Next gen CC(C)er?

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

<p>So here ends another senior year of high school. Yet another wave of students whom have decided to attend CCC in hopes of getting accepted to better UCs (if any).</p>

<p>Just registered today but been lurking the forums on and off--more than usual recently.
I've browsed through hundreds of pages of the UC Transfers forum so gather all the knowledge I'll need to get that magic acceptance letter to UCB/UCLA.</p>

<p>I'll give you a bit of history seeing as I'm probably going to remain active for at least the next two years:
I did pretty good in high school. Not great, but good. 3.5 GPA.. weighted :(. Like many, I didn't start caring about college up until end of Sophomore year and by then, it might have been too late already. Took many APs and one IB class. In the end, I mostly got Bs, some As, a rare C. At the time, I overestimated AP/Honors classes. I thought that colleges would overlook the lower grades and take notice at the rigor of my curriculum. Of course that isn't true unless you have a solid 3.5-4.0 unweighted and are applying to top tier 1 schools.</p>

<p>I applied to UCB, UCLA, UCSD, UCI. Didn't think of checking off the other UCs as safeties, I thought I had a pretty good chance at UCI (and looking at those who were admitted this year, I should have had). 4 CSUs as well. Accepted 3/4, SLO reject (but now that I think of it, my political science ambition doesn't really fit with that school).</p>

<p>Got the pity acceptance letter from UC Merced. Not going to bash it, it's a UC, but I've got different plans and I'll just leave it at that.</p>

<p>So on to CCCs.
There are a couple questions I would like your input on that I haven't found a clear answer to.
For my first semester, assuming that I'm a pretty smart guy who's endured and survived through some pretty tough classes in high school, what classes should I not pair up together. For example, I'm going to try to fulfill my IGETC and Political science Pre-reqs, so I would try to get Stats 10 (the equivalent) done asap since math needs to remain fresh (Took Calc AB). 1) Would it be safe to get the Critical thinking req done at the same time? (My AP Lang score will probably satisfy Eng Comp.) </p>

<p>2) To satisfy UCLA Tap, I just need 15 honor units so would it be safe to assume that I should only sign up for Honors classes I feel safe with? Math has never been my forte.</p>

<p>I have two years to accomplish all this along with ECs/Getting a job so 3) should I risk taking 5-6 classes or will I be fine with 4 classes and 3 semesters to add on to my schedule to get everything done come Spring '12? I can always take summer school but would like to avoid this situation.</p>

<p>4) How is life at CCC for those of you who had come right out of High school? I would say 90% of my friends got accepted to the top UCs and privates of the country (No HYPS though). So for those who won't have too many friends left, is life somewhat comparable to that of a HS loner sort of thing? Go to school, go home, study/hw, chill? I know the experience is what you make of it but it seems like these next two years are going to be somewhat lonely. I'm still, in an odd way, happier to choose to go CCC than those who were left with UCR/UCM and are hoping to transfer.</p>

<p>5) Last question: I know this may be subjective to each campus, but generally, is paying for a parking permit worth it? I know it's possible to park around the neighboring streets around where my school is.</p>

<p>Some of these questions I could possibly wait until I meet with my counselor or just experience it, but I wanted to post something hah.</p>

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<p>First, don’t overdo it your first semester. I’d recommend doing English 1a (1b if your AP satisfies 1a), Stats, POLS 1, and something interesting that satisfies humanities/social sciences. Definitely stick with those 12 units if you do honors. If you’re not doing honors for any of them, then do an additional elective/humanities/social science class.</p>

<p>Do not take honors math. I don’t know what CCC you’re at so you may be stuck taking some classes which aren’t too appealing, but you shouldn’t be forced into taking honors math. DEFINITELY take honors English- I took regular 1a and honors 1b and OMG the difference was ridiculous!</p>

<p>Summer school is actually my favorite time of the year. Don’t dismiss taking a class or two during the summer. If you want to travel, there are plenty of different summer sessions to choose from if that’s what you’re concerned about.</p>

<p>I technically went to CCC right out of high school, but that’s because I dropped out after sophomore year. I made a couple of friends at CCC in my honors class/more difficult classes, but some classes were awful. I also attended a bunch of different campuses and one that was more geared for transfer students was soo much better socially. I moved out for my fourth semester to Berkeley and I have a much better social life now. Join clubs. It can be hard if you’re still living with your parents and your friends have moved, but if you get involved with campus stuff you can really thrive.</p>

<p>Parking permits are definitely worth it, given how cheap they are, unless you live in a place with great public transit (like the bay), in which case you wouldn’t need to drive.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the advice. Definitely clears up a lot for me already.</p>

<p>In addition to RateMyProf, is MyEdu worth the $20? It’s been mentioned before but that was back when it was free. In the long run, $20 is nothing to me if it helps me stay away from those pesky teachers. I’ve had a couple of those in HS.</p>

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<p>RateMyProf is usually pretty spot on. I had almost all good professors in CC because I used RMP. Make sure to read the prof critiques carefully though, some people are just whiners.
At a CC it always depends on the class. Some classes are a breeze. I just finished my last semester with an art history course and it was, by far, one of the easiest classes I’ve had (and I’m a film major, so that’s saying a lot since most of my classes required simply watching a film every day). I would say take your hardest classes your first two or three semesters (three if you decide to take summer courses, which I recommend you take at least 2 of them). Remember, technically, for two years, plus the summer, you will actually have 5 semesters. That’s usually plenty of time to get everything done. I would recommend finding a decent counselor and putting together your whole 2 year plan. I did that as well and basically followed it all the way through my two years. It helps you to keep track of your number of units plus your required IGETC courses.
I’m going to be honest, CC is a pretty lonely place. You do run across some people every semester to keep you socially distracted, but most people are there to take their classes and ■■■■. Your days will mostly be comprised of going to school, going back home, and doing homework, an equivalent to HS. But it always depends on you and the school you’re attending and the people that are attending it along with you.
And yes, pay for parking. At my CC the first 2 or 3 weeks were hell. People will usually attend the first few weeks then decide whether or not to stay, so the lots and the surrounding areas (especially the surrounding areas) are completely full. Which means you should not only get a permit, but you should probably arrive at school with plenty of time to spare.
And some concluding advice. Don’t give up! For the first few semesters you will be motivated and such, to move on and to get everything finished so you can go to your desired UC. But once you reach your last and second to last semesters you might start to hate life a little. I know that sounds rash, but I’m definitely not kidding. Which means, save the easy, no homework, two or three tests for the whole semester, classes for the very end of your CC career. I had a geology course during my last semester and I have never been so annoyed and bored and uninterested about school. And I didn’t really mind the subject all that much, I just really didn’t want to be there anymore. You need to stay motivated, because, yes, in the end, good things will happen (now I’m moving on to UCLA in the fall along with my film major and it finally feels worth it!) You can do it! lol</p>

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<p>Hey NoRegret, I too am a long time lurker first time poster.
I have been accepted to UCB and UCLA from community college.
Maybe I can give some input.</p>

<p>In response to your question#2:
My experience with honors courses at CCC (I did not complete the honors program to be considered TAP certified) is that they are easy. They are regular courses but usually require an extra hour (a sort of lab if you will.)
I took Oceanography honors, Geology honors, Greek Philosophy honors and Humanities honors.
All easy and rewarding but if you have work you may not be able to do some of these classes, cuz of the extra work/hour.</p>

<p>In response to question #4:
I started at Pasadena City College and to me it was just like high school. I saw everyone and everyone saw me and it was too distracting. So I went to a different CCC.
There I was lonely but I liked it because I could focus and get my stuff together.
I joined clubs and participated in school activities. You should try to get involved as much as you can because being active within the student body is great practice for when you transfer.
You want to start getting used to breaking the ice.
Yes, Community College IMHO is much better than UCR/UCM only because if you do well or even in my case mediocre, you could end up at Cal and UCLA.
Honestly CCC is what you make of it, if you are going in with a positive mind it can be a positive experience. </p>

<p>In response to question#5:
At PCC the parking permits are outrageously costly and you aren’t guaranteed parking for at least 2 weeks!!!
but at the other CCC I went, the parking permits were nicely priced and there was tons of parking.
So yes it depends, but usually there are a lot of places to park around the school. </p>

<p>As for Ratemyprofessors, it worked for me. MyEdu is a nice tool to have, I actually used it when it was free under Pick-a-Prof.
I got a good math teacher out of it one who distributed more A’s than B’s and more C’s than D’s or F’s
idk maybe it is worth the $20 to pick a fair math instructor, especially if math is not your forte.</p>

<p>good luck kid and enjoy CCC, it’s not that bad. :)</p>

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<p>I’ll def try to get all the difficult classes out of the way. Don’t think I’m going to sign up for classes this summer as my senioritis still hasn’t worn off yet. Just going to enjoy this one. I’ve taken summer school all but one year to get ahead at my HS.</p>

<p>I’m a little worried about balancing my schedule. Between classes and homework, working a job (I figure it’ll look good under ECs and help me finally be somewhat financially independent), Phi Theta Kappa (planning to join for volunteer EC and scholarships), and possibly Student Government (sounds like a good opportunity to develop leadership skills and stuff to write about in the uc prompts). I don’t know if I’ll be able to fit any other clubs in, but I’m pretty sure the UC rule of thumb is: quality > quantity.</p>

<p>I think the hardest part of these two years ahead of me will be juggling all of these and keeping a 4.0. (I know, CC makes too big of a deal about THE perfect GPA, but–not to sound cocky–I’d be disappointed to get anything less than straight As with all the knowledge and preparation this site and my HS has given me.)</p>

<p>It’s too bad I’m at JC, I was looking forward to finally be open to be in a relationship (Who am I kidding, I never had a chance in HS… jk. My HS was compromised of hard working students. Between the College-bound kids, there were probably 3-5 couples at most. Anyways, I don’t think I’ll want to compromise my mentality and academics with something so trivial RIGHT now.</p>

<p>Thanks for all the helpful posts everyone. I wish I had began reading this site in Junior high. It would have definitely motivated me and guided me to a good school.</p>

<p>I do have one more question: Why do CCers talk about Sophomoritis? Our UC GPA resets when we transfer, but, from what i’ve read, Grad school look at our entire cumulative GPA. Getting a 3.0 would be the same as slacking off in your second year of college at a UC. Personally, I plan on keeping that 4.0 even though I know there’s gonna be a similar “disease” that’s going to be spread around. Monkey see, monkey do.</p>

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<p>Sophomoritis hits you harder than you might expect. No matter how much you think it will be easy to brush off and get through, your sophomore year isn’t going to be as easy as you might think. Not only are you beginning to look at your prospective colleges as well as finally applying to them, but you are still stuck in your CC. I definitely didn’t have this place to help me out with that last semester, so I had no depressed monkeys to see or to mimic and I know first-hand how annoying everything can start to get.</p>

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<p>We get sophomoritis because we’re so excited to start taking upper divs at a UC that we could care less about that physical geography class.</p>

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<p>I never got an -itis in my 4 years at the CC level, but 1.5 of them were online (I say .5 because my second year was online at SBCC in person at WVC, but really it was 2 online).</p>

<p>I did however have personal problems that caused me to develop a chronic case of 1-month-a-semester-long “Who Gives A F***”</p>

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<p>Wow, I feel like the OP was written by me word for word.</p>

<p>I’ll share my experience with #4 since I’m at work and have to keep it brief (also I’m lazy)</p>

<p>4) Like I said, we pretty much have the same story going out of hs, all my friends went off to enjoy the college life at other UCs while I was stuck at home going to CCC. I do have a few friends that go to the same CCC as I do, but they aren’t exactly the right group of people to be hanging out with (they’re sketchy, unmotivated, long story)</p>

<p>Is it comparable to a HS loner life? Can’t say I have an answer for that since I wasn’t a loner in hs. Going off your description, my weekday schedule from 9am-6pm is pretty much when I’m not at school I’m at work and when I’m not at work I’m at school with little breaks at home inbetween class and work. </p>

<p>I just finished my first year at CCC and even though I wasn’t going out and having fun as much as I did in hs since all my friends are gone, I still found things to keep me busy. Thats one of the positives of going to a CCC that more likely than not, you’ll find yourself with a lot of free time (I did, even with work and a heavy courseload) that you can use to do things you might not have been able to pursue in hs due to always hanging out with friends and what have you. For me, I started hitting the gym a lot more and took up mountain biking. It’s fun, great for me and my health, and will make me look good for all the UC hunnies :slight_smile: . just find something to keep you busy so you arent stuck at home in front of the computer screen day in day out (probably reading CC :slight_smile: , i kid)</p>

<p>As far as meeting people, the vast majority of students will be weird and boring (at least that was the case at my ccc). But if you hang in there and at least try to be open socially, you WILL meet laxed and interesting folks. I made a few really cool friends in one of my classes, but they all transferred this year.</p>

<p>Hope this gives you some perspective</p>

<p>edit: so much for keeping it brief</p>

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<p>I’m glad my sentiment is shared Anon.
I know I asked that question but I don’t think I’m that worried socially. I’m definitely a sociable person but I think I’ll survive doing my own “thing” for 2 years.</p>

<p>As far as I can tell, my first semester is going to be 9AM-2PM school. I haven’t yet gotten a job, but I expect to be working full-time during the summer and part-time during the school year. I’ve planned to hit the gym but haven’t yet figured out when that’s going to fit in my schedule. I figure I’ll set 3-4 hours a day aside for school work, keeping in mind there might be some procrastination here and there.
I’m honestly not worried about the JC coursework. I’ve had tough schedules before (0-5 period and sports in HS my JUNIOR year). I don’t plan on entering cocky though.</p>

<p>I have some concerns at the moment though about the classes offered. This might change, but for now, it looks like some of my Pol Sci pre-reqs are not available this fall and weren’t available last spring. Summer doesn’t have it either. I might have to commute to a farther JC for those. The second closest doesn’t have it either -.-. I’ll have to talk to my counselor. </p>

<p>This Fall '10, I’ve planned to take: ENGL 103 (regular because the only teacher who teaches honors has cut-throat ratings), POSC 100H, MATH 120, and HIST 171 for a total of 16 units. I have to take at least one honors class a semester so no point in overloading them in just one.</p>

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<p>There’s a really good chance that your poly sci classes won’t be available conveniently. Political Theory is only offered at very few CCCs. You shouldn’t have a problem getting Intro to US Gov though.</p>

<p>Take honors English. “Cut throat” ratings mean that the teacher is actually good and you will benefit from the class. The only reviews that you should interpret as “impossible to get an A” are things like if the teacher has a language barrier or if the design of the class is intended for majors (like bio1a versus intro to bio). All of my favorite professors had TONS of “omg soo hard do not take” reviews on ratemyprofessors.</p>

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<p>I don’t know. The professor only has three reviews and all are pretty worrisome.
Colleges don’t even see that the classes are honors until they’ve made a decision and seen your transcript. UCLA TAP will only see my honors certificate.
Don’t get the wrong idea, I’m the kind of kid who loves to learn. I’ve had one of the hardest honors english teacher ever where I got a C but learned so much about writing. But that’s not how colleges will look at it if I don’t get an A (or a B, w/e but it’s always good to aim for that 4.0).</p>

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<p>No, the UCs will see that it’s an honors class when you apply and the honors WILL factor into their decision. Same with grad/prof school.</p>

<p>How are you taking 16 units with only 4 classes?</p>

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<p>So you’re saying the UC application where you input your classes have an Honors option? Well I mean, I know the freshman high school one had but read in a couple places that from CC they didn’t see it.</p>

<p>And haha, shoot. I meant 13 units.</p>

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<p>A lot of honors classes are called honors. Like at my old CCC, Eng1a and 1b was 300 and 302, but honors 1a was 480 and honors 1b was 482. So when I input that it’ll say “ENGWR482 Honors Advanced Critical Thinking and Composition” instead of “ENGWR302 Advanced Critical Thinking and Composition” or whatever. I know that at CCSF they have an “honors contract” option for regular classes, and I believe for situations like that there is a part on the application where you can enter in that it was an honors course.</p>

<p>If you’re really as hard of a worker as you say you are, then honors english shouldn’t be a problem for you. As a polysci major you’re going to have to do a lot of writing, reading analyzing data and you should really opt to take the class that will strengthen those skills the most.</p>