Official UC Berkeley Haas Transfer Thread 2017

Transfer Students UC Transfers
21

@enpz45 I noticed you asking about interviews. From what I’ve gathered from talking to my TAP contact, a friend who applied to Hass last year, and my contact at Haas, interviews are mostly for borderline applicants or for applicants that they want to talk to to clear things up. They do it so they can basically know more about you so they factor it in when making a decision.

According to the people in the loop, if you had an EC or additional comment on your application or supplemental update that they may want you to expand on, they’ll ask questions. They may also ask questions to get an idea of who you are and if you match up with what you put on you application.

If you are borderline, they’ll treat it like a normal interview. My buddy was asked if he knew the defining principles and to pick one that he can expand on using personal experience. Another question was like “why Haas” etc. He applied with a 3.4 and got called. He had strong essays but didn’t know jack about the 4 principles and bombed the interview lol.

Point is, start preparing some kind of answer in advance and know about Haas’s principles: question the status quo, student always, confidence without attitude, and beyond yourself

22

@jonathaanv Damn, too bad for your buddy. Tough to make it to that point and then they ask you about the defining principles and you can’t name a few of em. I’ve applied to schools similar to you & also TAG’d UCSB. I applied to a few more UC’s and no Cal States. I applied to USC but since I didn’t follow their major prep program I’m not expecting much. I’d still choose UCB/UCLA/UCI/UCSB over USC.

23

@enpz45 yeah I know he was upset about the whole thing.

I applied to a bunch of schools to keep my options open, the schools I’m considering the most are Cal, USC, and Cal Poly. I want to consider UCLA more but I’m not a fan of the 3.5 requirement to get into the actual biz Econ major when you get there. Don’t want to work my a** off to have to still prove more to earn a spot.

And while USC is expensive, their financial aid is really good according to people I’ve talked to there. I want to do something in accouting so Leventhal is a win-win for me. What major prep program are you talking about? Are you mentioning Marshall’s Calculus and writing course requirement? Or their GE Catagory requirement?

Good luck btw, hope everyone in this thread and anyone who joins from now until April get in.

24

@enpz45 The next thing you might hear about is for interviews or if they need you to clarify or provide proof of anything you listed on your application, but that’s relatively few and far between I think. I didn’t hear anything back between TAU and my acceptance.

I wouldn’t worry about what an interview means … it just kind of “is”. Regardless, it’s a chance for a second look which can only help … unless an applicant bombs it.

25

@jonathaanv I have completed Calc I and the writing course requirement, I’m taking Calc II this semester. But there are courses I haven’t completed in GE since completing IGETC doesn’t complete the GE’s for USC. I’ve also heard from former students that as a Marshal transfer you come in as a Sophomore transfer vs a Junior transfer. This has to do with them wanting you to retake the micro/macro econ there. Take that with a grain of salt, I have not talked to any USC advisers. That’s what I’ve heard from our Economics Dept head & counselors at my CCC.

@briank82 good to know

26

@enpz45 Okay, gotcha. From talking to USC advisers, while they would prefer that you finish all the GE categories before coming to USC, it isn’t the end of the world if you are missing one or two and it will not affect your admission decision. I didn’t complete Category IV (some humanities class) and I was told I’m good. They want them done because it lessens the chance of you taking longer to graduate. They would rather you take only upper-division stuff.

In terms of junior vs. sophomore transfer, I’ve heard that the only classes they make you take over there again are the equivalent of financial and managerial accounting. Many students transfer from Marshall to Leventhal so this helps those students. I haven’t heard anything about econ. I found an old articulation agreement online (not on USC’s website) for my CC and both econ classes were once required to get in. I would probably take that with a grain of salt as well since it is probably outdated.

27

@jonathaanv Leventhal is definitely the most enticing part about USC for me. I also want to get into accounting.

Are you from SoCal? Do you like the USC area? If you haven’t been I’d suggest checking it out because it doesn’t feel like a traditional campus.

28

@enpz45 I am actually from NorCal. I live commute distance from Cal.

I’ve visited USC twice and it’s a beautiful campus. I was impressed by how nice it is. I went into Marshall and Leventhal and asked questions regarding transferring when I was there. My CCC doesn’t have an official articulation agreement so I had to have someone look at my transcript and ed-plan (I recommend to anyone who reads this to do the same).

As far as the area, I know most people get turned off by the whole “South-Central” thing, but I’ve lived in similar neighborhoods so it’s nothing I can’t handle. I know someone who literally lives down the street from USC and I got an idea of what it’s like from looking around i guess. I plan to live on campus anyway (hopefully that new village they’re building is done by Fall).

People say similar things about Cal though with all the bums and random characters you see hanging around. Both places aren’t exactly your typical gated community (although USC is gated at night lol).

29

Can someone chance me for Fall 2017 transfer?

Major: Business Administration (Haas)
GPA: 3.88 (2 Bs – no P/F or Ws)
Major GPA: 3.80 (1 B in 4 unit Calculus I course – As in all other prereqs.)

19 Y.O. Caucasian Female
U.S. Citizen
California Resident
CCC Transfer Student (all courses taken at same CCC)

Will transfer 70 semester units from Sierra College in Rocklin CA. (nor-cal)
IGETC Certified now
AS-T in Business Administration after Spring 2017
6/7 UCB Breadths completed (missing international studies breadth – will take as UD non-bus course)
All prerequisites complete by Spring 2017 (Calculus II and Intro to Business in progress)
Continuous enrollment since HS (including summers) 14-16 units every regular semester, 6 and 9 units in summer sessions

EC’s:
President of Business Club at Sierra College
Vice President of Records of PTK chapter at Sierra College
Part-time job at Old Navy (Women’s department lead, shift cash handler)
Some volunteering when time permits

Honors:
Presidents Honor Roll every semester
Member of PTK

Personal Insight Statements (9/10) – lots of leadership examples
Haas Supplemental Essay (9/10) – it didn’t have anything to do with any of the 4 defining principles

I used the additional comments section to explain why I am so drawn to Berkeley, why a Haas based business education is so appealing to me (the 4 defining principles and the cohort based program), and how I will use my time at Haas to not only study business principles, but to also develop the habits required to instinctively apply the 4 defining principles (in personal situations as well as in business).

If admitted I plan to enroll in Summer PreCore.

Applied: UCB, UCI UCR (TAG), Humboldt State, Sonoma State, Sac State, CSULB, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly SLO
Accepted: Humboldt State, Sonoma State, Sac State, Cal Poly Pomona
Rejected: CSULB (error in supplemental application– submitted appeal and expect a reversal)
Waiting: Cal Poly SLO, UCB, UCI and UCR (will be accepted via TAG)

Any thoughts?

30

It’s not that it’s a really bad area, pretty much anywhere in LA is 10 minutes away from a version of South Central, it just has a unique feeling to it. If you’ve already visited than you must like the feeling of it. I live in Long Beach so I’m not too far from SC. It looks like we are trying to trade places. I visited Cal in January and really liked the campus & surrounding area. I live in downtown so I’m used to a lot of homeless people.

31

@taylortohaas Assuming the GPA you listed is your UC GPA instead of your overall CCC GPA, congrats, it is very competitive and is right where you want it to be! :slight_smile:

In terms of missing the international studies course, is it going to be completed by this spring? Missing a course on the breadth is a big reason why many students get rejected so I wanted to clarify this.

EC’s look fine, being in leadership roles such as a VP for PTK are things they look for in applicants. If you were able to use that to your advantage in your PIQ’s then it will help your case for admission. Using work also helps, if you explained what you learned and how, if at all, your work contributed to your education and things like that.

Usually the “additional comments section” is reserved for people to explain circumstances that may have affected their education, but if you had more to say that you weren’t able to address in your responses then I’d say that is fine.

Overall, you seem solid. Consider any and all grade trends though. If those two B’s came recently and in the same semester when you were getting straight A’s beforehand, then it may seem like you slipped up. If it was in the beginning or spaced out, then it’s no problem.

Chance me back if you get the chance, my stats are somewhere above.

32

@enpz45 I’ve visited cal about 4 or 5 times now. I love it and the area as well which is why it’s my #1 since day one.

33

@jonathaanv Breadth courses don’t matter. Having them finished used to be a requirement but they are no longer relevant. I got all mine done so I’d have more flexibility in my schedule while at Cal but I’m surrounded by people who have multiple breadth courses left to take.

34

@jonathaanv @enpz45 I, too, have visited Cal and love the school surrounding as well as the vibe the campus exudes. At first, I was overwhelmed by all the activities and protests; but in retrospect, it invigorated me.

35

@jonathaanv My CCC GPA is My UC GPA, all courses I have taken transfer to UCs. As far as the Bs go, they were in separate semesters and were very high B’s (I got one in a World Religions humanities class with an 89% and one in Calculus I with an 87.5%) my CCC doesn’t have + and - grade differentiators.

I was told by Sojourner Blair (director of admissions for Haas) that you don’t have to have all breadths completed to be accepted. In fact they want you to spread them out over all semesters, but I had time to complete all except for the International Studies breadth. I even have completed the American History, Institutions and Cultures requirements.

I used the additional comments section to explain why Berkeley and Haas, as well as my understanding of the 4 defining principles because this year’s essay prompt didn’t lend itself well to those topics (500 words isn’t enough). I also added some stuff as to how my particular talents are a great fit for the Haas program.

Finally, yes I did how my work role supplemented my education by exposing me to real-world Marketing and Merchandising concepts.

I will chance you back shortly.

36

@williamyang I found your stats in another chance me thread (CCC Transfer: Chance me for UCB Haas, UCLA Bizecon, UCI Business Administration, NYU Stern, and USC) and it looks like you may need to double check some of your prerequisites against assist.org and Prerequisites for Haas. It looks like you may be short on unit requirements for Macroeconomics and missing 1 quarter of Calculus. I could be wrong, but I would double check with Haas.

Other than the items below, your qualifications look great to me. I can’t answer for the admissions committee.

It looks like your CCC is on the quarter system and the following classes were completed:

Winter 2016:
A - Macroeconomics (3 units)
Winter 2017:
Calc 1 ~4 units
Spring 2017:
Calc 2 ~5+ units

See the stuff in CAPITALS below. From: https://haas.berkeley.edu/Undergrad/transfer_prereq.html

ALL PREREQUISITE COURSES MUST CARRY A MINIMUM OF 3 SEMESTER OR 4 QUARTER UNITS and must be completed with a letter grade of C- or higher no more than 5 years before starting the business major. California community college students must follow the articulation agreements on www.assist.org.

Prerequisite Courses for Transfer Students
• Principles of Business–One introductory business course is required prior to transfer to the business major.
• MATH (CALCULUS)–2 SEMESTERS OR 3 QUARTERS OF CALCULUS.
• Economics–Course(s) in macro and micro economics.
• Statistics–An introductory course in probability and statistics for business.
• English/Reading and Composition (R & C) Requirement (more information below).

37

@taylortohass @briank82 good to know, I was told a while back that the breadth had to be completed.

38

@jonathaanv all of your stats are great, but like I said in another post - who knows what the Haas admissions committee will do on a case by case basis. All we can do is hope for the best! Good luck to all of us!!!

39

@taylortohaas Hi Taylor, welcome to the thread! Your GPA is clearly where it needs to be. That B in your first Calculus course may put a dent in your application, as you obviously already know it is an important and challenging course. EC wise, it was good of you to relate your work experience to business concepts. Your essays will matter a lot in this case.

40

@williamyang Thanks for the comments.

I’m not too worried about the B in Calculus I, It was a very high B and from what I have read on other threads, a couple of Bs here and there don’t really matter (lots of people got in with Bs in Calculus). From what I have read, Haas is looking for overall GPA, completion of prerequisites as well as good coverage of social sciences and humanities courses, course loading and rigor, some extracurriculars, understanding of the defining principles, but mostly they are looking for good cultural fit with the Haas program and the ability to contribute. Hopefully I have conveyed all of those things in my applications.