Hello,
I’m going to be a Junior this fall and I was wondering what I should do in order to get into UC’s. My unweighted GPA is a 3.528 and my weighted GPA is a 4.028. I have no C’s, D’s, or F’s on my transcript. All are filled with A’s and B’s. I am involved in many clubs and sports and I received a 175 on my PSAT last year in October. It was my first time taking the test and I am going to take the redesigned SAT this upcoming spring. I plan to score a 1300+ on the SAT and I am also preparing for the ACT as well. I am an out-of-state student btw, living in Nevada.
First question, can you afford the OOS tuition? It will be $58k per year.
There is no financial aid for non residents. That’s a lot of money.
You need to have a really strong GPA and high test scores plus meet the a-g requirements.
It seems to me that you will need a higher total SAT to be competitive.
Here is UCLA’s freshman profile http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/adm_fr/Frosh_Prof14.htm which as you probably know behind Berkeley, is hard to get in to.
Will you have the $55K+ per year to pay for it? There isn’t much $ for OOS to attend our state schools.
Perhaps check back in and report your scores.
@Happy2Help You’re definitely right. My aim is for anything above a 1300/1600. I really want to go to UCLA or UCSD. I also understand that tuition will be expensive, but there are things called scholarships and loans. I’m also only taking Honors and AP classes.
@“aunt bea” I cannot afford tuition but I will be applying for financial aid and scholarships and loans. I will do everything I can to pay off college expenses.
UC applications are reviewed based on 14 areas of criteria with UC GPA/Test scores and HS course rigor being the most important. EC’s with leadership and your 2 UC essays are also highly considered. You are on the right track with your grades, so keep up the good work. Depending upon which UC’s you are targeting, the higher the SAT score, the better. Here is a spreadsheet of the average UC GPA and test scores for all campuses this past year to give you an idea of how your compare. Also there is a link to calculate your UC GPA at the end of Junior year. As an OOS applicant, you can only use AP/IB classes for the 8 extra honors points in the calculation for 10-11th grades.
You also want to make sure you meet the a-g course requirements for the UC’s.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/requirements/a-g-requirements/
https://www.dropbox.com/s/jj0d3ttxoxw6pwo/uc%20stats.xlsx?dl=0
http://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
The only other item to mention is the cost as an OOS student. UC’s will cost you around $55K+/year with little to no financial aid, so make sure you family can afford this cost. The best aid comes from the schools themselves and it is unlikely that you would be able to get enough scholarship money and FA to meet the UC price tag. Remember much of the FA for California residents comes from Cal Grants and Blue and Gold scholarships available only to in-state residents. Run the Net Price Calculators for these schools to see if they are even worth applying.
Good Luck.
@Gumbymom Thanks for your response. I’m definitely leaning to UCLA, UCSD, and UCI. My brother currently attends UCLA and is going into his junior year this fall. He told me he had around the same grades as me in high school, but during his junior year, he had earned straight A’s with AP classes and honors only
“I also understand that tuition will be expensive, but there are things called scholarships and loans.” Please don’t insult the posters who are much more experienced and knowledgeable than you.
You don’t seem to understand that non residents don’t get much in scholarships and loans. Why would the state fund a non tax-paying resident when there are so many state residents to choose from with higher stats?
The price will be $58k.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/paying-for-uc/tuition-and-cost/
The state is also placing a cap on non-residents. How is your brother paying the bill?
Per year.
@“aunt bea” I’m sorry if I offended you in any way. That was not my intention. I completely understand what you are saying and I know that out-of-state college students pay about $24,000 more than in-state students. I was just wondering how to get into the schools. How my brother is paying the bill is irrelevant to what we are focusing on.
Again, sorry if I offended you in any way
Really, how your brother is paying, is irrelevant? How? It will not be cheaper for you than for him.
It’s not just $24k, the total is $58k per year. The government will not allow you to take out that much in loans.
Your current GPA and PSAT will not get you into your first choices and part of that reason is that you are not competitive with the instate residents.
If you were to be admitted on the remotest chance, how would you pay?
You asked for advice, experienced people have answered, and you don’t lIke the answers. We’re the ones who pay our kids’ tuition and housing and compare notes with other parents.
I attended UCLA and so does my D. My son attends an OOS AZ private university so I do know what I’m talking about.
Please check back in when you have your test scores and junior year grades. You’ll get updated advice based on this new information.
You GPA and SAT need to come up significantly to be a competitive applicant - You’ll need straight As this year and a 2100+ SAT to have a shot. Or, you could take up football or basketball and have them recruit you…
@Happy2Help I’m really sorry
I understand where you’re coming from but I’m just really stressed because of this. I really wanna get into the best universities in California and I have confidence in myself that I can do it but I need to get straight A’s forsure this year
Also really high SAT/ACT scores. @Happy2Help
I’m gonna work my hardest this year
That’s a good plan so let us know how your grades and test scores are next June.
Meanwhile make some plans to visit some UCs. Include some backup CSUs, CCs, and UNLV.