So my friend and I just sent in our applications to UC school, unfortunately she ended up getting a D+ in a general education class. All her other classes are A’s and B’s. She is worried that it will effect her chances of getting into any UC. Has she ruined her chances or is there still hope for her?
There is still hope, did she send the transcript in before the D+ or after? If not they won’t be able to see it until she is admitted. If they do see it once she is admitted they probably won’t mention it either. If it is before she send her transcript in then it will affect her. Not so much that she won’t get into UC though. The only ones it might really affect her is UC Berkeley and UCLA. She still has good shot a getting into UCLA though if he stats are middle 50% or higher.
As long as she doesn’t begin her sentences with the word ‘so’, she should be ok. 
Your friend needs to contact the UC’s with her grade information. It will be up to each UC how they will handle her application/decision. There is a specific protocol that should be followed to make sure she gets a fair application review.
Freshmen: If you change schools, add or drop a course, or fail to earn a C or better in a course after you submit your application, you must notify the UC Application Center by email or postal mail. Your correspondence must include your name, UC Application ID number and your signature (if you mail a letter), and will be available to all the campuses to which you applied.
If you receive an offer of admission, be sure to confirm with the campus admission office that they are aware of the deficient grade or schedule changes. Although you must notify the campus of these changes, we cannot guarantee that a campus can go back to review an application after correspondence has been received. Make sure to save a copy of your correspondence just in case.
Email: docs@applyUCsupport.net
Postal mail:
UC Application Center
P.O. Box 1432
Bakersfield, CA 93302
Good Luck to her.
That’s not at all helpful, @reformedman.
@nocontest. That’s not quite how it works.
It won’t impact the acceptance but could result in a cancellation of acceptance once the D is discovered.
The UCs don’t require transcripts during the application phase. Applicants self report all 9-11 grades and include the list of 12th grade courses in progress. They only use 10-11 year grades during the review process
9th grade classes are used to confirm course work requirements. For example that an applicant completed 4 years of English.
A student’s final HS transcript is sent if the student is accepted and decides to enroll. The UC then verifies the self-reported grades/coursework and senior year work in progress against the final transcript.
For senior year grades, the UCs stipulate that a student must maintain a 3.0, receive no more than 2 Cs, and not receive any Ds or Fs. Failure to meet these requirements could result in the cancellation of acceptance. Some UCs might have a slightly different version so the OP should check with each school. I’ve seen students required to take a summer class to make up D/F work and I know of a few cancelations.
For example, here is UCSB 2017 conditions of acceptance.
She does plan to retake the class in the summer if it is offered. Hopefully the course will be offered. @nocontest she did imput that she had a D+ in the class and informed the UC Application Center that she will be retaking the class if possible.