSC to know how class sizes are there.
On the plus side, the environment is very cooperative. For me at least, that’s been a big plus; I’d hate to be in an overly competitive/cutthroat environment. There have been several times where I’ve been working with a group on a project in Kemper, and either we overheard another group having trouble and went over to help them, or the other way around. There’s competition, but it’s much more cooperative than it is competitive.
@PhantomVirgo Thanks for the insight! Do you have any idea of how my registration will be for me considering I’ll be a new student, specifically a junior year transfer? As a new student I take it I won’t have much priority, but do I get some type of edge being a junior? I will likely be starting upper div classes right away since I have finished my prereq classes at CC.
You’ll most likely have to waitlist. But as a junior, you’d also be fairly high on the waitlist in most cases and have a better chance of getting in. The waitlisting thing does get annoying, but it’s better than not getting your classes.
When does junior transfer’s sign up for the class???
You sign up during transfer orientation. http://orientation.ucdavis.edu/transfer/
If you can’t go to orientation, I’m not sure when transfers register. The site I linked to might say something about that.