I was waitlisted at UCSD and am going to be a freshman at SDSU. However UCSD is my dream school, and I already live in the San Diego area and both schools are fairly close to me.
I decided to take some summer community college classes to satisfy GE requirements for SDSU. Upon signing up I realized to complete the IGETC I only needed three courses to do in the summer, which I plan on doing which would satisfy GE’s for SDSU and UCSD.
I plan on majoring in political science. The reason I am also going to SDSU while at the same time doing all online classes at my local community college is to ensure that they are transferrable to UCSD when I transfer. I am afraid that the SDSU courses will not transfer due to there not being an agreement between them and UCSD. By taking those 3 courses I would have satisfied the 60 semester unit requirement that is needed to transfer to a UC. Along with that I am taking two online courses in the fall at the local community college for subjects that I find interesting (music) as it is my hobby.
I was wondering at this point if I should go to SDSU at all, because I heard that the transfer process heavily favors California Community College students. Would I get less priority when I apply to transfer if the admissions officers see SDSU on my list of coursework, and that I am attending it at the same time as a local community college? I am afraid that attending SDSU would hurt my chances of transferring, and that it would be better to go just to the community college. However SDSU in my mind would be a safety school, just in case I get denied the transfer to UCSD, at least I would still be going to SDSU.
Along with that, my total GPA for my California community college as of right now is a 4.0 .
Yes, CC to UC transfers get priority over CSU to UC transfers. Since the articulation agreements through assist.org are targeted for CC transfers, it is a much straightforward pathway than CSU to UC. Deciding to not go to SDSU is your decision but since UCSD does not offer TAG, there is no guarantee that you will be accepted to UCSD. What is your backup plan just in case?
Do you qualify for the UCSD University Link program? UniversityLink
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If your only reason for attending SDSU at this time is to preserve it as a safety option, I don’t think you have to. Transfer admissions there, from CC, are very straightforward, and you would have to mess up something very badly at your local CC, to lose the option of continuing to SDSU in the event that you don’t get into UCSD or another option you like better. Political Science is an impacted major, but not heavily - the GPA threshold for fall transfer applicants (referenced here: Minimum GPA Requirements | SDSU) is only 2.4 - and the bump you’d get for being local brings that down even more. It doesn’t sound to me as if there’s any real risk of your not making that cut.
The other question is whether there’s anything else you don’t want to miss out on, by foregoing first-year matriculation to SDSU. Were you planning to live on campus? Would you be in the Honors College? Are there particular EC’s that you’d participate in? There’s always the chance that you would like it better than you expect; and a lot happens socially in your freshman year. Academically speaking, a lot of lower-division classes will be substantially the same at CC vs. SDSU, and class sizes will likely be smaller at CC; although if you’re in Weber Honors and would have honors-specific versions of those classes, that could be a point in favor of taking them at SDSU.
But if you’re truly intent on UCSD, it sounds like you’d have a strong chance, if you keep up your high CC GPA; and it’s true that applying as a CC student would be more advantageous than as a CSU-to-UC applicant. And as a backup, you could land at SDSU either way. So really, the question is whether the value of the first-year experience at SDSU is worth giving up, to go all-in for the UC transfer.
Would you be able to be in a honors program at the CC? This can be a help in terms of UC transfer.
I hate to encourage you to pass up SDSU, as I suspect it would be a much better experience than you anticipate… but if your only reason for attending is to preserve the transfer option, there’s no need.
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Agree. My nephew’s best friend, attended UCSD while my nephew attended San Diego State. Both attended the same HS school in Chula Vista. The friend always came onto the San Diego State campus because there was “more to do” and a “better vibe/school spirit”.
You are putting “all of your eggs in one basket” by assuming that you’ll be accepted at UCSD. If you were rejected, you might be rejected again because not much will have changed, within the past year, except coursework.
My other nephew, attended SDSU and majored in political science. He was planning on going to law school but realized that the market was over-saturated and the hours were intense. He did have internship in Sacramento, at the Capitol.
He loved his time at San Diego State. It’s a bit more collaborative than UCSD. Edited to add: this nephew changed majors from Poli Sci to Construction Management and loves it! Go Aztecs!
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At various places on UC websites they say "A CCC transfer student is one who has completed at least 30 semester (45 quarter) UC-transferable units at one or more California community college. " Such as at https://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/_assets/files/transfer-requirements/tag-matrix-23-24.pdf
So another question is how did you accumulate your units? If enough are from dual enrollment you may qualify but if they are mostly AP then maybe not unless you take classes in addition to the 3 you mention. I suggest you contact UCSD admissions with your planned courses and ask them if you’re trying to use the CCC advantage.
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I agree that I thought a good majority of your units had to be completed at the CCC.
You need to talk to a counselor at the CC. Some credits that the CC accepts will not transition to the universities.
Most of my children’s AP classes were used for rank credits at their UC/Caltech/SUNY and a few AP credits met prerequisite credits, but no HS classes were really used to “waive” 2 years of GE’s. They still had to take “College __________, 101”.