I'm thinking about transferring out of UW Madison with low GPA

Hi guys, long story, I’m currently a sophomore now at UW Madison as an out-of-state but my home state is in California. I originally chose UW Madison because I, unfortunately, did not get into a UC. UW Madison is a great school, but it is expensive, I still feel kinda lonely for being far away from home, and I really hated the winter which was brutal. I originally planned to do engineering/pharmacy, but now I am more interested in majoring in math/statistics. I’m trying to transfer in Fall 2020 to UCSB/UC Davis, but I’m considering UC Riverside as well just in case.

Here’s the issue though: my GPA is low (2.92) all because of a bad chem grade, my GPA could’ve been much higher if I didn’t take chem the entire year. I’m gonna have to try to convince my parents that I really want to come home since they felt that UW was a good investment, but I don’t really see it that way and I don’t want to be in a lot of debt. How likely are my chances of transferring to a UC and which schools should I check out?

This link shows UC Transfer GPA by major.

Based on your current GPA, UCR and UCM are your only target schools. UCSB or UCD would require a minimum 3.3-3.4 for you to be a viable applicant.

https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/transfers-major

Some of the Cal states could be an option but since you are transferring from an OOS university, you have the lowest priority even as a CA resident for both UC’s and CSU’s.

DD successfully transferred from WI with poor chem grades and is now at a more economical school with better supports. No experience with CA schools but she was able to get into good schools and stay in engineering. Is it too late to try to transfer for second semester? You might try that to save $ rather than waiting until next year.

I’ve seen this link before. Is UCSC a matching school as well?

Yes, UCSC is a possible Match school. Remember this is 2018 data (the most current available) so the transfer admit ranges are probably slightly higher for 2019. Definitely worth taking a shot.

Below is a link for Cal state average transfer GPA’s (not major specific like the UC link) but it will give you some target CSU’s:

https://www2.calstate.edu/attend/counselor-resources/Documents/transfer-2019-admission-impaction-chart.pdf

For UC’s, since CA community colleges are given the highest transfer priority (next is UC to UC and then CSU to UC), you might want to look into attending a CA cc and then apply to transfer to a UC. Consider not enrolling for UW’s Spring semester and come home to enroll at a CA cc. This might work when you meet the transfer minimum 60 semester/90 quarter lower division units and not go over the cap for transfers (@Gumbymom probably knows the cap). I know people to have gone to a UC or CSU for 1 year or less and then to a community college and subsequently, successfully transferred to a UC. Good luck!

I concur with @UCBUSCalum that withdrawing from UW and attending a CA community college would give the in-state CC advantage. You do have the lowest priority as an OOS transfer. I am sure you are also aware you need a minimum 60 semester/90 quarter UC transferable units by Spring 2020 to meet the UC transfer requirements.

If you continue at UW Madison, you need to check if all your classes are UC transferable and you will meet the minimum GPA and unit requirements for your intended major.

Best of luck.