<p>I'm a Mom of a junior. I'm trying to learn as much as possible about admissions to the UC system to provide useful suggestions to my daughter in case she asks me (she'll ask when she's unsure what to do)..
We live in CA
She's a junior in highly competitive private HS -
UW gpa 3.38, W gpa 3.82
She's not in the top 25% of her class
A lot of community service
A lot of extracurricular activities
We don't have SAT scores yet
I would like to know if there is something she should be doing to increase her chances to get into a 1st tier UC college such as Berkeley. I know she has little chance. But is there something to do that will help her to increase her chances? maybe more community service, summer classes in a community college? a summer job? ? Thanks a lot in advance.</p>
<p>I think the main stumbling block is grades. Even with great SATs, it probably won't be enough. So many kids have 4.0+ GPAs, there isn't a lot of room to admit students with lower stats.</p>
<p>Of the three things you list, summer courses might help the most, I would think. But I wouldn't exagger the kind of difference that might make.</p>
<p>EC, community service, and work experience all help. Grades are going to be a huge factor against your daughter. I have friends with 4.3 gpa and get rejected by UCLA. Even though good SAT scores will help. Some UCs such as Merced, Riverside, and Santa Cruz are easy to get in but others like LA, Berkeley, and SD. She will need really good SAT score or some luck to get in.</p>
<p>kenf1234 and xbankx thanks for your reply. Yes, grades is a huge disadvantage for her for top UC colleges. This summer she'll be doing community service, classes at community college and work. I'm afraid she'll be tired to start her Senior year...I guess she started worrying about her college options a little bit too late, but hopefully she'll get into other UC's..</p>
<p>They may have a point, but please don't lose hope! GPA, while important, does not make or break an application. I applied with a GPA slightly higher than your daughter's and just last week I got a very pleasant surprise from UCLA :)</p>
<p>Congratulations and thanks for the encouragement. We'll try and hope that's for sure. What do you think got you into UCLA? EC? sat? rec? or other?</p>
<p>ahhhh .... perhaps being an international student? that's worth a lot in the diversity column.</p>
<p>Quit your job and move to a crappy neighborhood so she looks poor when applying.</p>
<p>(My username fits me!)</p>
<p>No it doesn't.</p>
<p>Your cynicism is anything but vague :p</p>
<p>Berkeley cares about the strength of the program -- how challenging was a person's coursework. Taking community college courses is a good idea. If she really has her heart set on Berkeley and doesn't get in, she might want to consider one of the community colleges with a high transfer rate to Berkeley. She should focus on her grades for this semester as the UCs focus on 10th and 11th grade, so this semester matters a great deal. Also, you should know that the UCs have their own system for calculating GPA and her counselor will be able to give her the UC GPA next fall -- it might be higher than you think as they count some honors courses as weighted courses. Good luck!</p>
<p>mimk6 thanks for the explanation. My D is trying hard to get better grades, and junior year is two months away so it's not much time left. I'm glad to learn that they count honor classes too. There is some hope.</p>
<p>To clarify -- they count UC approved honors courses. It's kind of complicated. Just because your school calls a class honors doesn't mean the UCs weigh it that way -- they have a system and when you apply they tell you what courses at your school get honor credit.</p>
<p>I believe the GPA is low..but SAT and SAT 2 matter a lot in the application process too..and about increasing the chances, ask her to follow the activity that she is most committed in high school till now..if she has lot of community service, then BUMP that service hours dramatically this summer..even though lot of people have community service on their apps, if you have a HIGH amount of hours, then it would be noticed by admission officers...</p>
<p>Do SAT prep with a private tutor and get high scores to make up for the lower GPA. Also get high SAT II scores. She will need to balance out her application a bit.</p>
<p>The UC system seems to be very objective in their admission process. Over the years I've concluded that the UC system puts most of the weight on class rank, SATs and GPA and those who get into the top tier UC's consistently do well in all three of these aspects. For GPA, the UC calculates your 10th and 11th grade only and looks favorably upon improving grades over the course of your high school years. Therefore your daughter still has a chance if she does well in her junior year. AP courses definitely will help strengthen her resume and it is something she should consider. Nevertheless she will have to maintain straight A's throughout the rest of next year and if possible this year in order to have a legitimate shot. Additionally, USNews and World Report statistics show that of those who get into UCLA, Berkeley, and UCSD 99% of the students are all in the top 10% of the class. For this reason, it is extremeley important to bring those up to remain competetive. The good news for this is that if she challenges herself by taking honors and AP courses and does well, that will naturally go up.</p>
<p>OK the answer to this question is very simple: Your daughter absolutely positively HAS to get straight A's for the rest of her sophomore and whole Junior year. Also start studying for the SAT's now. Don't worry, she still has loads of time. Now get to work!
Undergrad @ Harvard University</p>