I am a high school senior who will begin attending UCLA in Fall 2016 as a freshmen. I applied to other several UC campuses (UC Davis, San Diego, Berkeley, and Irvine), and I got accepted to all but Berkeley. I am really happy that I got accepted to UCLA.
However, in light of my personal preferences, I would like to transfer to Berkeley about two years later as a junior transfer for the College of Letters and Sciences. I understand that UCLA is a great school with great education. The reasons of my transfer plan are, of course, not relative to my questions shown below. Could you please answer them without any mention of how you think of my future transfer plan (i.e. whether I should transfer or not)?
FYI: I have already read from Berkeley Transfer Admission website that “students who wish to transfer to Berkeley from another UC campus are considered in light of their personal circumstances and the availability of space in their prospective major; these students must apply as junior transfers with a minimum of 60–80 semester units (not to exceed 90–120 quarter units). These units must be completed by the end of the spring prior to fall matriculation” I also know that CCC applicants have first priority.
Preliminary information: I am an international student who attended an American high school in Kansas for all four years.
(1) If you got accepted to Berkeley from another UC campus as a transfer, could you please post your full stat below?
(2) I do not have a single AP credit from high school (I didn’t take any AP exams and my high school doesn’t offer any AP courses). What courses should I take in the first two years? I know that this is a personal question, but I would like to know the courses that would make me a competitive applicant. Please consider the fact that UCLA has a quarter system, not semester like Berkeley. I’m planning to major in mathematics.
(3) I know that UCLA offer summer cessions in which I can take lectures and pursue credits during the summer break. Should I take this? About how much does it cost for me to stay and take courses in UCLA during summer?
(1) Few people transfer from other UCs to Berkeley. It will be very near impossible to transfer from UCLA to Berkeley. If you have your heart set on Berkeley (for whatever reason), it is far more manageable to attend a community college in California and try to transfer from there. CCC’s have priority for transfer, and the classes are generally easier than those at the top UC’s - so, your GPA will likely be higher, and you will have better chances of being accepted. You will be saving two years of OOS tuition by doing that as well (~100k for a UCB degree as opposed to ~200k).
(2) You should take courses that satisfy the lower-division requirements for Berkeley’s Mathematics major. So look at Berkeley’s Math major page to see what you’ll need, and then look at UCLA’s course listings to see which courses are comparable. Note - they must match. Berkeley’s calculus classes can be a bit weird (some classes have their own textbook that is specific to Berkeley - go figure), so it’s possible that not everything will transfer over. It would also be a good idea to take breadth classes, or fulfill UC reciprocity. I don’t know the specific details for fulfilling UC reciprocity - but essentially, from my understanding, completing it at one UC will satisfy all general education requirements at another UC. I don’t think it’s a requirement, but it’s good to complete.
You don’t need AP units, but you will have to take many units to compensate - taking summer sessions can offset the amount of classes you will have to take during the regular school year. So taking summer classes is a good idea - just don’t burn out.
(3) You’ll probably have to. They’re expensive, by the unit. You may be able to take CC classes over the summer (they’re much cheaper) - but you should talk to a counselor at UCLA about that.
(4) It’s for CA community college students. It satisfies all general education requirements at any UC/CSU, for most majors. If you were to attend CC, I’m not sure it would be best to complete IGETC - it may be better to complete the L&S requirements. But because you plan to attend UCLA, it won’t apply to you.
Again, if you have your heart set on Berkeley, don’t go to UCLA (I say this only because you obviously have strong reasons for wanting to attend Berkeley - I think sticking with UCLA would be ideal, for a number of reasons that I will mention only if you ask). Transferring from a CC is very possible.
Whether you stay at UCLA or transfer somewhere else, you will need to take the lower division math courses:
Math 31A, 31B, 32A, 32B, 33A, 33B (these cover the same content in UCB Math 1A, 1B, 53, 54)
You also need to complete at least some general education requirements, such as reading and composition and foreign language, or have a letter of reciprocity from UCLA after completing general education requirements there, for transfer purposes. But you need to do the UCLA general education requirements anyway if you stay there. See the following: http://www.registrar.ucla.edu/ge/GE-LS15-16.pdf http://ls-advise.berkeley.edu/requirement/summary.html
One of the most well known great mathematicians is currently on the faculty at UCLA.