<p>I'm a CC student right now, and I'm applying for transfer to a university in October. I need to decide precisely where I want to apply to. I'm going to major in either Urban Studies and Planning or Geography (USP is my first choice, but Geography is almost as good. I'm going on to graduate school for Urban Planning, and either degree would get me there.). Right now, my first choices are San Francisco State and San Diego State for USP, and my backups are CSU Long Beach and CSU Los Angeles for Geography. Two of these accept about a third of applicants, two accept about two thirds. I have a transfer GPA of 3.8, with no extracurriculars (though I do have a job on campus). I would love some input on these schools, and suggestions of some I may be overlooking. I also would love advice on how to learn more about the schools I'm looking at, because San Francisco State is the only one I can afford to do a campus visit for (I live in San Jose, so San Francisco is a $9 train ticket away and I can come home the same day I leave, but San Diego is almost a hundred and two transfers, and I have to get a hotel room and everything).</p>
<p>A big thing for me is LGBT friendly climate. I would much prefer to be very near the coast, both do to a massive personal preference towards the ocean and because coastal infrastructure is something I'm interested in working with a lot. I want to be in an urbanized area, because I'm studying to be an urban planner. The ability to get around by bicycle and public transportation is a must, because I don't drive. I'm an avid cyclist, so if the area is horrible for bicycling, that may be an issue. I will live on campus.</p>
<p>Also, should I pick a reach school? I don’t see any of these as reaches with my stats, and I can’t go into the UC system (some of my classes are CSU transferable but not UC transferable, so I have enough units for a CSU but not a UC), but at the same time I haven’t seen anything bad about the four schools I’m looking at now.</p>
<p>I forgot to mention that I took the ACT in 2012 (spring or summer, I forget exactly when). Don’t know if it’s been too long to use the results, but I got 30 composite (25 Math, 25 Science, 34 English, 36 Reading, 6 Writing).</p>
<p>According to ASSIST, CSUN, UCSD, and UCB have urban studies majors.</p>
<p>Geography is widely available at UCs and CSUs, including at relatively local schools to you like SJSU, CSUEB, UCB.</p>
<p>If CSUEB’s geography major is suitable for you (check course catalogs and schedules), then it may be worth adding as a local safety (no campus impaction, and geography is not impacted, so a 2.0 college GPA transfers if you meet the course and unit requirements). Obviously, SJSU is also local to you, but is an impacted campus where all majors are impacted. But the geography major there only needed a 2.0 college GPA to transfer to for fall 2014: <a href=“http://info.sjsu.edu/static/admission/impaction.html”>http://info.sjsu.edu/static/admission/impaction.html</a></p>
<p>How many units short will you be for UCs? If not too many, could you take slight overloads in your schedule to become eligible for UC transfer to open up more options?</p>
<p>Of course, check net price calculators at each school for financial aid estimates.</p>
<p>As it turns out, Cal Poly Ponoma takes CSU transferable courses. That would make a great reach school, methinks, and I have a good enough GPA to have something of a shot.</p>
<p>Have you thought about applying to Cal Poly SLO (City & Regional Planning major)? It’s not a safety. It’s near the beach and has great transportation. </p>
<p>Maybe, but I’d have to take an extra math course and an extra science course, which would put a lot of stress on my last quarter for just one school.</p>
<p>On the other hand, Cal Poly SLO has a combined Geography-Anthropology degree program. I do love me some anthropology, and I’m going to graduate school anyway, so why not have some fun in undergraduate school while still studying the subject I need to know (geography)? Plus, to complete the whole articulation agreement I just have to scrap an one class I’m planning to take as an elective for an anthropology class.</p>
<p>I do believe I could go for this.</p>
<p>EDIT: Just reread the degree description, and SLO bills it at a good degree for urban planning careers. I am totally applying for this. If I don’t get in, there is still SFSU, SDSU, CSULB, CPP, and maybe CSULA.</p>
<p>All of the others in your list have campus impaction, and some have major impaction for your majors, so the GPA threshold will be higher (but only SJSU out of all CSUs seems to list past GPA thresholds, though they can certainly be different this year). However, a 3.8 college GPA is quite high, so it is hard to see even CPSLO being a reach, based on its recent past averages listed at <a href=“Cal Poly Admissions”>Cal Poly Admissions; (although it should not be considered a safety, due to uncertainty of what the GPA threshold will be). San Luis Obispo is not that big a city, if you are looking for urban.</p>
<p>SLO isn’t a big city, but it’s a great college town and there is lots of interaction between the community and college. A bus stops right on campus and SLO students get a free bus pass. It’s also really easy to bike throughout the city. </p>
<p>The 3.8 GPA will get you into any CSU you want. The only thing that will prevent you from being admitted is if you have not met their GE requirements. eg. SDSU want you to have all of your GE’s completed. Also the requirements for your major must be completed. Although it would not stop me from applying because with that high GPA they may overlook the fact that all the GE’s and major requirements have not been met, assuming you have your 60 transferable units. I was admitted to CSULB and SJSU with a 3.6 GPA in Psychology although I ended up with a 3.79 at the end of spring semester. I did not have all the GE’s or major requirements completed although most were. Going to UC Davis though-- transferring from CSU. </p>
<p>re: “The 3.8 GPA will get you into any CSU you want.” Not true…It really depends on the number of transfer slots available, which varies from year to year, versus the number/quality of applicants applying into your major. Good Luck!</p>
<p>I was going to suggest San Jose State as well, but I understand wanting to get away.</p>
<p>Where are you thinking about going for grad school, and what’s your career goal? I happen to encounter a lot of planning folks in my job, and I work in Santa Clara County, so if you’d like to discuss this pm me. </p>
<p>UCSD is within range of the ocean but it is not steps to the beach. If you really look you might see the ocean if you look in certain areas, but you can’t walk to it in a short amount of time. You need to take one of the scenic drives to get down there-at least 2 miles of somewhat walkable terrain. </p>
<p>The only campus, officially, on the beach in San Diego County is Point Loma Nazarene in Point Loma. The students stand their surfboards against their hallways and head for the beach. </p>