Hello!
I’m a senior in California that after much thought has decided to transfer to a UC instead of taking the freshman path. Because I have a lot of AP credit (about 50 quarter units worth), is it possible for me to transfer into a UC such as Cal or LA (preferably) in one year as a junior transfer? Also, if there is any advice that you guys could give me, it’d be much appreciated. Thank you!
Yes, it’s very possible.
Two one-year transfers that can probably help -
Do you know what you’re interested in studying?
I’m going to go into engineering, probably chemical or computer. My primary concern with engineering is that because it’s such a unit heavy major, I won’t be able to transfer in one year.
@inglebert That’s a valid concern for engineering majors, but keep in mind it might not be a bad idea to transfer in two years. That is, after all, probably the normal time to complete the lower division engineering pre-requisites even with AP credits to help you along (and they will).
Engineering is a competitive field, particularly those two fields of engineering, and while I can tell from your AP courseload you are a very determined and talented student, you’ll want to ensure you can maintain a high GPA to be competitive for UCB/UCLA. That is probably more important to focus on than the time it takes to complete your lower division pre-requisites.
Off the top of my head, I’m sure you’ll need to take math up to diff eq, physics seq. and then either gen+organic chem or comp sci classes which are a lot of units and in a lot of sequences of pre-requisites to each other. Thankfully your AP credit gives you a bit of a jump on most of these, I’ll assume. I’ve done most of those as a math (formerly engineering) major, and I don’t envy you trying to overload on courses for a year straight. I almost went crazy trying to get straight As with 3 math classes and CS this semester (and ended up getting a B in one of them) so it is possible but it will be quite the challenge.
Another possible issue (aside from your GPA) is that you may, in your desire to transfer in one year, be missing some pre-requisites at the time of transfer like OChem or Diff Eq, which would put you at a slight disadvantage when applying to schools, as the two most important considerations for transfer admissions are GPA and completion of major pre-requisites. Cal and UCLA both have many pre-requisites and are more unforgiving than the other UCs in terms of completing them (check assist if you haven’t already). This can be particularly harmful if the class your missing is the last in a series (modern physics or OChem 2nd semester for example) as schools by and large want you to finish series of classes in one school since curriculums often don’t match up exactly.
Not that I want to put you off the idea of transferring in one year necessarily, I think it’s very possible and you have the best setup with AP units to do so. It is not my desire to deter you from your ambitions at all. You should just bear in mind that if your goal is to transfer to Cal/UCLA, then the things that will make or break your application are the things I mentioned above (for the most part). What will absolutely not matter is whether or not you do it in one or two years. The latter is a self-imposed challenge.
@ananguiano Thanks for the super detailed response! Yeah I was looking at assist and after looking at the amount of math courses I’ll have to take, transferring in one year is more difficult than it sounds. Maybe I should really sit down and map out a potential schedule for the next year or two.
By any off chance (and I know this is a UC transfer thread), would someone be able to explain how a transfer to a private school like USC would be compared to a UC? Are they more lax on GEs and pre-req courses or do they have very similar requirements?
@inglebert The USC transfer planning guide: https://camel2.usc.edu/TPG/ lists articulation agreements between USC and most CCs, so look on there. I can’t speak to how rigorous they are, but I would assume fairly so, given their reputation.
I would definitely sit down and make a plan, get familiar with all the classes you plan on taking and in what order you’d have to do them in. Bear in mind as well that you should take classes that will help you decide between the engineering disciplines you are considering by the time applications come around. Remember if you plan on transferring in one year you’ll have to be decided on a major by November.
Also, make sure you look into the TAG program, and other programs like TAP, honors, etc and see if those interest you. Although I’m not sure you could do TAG if you did a one-year transfer because you need a minimum amount of CC units before applying to TAG in September before your app.