Out of state transfer, stay or not?

<p>First off, just a little about me before begin. I'm born and raised in Los Angeles and enlisted in the military(USAF) right out of high school. During my enlistment, I have accmulated 30 credit hours as of now with a 3.8 GPA from my local CC in Oklahoma City, but I will have 42 credit hours(perhaps more) upon the time of my separation from the military in May. My goal is to ultimately enroll in UCLA as a liberal arts major(undecided) and I have a quick question regarding transfer.</p>

<p>I have obtained quite a bit of credit hours from the military education institution(CCAF) that my local CC is willing to accept. As a result, my CC will reward me with an associates degree if I stay an additional semester after my separation to complete my 60 hrs. However, I highly doubt UCLA would even acknowledge the degree, in addition to rejecting a chunk of credit hours I obtained through my CC. So I'm wondering if I should just get back to Los Angeles asap and start attending SMC right away, or is the degree worth it enough to remain here an additional semester?</p>

<p>EDIT: Also, am I considered an out-of-state transfer student? My legal residence is in California but the CC I attended is OOS so... I'm guessing I'll be paying in-state tuition?</p>

<p>UCLA</a> Registrar's Office: Residence Classification for Tuition Purposes FAQ
UCLA</a> Registrar's Office: Veterans' Affairs FAQ</p>

<p>Heres some information that may be useful to you. Otherwise, you should call the undergraduate admissions office about your credits.</p>

<p>molamann,</p>

<p>First off, props to you for working so hard on your degree while serving. </p>

<p>I'm an Air Force veteran (99-05) and can confirm that the UC system won't accept your CCAF credits at all. The little tidbit of thanks California public schools will give you is not requiring you to take a P.E. course, since they understand basic training took care of that (and then some). </p>

<p>You'll be going to school in CA at a great time, what with the new post-9/11 GI Bill and all. If you're not already up to speed on that just send me a PM.</p>

<p>Other little helpful hints: as a vet you will get priority registration your first semester of classes at SMCC (contact the veterans dept on campus). This way you don't have to take what is left on the bottom of the barrel your first semester. You can jump right in and take what you need from the start to set you well on your path. Also, if you end up at Berkeley, they took the priority registration a step further here and instead of only granting it to you your first semester, they do it for all semesters. </p>

<p>Knowing what I know now, if I were you I would get out right on my DOS and head to SMCC for the summer term. You've already had a lot of experience in the classroom so your transition to SMCC should be a breeze. </p>

<p>Good luck and please PM me about any veteran related questions you have. I am happy to help via my own experience, plus I am a veteran mentor here at Cal (veterans at Cal helping veteran CC students to transfer) and have access to a variety resources.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>