Psychology Transfers Thread!!!!

Transfer Students UC Transfers
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<p>All you Psych majors out there --- any acceptances yet?</p>

<p>From the decisions available so far for myself:</p>

<p>UCI - Accepted! (First batch)
UCSC - Accepted! (First batch)</p>

<p>UCSD - Still Pending (I can see my first choice, John Muir, with the UCSD trick)
UCSB- Still Pending (grrr... waited all day)</p>

<h2>and of course still waiting on UCLA, Cal & Davis.</h2>

<p>My Stats:</p>

<p>GPA:~3.75
Programs: TAG, TAP, IGETC certified.
CCC: Pierce
Pre-Reqs: Completed</p>

<p>Hope to hear from you all!</p>

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<p>Hey there, I’m a psych major, though I’m applying for Fall 2011. </p>

<p>Congratulations on your acceptances and best of luck for the other UCs! :)</p>

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<p>I haven’t heard anything yet. I applied to UCSD, UCD, and UCB. UC Davis is my number one choice as you can see by my user name. =] <em>crosses fingers</em> Good luck!</p>

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<p>@ lenoradusk: I’m actually pretty glad that you’re not applying until next fall lol. I saw you in the Harvard Transfers Thread. I’m all for competent and strong applicants, but potential Harvard bound students are a different story. I really wish you luck though!</p>

<p>I have been accepted to UCSC.
Pending: UCD, UCSD, UCLA, and UCB </p>

<p>GPA: 3.74
prereqs done
IGETC done
Norcal resident
upward trend
strong essays/comm. service</p>

<p>Good luck to all of you guys and I wish you all the best!</p>

<p>Btw, I’ve been a part of like 5 of these UC Psych Transfer threads over the last few months lol. A few of them I created back in like September/October. Great to see a new one pop up, especially with admissions decisions right around the corner.</p>

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<p>Just wanted to bump this great thread up. </p>

<p>Thanks for the compliment, Emil. I’m blushing. :smiley: If I were an applicant now, you wouldn’t have anything to fear from me based on your stats. </p>

<p>Good luck again to you and Aggie!</p>

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<p>I like the thread!</p>

<p>UCSD Accepted (Warren) Psychology
UCSB Accepted (Pre)Psychology</p>

<h2>UCLA Pending</h2>

<p>Stats:</p>

<p>GPA:~3.45
Programs: TAG, IGETC certified.
CCC: IVC, Saddleback
Pre-Major: IP</p>

<p>Extras: Fulltime employee/student, entrepreneurial endeavors, low income family (EFC=0), GPA Improvement last couple semesters (Up from ~2.7 beginning Spring 2009)</p>

<p>My essay was either love it or hate it…my stats weren’t so great so wrote it with the “go for broke” mentality rather than conservatively since I had TAG for SD and SB anyway…so if UCLA rejects me for sounding like a pompous hothead in my essay then I’m not totally screwed.</p>

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<p>@ Wisdom: I also applied to Warren for UCSD. I should hear back fairly soon…hopefully! lol. </p>

<p>We all seem to be very competitive applicants, so let’s hope for the best over the next 5 weeks!</p>

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<p>@ emil: Don’t even sweat it with those stats you’ll be a shoe in for SD. All you should worry about is whether or not you’ll be placed in Warren!</p>

<p>Which UC is your top pick?</p>

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<p>Well I’m not sweating it for UCSD because I have a TAG, but my top choice is Berkeley.</p>

<p>Honestly there’s nowhere else I really want to go anymore. I used to be very fond of Davis, UCSD, and UCLA, but Berkeley is just too perfect. I mean I loved absolutely everything when I visited. If I don’t get in, I’m actually considering appeal strategies and even waiting to go until next year. I know that seems drastic, but I really really loved it. It’s actually been my dream school since I was a little kid.</p>

<p>What’s your top pick? If you got into all of them, where would you go? Also, what are your career aspirations with your psych degree?</p>

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<p>My top pick? That’s currently a topic of great contemplation for me right now.</p>

<p>Previously I’d been operating under the notion that if I got into UCLA, that’s where I’d go…no contest. But as I think about campus life and the people at UCLA more and more, I’m conversely getting more and more turned off to the idea. I don’t like the inherent segregation of frats for starters. Also I feel like La Jolla would offer some more quiet, tranquil places to relax and enjoy the sights. I’m somewhat of an amateur naturalist photographer so that’s inline with that.</p>

<p>I feel that I’ve also adequately grown out of my “party stage” so when people talk about UCSD as some socially inept campus, it really doesn’t bother me. Not that I’m a hermit, but I’m beginning to prefer that I go to the party rather than live amongst it. This is also why UCSB was almost entirely a fallback and the last on my list of preferences.</p>

<p>Finally in terms of academics, certain rankings actually put UCSD slightly ahead of UCLA for undergrad psychology: [Ranking</a> of U.S. Undergraduate Psychology Programs](<a href=“http://www.socialpsychology.org/gunder.htm]Ranking”>Ranking of U.S. Undergraduate Psychology Programs)</p>

<p>That coupled with the fact that I off-road race in Mexico and Barstow make the location of SD more convenient.</p>

<p>In terms of career goals, my plan has been:
Associates>Transfer>BA (or BS) in Psychology>MBA>Entrepreneur</p>

<p>Associates…check
Transfer…in limbo, but for the most part, check</p>

<p>The reason I chose to pursue Psychology for my undergrad rather than something more in the business field is because, well anyone can start a business…education or not. I’ve already started some smaller ones. Why not diversify myself, enjoy my education and setup my skills to be more “in tune” with markets and employees. When I get my undergrad degree if I decide that I don’t have all the tools necessary to start and run a successful business, then I’ll continue on with my MBA.</p>

<p>Sorry for the essay hahah
What about you?</p>

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<p>I’m a future psych major! :slight_smile: At least for now. I’m just a senior in HS but I have 15 units so far. And I go to Pierce, too! </p>

<p>Is figuring out all the prerequisites for Psych ALONG with igetc hard? I’m so nervous about even trying to be a psych major because of all the math I have to take (going from Algebra 1 to Calculus 1 in 2 years is going to be very difficult for me). Have you had to use alot of math and calculations for psych? Or is it just “weeder” stuff (thats what the honors lady told me)? Do you actually enjoy learning about psychology, or is it because you just want to do something like pre-med or pre-law or some fancy grad work? I’m just curious because I don’t know if I should throw myself into Psych unless I absolutely love it. :frowning: Which I don’t know yet.</p>

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<p>@ bunnybee13: Ok, you have some really good questions, and I’ll do my best to answer them. First of all, unless you’re going down the premed path or something, or plan on transferring to UCSD, you shouldn’t need Calculus for psychology. For UCLA, UCB, UC Davis, and a few others, calculus is not a prereq. In fact, I managed to take statistics instead.</p>

<p>Many people find stats to be hard, but this wasn’t the case for me. Actually, I love stats now, and it’s extremely important to understand the concepts behind each method of inferential statistics. By knowing how to calculate stats, and by understanding the ways in which they can be manipulated, you can conduct research more appropriately and also understand the accuracy of surveys or polls or comparisons between products or simply understand how high/low one’s IQ or SAT score is when comparing that to the population.</p>

<p>I highly recommend stats because it will not only prepare you for the upper division stats/research class (like at UCLA and UCB), but it will also better prepare you for RA positions at universities. Just having taken the class and doing well will open doors for positions. Think of it like your value going up. In other words, if you understand how to analyze the results of a study, professors will see that you’re a better candidate for an RA position than another person. Stats (make sure it’s transferrable though) is a great class to take for Psychology.</p>

<p>I’ve never taken calculus or pre-calc, and I can tell you that you won’t be needing it for a BA in Psych. No worries! You really only need 1 transferrable math course (like stats) to fulfill the math portion of IGETC and also will suffice as a prereq for the psych major to many UC’s. </p>

<p>It’s actually pretty easy to fulfill IGETC and Psych prereqs simultaneously because there aren’t that many prereqs for Psych (except for UCSD). For example, I think you need like 5 classes done or in progress for the Psych major from a CCC -> UCLA. These include: Intro to Psych, stats, chem or physics, intro to biology, and intro to philosophy.</p>

<p>With those 5 classes done, you’re good to go for Psych prereqs for UCLA. If you go to assist.org, you can see exactly what you need going from Pierce to a UC campus as a Psych major. </p>

<p>I’m actually very much like you, because I also started comm college while I was in high school (Middle College Program), and now I’m about to transfer (hopefully to UCB). It’s really not that hard to transfer in general as long as you have IGETC done and prereqs done. </p>

<p>A couple pieces of advice I would give are:</p>

<p>1) Take summer school classes. I took 10 units last summer. If I hadn’t done that, I would be stuck at my CCC for another year. I took the bio class I needed, and a couple IGETC-specific classes. You’ll thank yourself sooo much later when you’re at or near 60 units. </p>

<p>2) Take Psych courses! You need 2 of these to fulfill the social science part A section of IGETC. I’ll have taken 8 at the end of this semester. Some include: Exp. Psych, Abnormal Psych, Dev. Psych, Theories of Personality, Social Psych, etc. Also, the more Psych classes you take, the more “demonstrated interest in the major” you show to the UC’s that you apply to.</p>

<p>Anyway, I have found in my Psych studies that you really don’t use much math or many calculations for the psych major. In fact, the only time I used math was for my stats class. I’m telling you though, and this is coming from a guy who isn’t good at math, stats is WAY easier than calc will be. I actually found it easier than Algebra 2 lol.</p>

<p>I do enjoy psychology, and this has been my major for nearly my entire CCC career. I want to become a child psychologist or go into Organizational Behavior PhD and become a researcher/professor. </p>

<p>The psych major is a versatile one, and is definitely a great choice. I think that if you’re open-minded and willing to put in the work to understand it, you’ll end up loving psych. I think that just from reading your post, that you would really enjoy it.</p>

<p>Best of luck to you!</p>

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<p>@ Wisdom: Wow, Psych -> MBA! I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone on here say that. I think that’s awesome. As for UCSD, I love La Jolla. I really think it’s so beautiful and obviously a great place to go to school. The only thing I don’t like about it is the campus and the energy there. When I visited a few months back, I just couldn’t really assimilate and emotionally connect there. I mean I’m from norcal, always have been, so that could have contributed lol. Anyway, it’s definitely an amazing place for Psych, and whether you choose UCLA or UCSD, I’m sure you’ll be really happy. </p>

<p>The only reason why I don’t like UCSD as a Psych major is because of the necessary prereqs (chem series, physics series, calc series). Initially, when I wanted to go to med school, it made sense to me. However, since I don’t really want to shoot for that anymore, I don’t see the point in taking those courses. I’m in chem right now, and frankly I’m just not enjoying it :/. It’s really odd though that UCLA/UCB seem to have much fewer prereqs for the psych major. </p>

<p>Anyway, I’m positive that I want to continue with school after my BA. I truly enjoy it, and I think Psych is one of those subjects that will always be at the forefront of many disciplines with new concepts and developments. I think it’s just super relatable to a variety of people and situations/cultures, and I couldn’t find it more interesting. I hope to pursue a PhD in either Org. Behavior or Child Development. Ideally, in the short-term, I would land a RA position in a child dev. lab at UCB. Of course, I would have to get in there first lol.</p>

<p>Anyway, it’s great having other psych majors on here, and even better to learn about our various career aspirations. I wish ya luck man!</p>

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<p>@bunnybee: Check out [Welcome</a> to ASSIST](<a href=“http://www.assist.org%5DWelcome”>http://www.assist.org) for some great information regarding the “pre-major” coursework for Psychology as it applies to the different UCs.</p>

<p>I’m planning on UCSD so I do have to take the Calc class, which I’m in now. Last semester I was in College Algebra (a pre-req for Calc) and the semester before that (summer) Statistics. I got A’s in both Stats and College Algebra but a LOT is based on the professors you choose. They can make getting decent grades a nightmare if you don’t choose carefully.</p>

<p>But I could have avoided all the math had I just chosen a different UC to transfer to…I’m happy to be getting through it though. Planning early will save you hundreds of hours of unneeded work. Assist.org has been my second bible for the last few semesters.</p>

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<p>@ emils: Thanks for your input! I’m yet to visit the campus (guess that’s important, eh?) so I very likely could come to the same conclusion about the atmosphere. I picture lots of open space with a decent amount of people but few areas that are very dense. Quiet…some groups here and there but also a lot of people keeping to themselves. From what I hear NorCal is much more a friendly “say hi to strangers on the street” vibe. Here in SoCal we’re too stuck up to talk to one another haha</p>

<p>I’ve been surprised by how right you are regarding the Psych -> MBA plan. It makes perfect sense in mind but I guess not too many others? I too once had the ambition towards med school but social health care scared me away. And succeeding in my own business has always been my real dream anyway. I hope to apply psych to formulate a business that will be both profitable and do good for society (don’t we all haha)</p>

<p>Child Psychology would be very interesting…I think it’s too often problems aren’t caught early on and they just snowball. I’m really rooting for you to get into UCB!</p>

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<p>Yeah you should definitely check it out! I mean La Jolla is gorgeous, but I just am not sure if it’s the best environment for me. Actually, from the 3 days that I spent there, your description is really accurate. People were sort of branched out around the campus, and it was never really crowded except for this one large cafeteria I went to. Most people did keep to themselves, and out of those I met and interacted with, not many were very welcoming or particularly friendly. A couple of them, however, were extremely welcoming, and made my experience way better than I had expected. </p>

<p>My best friend is in a fraternity, and I was lucky enough to go to one of his fraternity’s exchanges. I had a good time meeting many of the guys and girls in the other sorority, and I had a blast. However, the sort of beachy, so-cally style isn’t really my flavor. Other than that, though, and the intense Psych prereqs, I really have no criticism toward UCSD whatsoever.</p>

<p>lol well I’m not so sure if we all say hi to each other on the street here, but yeah I’d say that my experience with people here in the Bay Area has always been positive. Many people are very nice, but you’ll always get your stereotypical, pretentious, San Franciscans who think they know everything about politics, music, and/or other worldly issues/topics.</p>

<p>I think that your plan to apply Psych in the business world has a multitude of options, and I have no doubt that this is a major that has concepts that can and will be applied in the business world and in many facets of every day life. I think it’s definitely a great idea. lol if only I knew 1 thing about business. Unfortunately, I’ve never taken an econ or business class, so I’m sort of clueless there. I do plan on taking Econ in the fall though.</p>

<p>Anyway, to your last statement, I completely agree! Disorders are often discovered so late, and kids are misdiagnosed so often that something has to be done to reverse this pattern. It’s issues like these which draw me to psych even more because of how cutting-edge and interesting/broad the field is.</p>

<p>Thanks for the good luck!! lol I’m definitely rooting for you to get into UCLA or UCSD or wherever you’d like to go in the fall!</p>

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<p>@bunnybee</p>

<p>Like emil said, it is very easy to plan your IGETC and psych courses together. Though I’d still recommend that you plan ahead, anyway. My first semester was definitely a bit haphazard, and as a result I’ve only been able to take a single psych class during CC. Well, that and budget cuts. As for calculus, it’s my personal opinion that you should take it anyway, simply for the rigor and mental exercise, but if you are not planning on going to med school and aren’t confident in your math then I would definitely not take it if you don’t have to.</p>

<p>And just as an aside, if you want to figure out if psych is for you, get out of the classroom. I began volunteering at a center for children with autism last summer and it’s been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I’m also a part of my school’s psych club, of which I am pretty proud and last october we hosted Kim Peek and his father to give a talk at our campus. I was able to meet the brilliant Rain Man shortly before his death (rest in peace, Kim) and it’s an encounter I’ll never forget. That semester I was also able to attend a lecture by William Dement, one of the pioneers in sleep research, and had a chance to meet him through my professor. All of these events have helped to drive my interest in the subject and I think you’ll immediately find that reading about it just isn’t enough. Good luck and get out there!</p>

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<p>ACCEPTED: UCSD, UCI, UCSD
PENDING: UCLA, UCB (I really, really want UCLA)</p>

<p>GPA:3.9
Programs: TAG, TAP, IGETC certified.
CCC: Orange Coast College
Pre-Reqs: Completed</p>

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<p>I think no decision yet for social majors</p>

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<p>Psych major in at SB, SD and LA! I was planning on going to SD, but now I got into LA. So I don’t know… I did not take all those SD prereqs for nothing! Lol.</p>