How hard is to get into UC from CC?

I am a private art college student, and planning to go to community college from this fall to transfer to UC. (Business major)
So my question is, how hard is to get into UC from CCC?
Most of my current classes are art-related, so I think those are not comparable to liberal art courses in CC- so I will talk about my high school grades.
I went to one of the top-ranked public high school in California, took few AP & Honors classes. (For AP, I took only one–AP Calc AB–and got 5 on the AP exam) I didn’t take a lot of AP classes since I desired to go to art school. The overall Unweighted GPA over the four years was about 3.7. (My high school doesn’t use weighted gpa system)

Community college that I am trying to attend is De Anza (this is the nearest school from my parents’ house… :slight_smile: ). And I heard that De Anza has very high transfer rate.
Do you think if I can maintain about that GPA (of course, I will try my best to earn high GPA & I haven’t attend CC yet so I am not sure about how hard will the classes be), will I get into decent UC as transfer student?

Thank you! :slight_smile:

Level of difficulty depends on which UC, but in general, it is very common. About 1/3 of UC graduates started at CC and CC transfers have priority over oos applicants. Focus on maintaining a high GPA, extracurriculars, and relationships with professors.

If you complete all the courses required and do well, it’s not difficult.

Business though is hard to get into at the 3 UC’s that offer it, and Berkeley–if that’s what you’re interested in–is incredibly difficult to transfer into.

Transferring in general isn’t difficult but it gets more difficult when trying to get into impacted or competitive majors, like business.

@briank82 Well I want to go to Berkeley (of course) but I am not targeting only Berkeley, so… and I am also looking for kinda business-involved majors such as econ, managerial econ(Davis), managerial science, international business (ucsd), etc. :slight_smile:
And I have one question: Do I need to finish all the pre-reqs and IGETC BEFORE applying? Or can I finish them in remaining winter & spring quarters? (like can I just write on the app that I am going to finish those courses later rather than finishing before the applying deadline?)

Going to UCs from CCC route is definitely easier than from straight from high school. I’m a transfer student from a CCC. From my experience, keep your GPA high from the beginning. It may seem nonsense to some people, like gpa just a number there’s more etc… Wrong wrong wrong. Once it slips it’s hard to pull it up. There was one semester I was busy working while studying and my Gpa dropped from a 4 to a 3.6. I studied hard since then, very hard and regretted letting it slip.

Going to SOME UCs is just a number game. You gotta have good scores. Maybe I’ve not stressed this enough. Protect your GPA. Once it drops, it’s way harder to pull it up. My friend got to UCSD with 3.6 ish gpa, prerequisites done, one job, no EC, sloppy essay (full of grammatical errors, she told me) as a bio major. She also got in UCR and UCI. The two exceptions are UCB and UCLA, but the most important factor is still GPA.

@mariahlopez1 Thanks :slight_smile: Should I finish all the prereqs before applying?? Or can I finish them in winter & spring quarter?(after turning in apps)

@ahffktlqkf Also for your question, my advice is getting those prereg done by the time you apply if you could. Schools (esp Berkeley) strongly want to see all of preregs done. The last semester/quarter at ccc you should choose some easy classes and NON-RELATED to your major. Because once you got accepted, there’s a contract called provisional admission, if you said you would complete certain classes in your last semester but things did happen and you couldn’t complete it, it would be high chance for you to get rescinded.

@mariahlopez1 Thank you. :slight_smile: Then should I finish prereqs first, and then finish IGETC? I heard that for TAG I should finish two English courses and one math course in first year so I was planning to just finish all the IGETC stuff and focus on major-related courses in second year in CC. I planned out my two-year plans with all the prereqs and IGETC, and it will take full two years (maybe the last spring semester I can take whatever classes since I will be almost done with all the required courses). I know that both prereqs and IGETC have to be done before transferring, but should I finish all the prereqs first? (or mix up prereqs + IGETC??)

No, please don’t separate them. You can mix up the two and should maintain full-time. The GE (general ed) classes tend to be easier than the major prep. For example you can take 2 major prep and one g.e class your first semester to see how you handle it. Also take the advantage of taking GE during summer.

From my experience, the two english classes are VERY VERY important. It counts toward the prep for grad school too so take them seriously. Research the professor carefully (go to ratemyprofessor.com).

@mariahlopez1 Also I have one more question (I’m sorry if I’m asking too many questions… :frowning: ), in your CC, was it common to withdraw from previous school and come to CC, and prepare for transferring? I know many people attend CC right after high school, many of my friends(especially who recently came from foreign countries) do that, but I’ve rarely seen people who withdraw from college > go to CC > prepare for transferring. (Also I’ve already spent first year in my current college, so…)

I know a girl withdrew from Duke and attended my CC. Because you come from a 4 year uni, you should be aware of the unit capped things. UCs set limit to those transfer from a 4-year school the CC then 4-year. How many units have you taken so far? In any case, you should contact the school you want to apply to to ask about it first before you attempt to take many credits then know that those are non-transferable and may affect your admittance!

@mariahlopez1 I have 36 semester credits(when I converted to quarter then 54) in current college, 18 credits for each semester. Will ALL of my courses transfer?? (If they do then I will have too much credits since I have to take all the prereqs and IGETC courses in CC) Most of my courses that I am taking right now are not even related to business, such as drawing & design classes. If they do not count as transferable credits, then where do they go??

well I mean some courses from private school are not articulated with UC schools. Classes in CCC do.

@mariahlopez1 Yeah so will those not-articulated courses (or non-transferable courses?) will NOT count as that unit cap thing???

I’m not too sure about this. You should always ask about this. Ask your CCC counselor first, then the UC admission counselor.

UCB: Each of the individual colleges and the Haas School of Business establishes its own unit limitation policies for students who have attended a four-year institution before enrolling at a community college:
College of Letters and Science: A student who has accumulated more than 80 transferable semester units from a four-year institution is considered to have excess units and will not be admitted. A student who has completed 80 or fewer UC-transferable semester units at a four-year university and then transfers to a community college will not accrue excess units and will be considered for admission.
Students who have only attended a community college will be granted subject credit, but not unit credit, for appropriate two-year college coursework taken in excess of the community college 70-unit limit; such subject credit may be used to satisfy/complete requirements.
College of Environmental Design: This college follows the same unit accumulation policy as the College of Letters and Science (see above), except that its limit on transferable coursework taken at a four-year university is 86 semester units.
Other colleges: UC Berkeley’s other colleges total both university units and a maximum of 70 community college UC-transferable units. The limits on combined transferable university and community college work are as follows:
• College of Chemistry: 80 semester units; applicants with more than 80 units require special approval.
• College of Engineering: 89 semester units.
• College of Natural Resources: 90 semester units. Though the College does not have a specific unit limitation, it carefully reviews applicants with 90 or more
10
semester units to ensure that they can graduate within a reasonable time.
• Haas School of Business: No maximum limit.

UCD: Applications from students who have completed 80 or more transferable semester units (120 or more transferable quarter units) of combined baccalaureate institution and community college coursework are subject to review by the deans of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the College of Letters and Science and the College of Biological Sciences. Units earned through AP or IB examinations are counted separately for this purpose; AP and IB units do not put applicants at risk of being denied admission or of having an admissions decision delayed due to a dean’s review. Applicants subject to review will be admitted if a dean’s assessment is that the student is making good progress toward the baccalaureate degree and can complete the degree within the college’s maximum unit limit. All transfer applications to the College of Engineering undergo careful screening to assess the level of academic preparation for the major; the College of Engineering does not conduct a separate review of applicants who have 80 or more transferable semester units (120 or more transferable quarter units) of combined baccalaureate institution/community college work. Students who are well prepared for the majors will be admitted to the College of Engineering even if they exceed the 80/120-unit standard.

UCI: UC Irvine does not set a limit on the number of units an applicant may earn at a four-year institution before enrolling at a community college. It is important to note, however, that at least 36 of the final 45 quarter completed by a student for the bachelor’s degree must be earned in residence at the UCI campus.

UCLA: With the exception of the School of Nursing (postlicensure), UCLA generally considers a student who has accumulated more than 86 transferable semester units (130 transferable quarter units) at a university to have exceeded maximum units allowable for admission. Such a student will not be admitted. For the College of Letters and Science, a student who completed 86 or fewer UC-transferable semester units (130 or fewer transferable quarter units) at a university then transferred to, and remained exclusively at, a community college does not exceed the maximum units allowable for admission purposes.

UCM: A student who has accumulated more than 80 transferable semester units from a four-year institution is considered to have excess units and will not be admitted. A student who has completed 80 or fewer UC-transferable semester units at a four-year university and then transfers to a community college will not accrue excess units and will be considered for admission.
Students who have only attended a community college will be granted subject credit, but not unit credit, for appropriate two-year college coursework taken in excess of the community college 70-unit limit; such subject credit may be used to satisfy/complete requirements.

UCR: UC Riverside does not limit the number of units an applicant may earn at a four-year institution before enrolling at a community college. However, UC-eligible applicants who have attended a four-year institution and who present 80 or more semester (120 or more quarter) units in transfer credit will be reviewed by the dean of the college for completion of a specified pattern of courses that provides continuity with upper-division courses within the major. An applicant will be admitted if the dean’s office determines that the student can complete a baccalaureate degree within the maximum limit of 216 quarter units.

UCSD: UC San Diego considers a student with more than 90 transferable semester units (135 quarter units) from the combination of a two-year and a four-year institution to be in senior standing. UCSD sets a 90 semester unit limit when a student has attended both a two-year and a four-year institution. UCSD will transfer a maximum of 70 semester units from a community college; the admissions staff looks for those students who have accumulated 90 or fewer semester units.

UCSB: The College of Letters and Science does not accept applications from students who have earned 135 or more transferable quarter (90 or more semester) units from a combination of two-year and four-year institutions.

UCSC: UC Santa Cruz does not accept applications from students who have earned 135 or more transferable quarter (90 or more semester) units from a four-year institution or a combination of two-year and four-year institutions. This campuswide policy is not subject to college or departmental interpretation.

Credit goes to Mr Google.

And also, where does that not-articulated courses go, then?? (again, sorry for asking too many questions…) As elective? I’ve researched about it and there is some “subject credit” thing-- and I am not sure what exactly it is. Does that mean I am able to apply to UC as long as the all the exceeded credits are not articulated / not transferable?

@mariahlopez1 Thank you so much for that info. :slight_smile: Do you know anything about the “subject credit” thing tho??

Sorry I don’t have answer for this question. To be sure you should ask the academic counselors though. Subject credit thing refers to students take many credits at CCC only, not any 4 year institutions. For example my friend got in to UCLA chemistry major with around 100 units from only CCC. UCLA accepts around 70 units, then the 30 goes to “subject credit”, which means you get credit for those classes, but not the GPA. The priority is usually igetc and major prep. Anything beyond that are generally counted as subject credit.

Hi there! Sorry for bumping up this thread. I am a De Anza student and I am transferring to UC Berkeley this fall. I fulfilled prereqs for both UCLA Bus Econ and UCB Econ and also did the IGETC. I am going to attend UCB/Cal’s college of L&S.

I did EWRT2 (the last english class) on the spring quarter prior to transferring but I do not recommend taking the class on the last quarter because it might hurt yor chances. I tried to finish all major pre reqs as quickly as possible but I did not finish the IGETC until my last quarter in De Anza.

If you are interested in Econ, it does not hurt to apply as an Econ major (though you’ll be admitted as ‘undeclared’) in Cal because it is WAY easier to get into Econ rather than Haas. I wanted to apply to Haas at first but it was too risky so I opted for Econ.

Classes in De Anza are super easy compared to high school. The classes are fairly small and it’s easy to contact the instructors here. Most people here enjoy their college life.

Your HS profile sounds similar-ish to mine. I went to a fairly middle-of-the-road HS and had something like a 3.7 unweighted GPA, though with more APs. I think CC is a great way to go in your position. Main recommendation would be to try to join stuff like Student Government or clubs. it can be easy to get “stuck” in CC, but there are going to be random groups (it’s different for every CC) that have tribal knowledge that would help you navigate things more effectively.

Also look into stuff like TAG (transfer admission guarantee, though it doesn’t apply to UCB/UCLA).