<p>Let me start by saying that my ultimate goal is a Master of Real Estate Development from USC or a Master of Urban Planning anywhere in Los Angeles. </p>
<p>With that said, I need help considering all the paths to there. </p>
<p>I am currently a sophomore at the University of Houston where they do not offer any urban planning studies. So before I decided on development, I had applied for architecture and was denied at UH. So now I need to move to CA and I need to find a good school that offers urban planning. I know USC, UCLA, CalPoly Pomona, and UCI all offer urban studies and are my only options that I know of. </p>
<p>The problem is that before I had decided to leave UH, I took courses that were for GE for UH and didn't do so well on them, as well as some pre recs for USC transfer. Here are all my grades so far:</p>
<p>Freshman:
English Comp 1 (C-)
US Hist 2 (B-)
Fund of Math (U) Unsatisfactory (remedial) </p>
<h2>Psychology (C)</h2>
<p>English Comp 2 (B-)
US Hist 1 (D)
Fund of Math (S) Satisfactory (retook remedial)
Poli Sci (D)
Sociology (W)</p>
<p>Sophmore:
Microeconomics (D+)
Geology Lab (A)
Geology Lec (B)
College Algebra (B)
Music Masters (B)</p>
<p>GPA: 2.194</p>
<p>These are not grades I am proud of at all except for the last semester and I still managed to mess up one class for not studying enough. I am going to Pasadena City College Spring semester and applying to USC already for Fall 2012. The problem is that this GPA is so bad that I don't know how the bad grades, which are not even for USC, will be treated. Should I retake all the courses I actually need, like economics, at PCC and do better or will USC not fully consider the random grades? </p>
<p>I was Senior class president, and french club president both senior year and was in student council for 4 years. Im not sure if that will help me enough. I didnt have very good grades in high school either. Should I apply to the UCs later on and retake some classes? This is really complicated for me because I messed up the first year at my old school. Please help!</p>
<p>sorry, IMHO, RIHGHT now you have to concentrate to get your grades up in the CCC, if you do, you can talk about some thing about UC or USC, otherwise, you don’t have a chance.</p>
<p>Dude. I go to UH too and took almost all those classes. Honestly to be blunt, there is no chance for UCLA or USC. Are you a california resident? If you can bring your gpa up to a 2.5 you might have a shot at Cal Poly but if your a texas resident I doubt you have any shot.
Good luck at CC!</p>
<p>Well I am moving there permanently so I wont be coming back to UH. Im withdrawing tomorrow so its a concrete thing. I also feel like the timing is not correct right now to apply, but doesn’t the UC system have an academic renewal or forgiveness that they accept if you redo the courses at a CC? I dont know if I see the point of redoing them though because theyre not GE courses for some of the colleges i mentioned. The plan I talked about was not just for this fall, it is for fall 2013 also and if I have to because I messed up, fall 2014.</p>
<p>USC does not accept any academic forgiveness or renewal program. If you retake the class they consider both grades when determining GPA. However, the UCs are the exact opposite. If a class is repeated, only the most recent grade is counted. They also accept academic renewals. I would talk to a counselor at PCC about the best route to raise your GPA.</p>
<p>Laladyy: I read in the transfer guide for USC yesterday that they dont accept the academic renewal but that my current GPA and the GPA earned at USC would be combined only at graduation to determine honors and standing and such. </p>
<p>What I have thought about is, should I just “restart” at PCC? I cant redo most classes I did at UH because “texas politics” is irrelevant in CA and is not offered. I took two remedial courses and those were not counted for GPA and US history and psychology, those classes are not even related to GE requirements anywhere that I know of. Those were GE for UH which at this point doesnt matter.</p>
<p>What exactly do you mean by restart? Even if courses are irrelevant or remedial, you need to send your UH transcript to any school you apply to and it will be considered along with the rest of your application.</p>
<p>I honestly think the earliest you could apply is for fall 2014. UCLA is a long shot since you went to a 4 year and UCs have a unit cap for such students. You would need a 3.6 or so for USC and that’ll take a while with straight 4.0s. Cal Poly depends on if it’s SLO or Pomona. UCI is your best bet and even that is dependent on how well you’re able to do at a CC</p>
<p>And your grades from UH will be used with your CC grades to determine an overall GPA for USC. From the transfer docs I’ve read, your GPA is cumulative regardless of if those classes transfer</p>
<p>Ok so since I did bad my freshmen year and it ruined the UH GPA, should I try to get the best possible GPA at PCC so it can balance or even outweigh the bad year at UH? I know its going to take time, but at this point I dont care how long it takes as long as I get into a good urban studies program. </p>
<p>Also, my freshmen year, I never took 12 hours or more. Fall was 9 hours that counted for GPA and Spring was 12 hours that counted for GPA. Does anyone think this will help since the bad GPA is based off of a lighter course load and not, lets say, a 15 hour course load?</p>
<p>Yes, gpa is a mathematical formula, so since your courseload was low, there will be relatively less to overcome. However, only take 15 hrs if you can handle ALL the classes. It isn’t going to help you out to get As and Bs in 4 classes and a failing grade in one. Better to take more time and be sure that all your grades are high enough to counteract your earlier low ones.</p>
<p>I am planning to take classes through all the available sessions like summer and winter sessions as well to make up for the bad grades. I dont want to fall even more behind than what im already behind on. Should I try to do community volunteering and some clubs as well to make my applications more acceptable as well?</p>
<p>Note that the UCs disqualify transfer applicants who have both 4year and CC units that exceed a certain number… it differs for each UC, but it starts to kick in around 80 or 84 and almost all disqualify transfer students that have both 4year and CC units at 90 total units. The units, I believe, are ALL attempted transferable units… so your pre-college math wouldn’t count, but if you retook microecon, for the tally count of units, both sets of microecon class units would count toward that total.</p>
<p>Many transfer students are unaware of this restriction for 4year+CCC students and it is a doozy. In other words, if you end up retaking so many classes that you have somewhere over 80-90 units total as a transfer student, you are DISQUALIFIED from being considered for transfer to a UC. They ignore/disqualify your application. The UCs don’t want to take transfers who are in super-senior status or students who have had to go back and redo a year or more worth of classes to rehabilitate their gpas. (NOTE: For students who have only been to a CCC and not the combo 4year+CCC, this restriction does not apply.)</p>
<p>Unless you get a 4.0 or a 3.9+ from this point on at the CCC…no more Ws, either, I think you can pretty much give up on USC as well. You have shown yourself to be an unreliable C/B student at best… USC takes A/A- transfer students. </p>
<p>An EC or two is good, to show that you have a life outside of your gpa. But without that 3.9+ each and every semester here on out, transferring to the UCs, Cal Poly or USC is just not a reasonable goal. GPA is really critical now.</p>
<p>Start researching for some realistic MATCHES, because you are probably going to need them. If you do get that 3.9+ gpa, you may have a miraculous acceptance from one of your listed colleges, but you really need to have a stronger backup plan of safeties and matches even with the 3.9 gpa. I suggest writing back to the forums once you have a semester of grades at a CCC to report.</p>
<p>Well right now I only have 37 attempted units because the remedials dont count. I counted the W for Sociology because it was an attempted course. If I take two more semesters plus a summer session (Spring 15, Summer 6, Fall 15), my attempted units would come to 73, which is right before the first cap you mentioned. </p>
<p>Also, as I mentioned before, I didnt have a 30 unit freshmen year because of the remedials that dont count towards GPA. I finished freshmen year with 24 units instead. I know its only a 4 unit difference but at least that I can make it up in the summer session with 6 units or two classes. </p>
<p>So if I redo my US history 1, psychology, sociology, and microecon, thats 12 units for courses I would need to redo, leaving me with 24 more units or about a semester and a half to finish the GE requirements for USC and all the UCs. To redo my courses, I need only 12 or 15 units because one course, texas poliSci, wont be offered at PCC. So I can redo my bad grades and finish the GE all by 73 units before the cap. </p>
<p>If I do all this and get the 3.9+ grades, without stepping over the 80 unit UC cap limit, is there still a chance? Im not a stupid person, I just didnt study enough and I know it. I always had the overall idea in each class but the little details that you get from reading the books and studying is what messed up my grades in the end. Same thing in high school, I always had As and one class with a C or D. I have pretty much learned my lesson now but I hope its not too late because I cant find any realistic matches because they dont offer urban studies! At least i havent found any schools in LA.</p>
<p>Yes, you should be okay if you stay under 80 credits. But do your homework and find the small print that specifically mentions those limits. Last time I looked was about 3 years ago and the UCs are tweaking their requirements all the time. Lately, with all of the budget troubles, the changes are almost always in the direction of being MORE restrictive rather than less restrictive.</p>
<p>One thing you may want to consider in drafting up your “Plan B” is to find another major that would satisfy what you would need to get into your Masters program. Something similar or complementary–go and ask some target masters universities what kinds of majors and career prep would help you get into their program. Chances are that more than one major can lead to the masters program and that would widen the range of target transfer colleges.</p>
<p>EDIT: I got curious and went and looked at USC Master of RED. Apparently there is no single major required–finance, economics and accounting are big skills, but no single major listed. Sounds like you could attend ANY college and major in something like Econ (minor in finance) or some other kind of thing and be just fine for grad school. I suspect your other target masters programs are the same deal. Widen your net, my friend, with both majors and target transfer schools.</p>
<p>MRED applicants are expected to have preparatory coursework and/or training in general business finance prior to enrollment at USC. Some applicants have already completed such classes as part of a bachelors or masters degree program. Applicants in need of this training should consider university extension programs, community colleges, or specialized training centers as possible sources for this instruction. Applicants are expected to address their preparation in the areas listed below in the written statement with the application for admission. Applicants must demonstrate competency in:</p>
<pre><code>General business finance (including the use of Microsoft Excel)
Accounting
Economics
</code></pre>
<p>In addition, a course on real estate principles may be helpful.</p>
<p>Professional Experience
MRED applicants are required to have a minimum of two years full-time work experience following completion of the bachelors degree. Experience must be in real estate or a closely related field. Students who have worked directly with real estate assets – such as development, construction, architecture, city planning, commercial real estate finance, commercial real estate brokerage, or real estate law – are best prepared for the MRED program.</p>
<p>Yes I had thought about seeking a major that was in those areas, but i thought the best possible major for the MRED program would be an urban studies major that included the business and economics parts already. I have looked at the Plan B you mentioned with similar routes to the MRED program and I will have a talk with the counselors at PCC to choose the best route for me. I choose USC since it would be more convenient to already do the coursework there and just do the undergrad there too. </p>
<p>And it had to be in LA for two reasons. the first is family issues. If I can reduce my loans and financial aid by the 8k or whatever that is charged for housing its better. My family is already going to live in LA so its easy to just stay there. Also, LA is a very great city to study urban planning since its so sprawled out and has major traffic and transportation problems. It would serve as a laboratory for me and any studies we try to do. Also, LA has four major schools with urban studies programs.</p>
<p>I also suggest trying to talk to some current or past MRED students and ask them directly what they believe is the threshold of gpa, courses, real life experience that is needed for USC to take someone into the masters program. </p>
<p>One thing to check out–in some fields, schools are EXTREMELY loathe to take on their own undergraduates into their graduate programs. In other words, the grad school wants to “cross-pollenate” with other schools rather than take up students that grew up in their own undergrad programs. The grad school kicks the newly graduated undergrad student out of the nest. If your school has that policy (even if not written, but obvious when examining who gets in or not) then going to your dream school as an undergrad kills the possibility of going there as a grad student. Not all majors and schools do this, but some do, so ask around. You should ask faculty AND especially students, because students are more likely to give you the real picture vs. faculty who have professional considerations.</p>
<p>annika: Thank you very much for the information that you have given. I will ask around and see because I know they prefer two years of an internship to make yourself more attractive in the application. </p>
<p>I hope anyone who has more information can help out. I will update this thread as I go through the semester and update with more grades also.</p>
<p>Would love to hear an update jrnavid, as I am in the exact same boat. Went to University of Arizona and got horrible grades for one and half years, transferred back to my CC and really raised my GPA. I basically threw out all of the UCs except Berkeley and Irvine (as they don’t have a unit cap… well Berkeley does if you have taken more than 80 units at a 4-year).</p>