<p>Hi, I was part of the 2006 transferring student; got into all UCs and USC, chose UCLA over Cal and USC and graduated in 2008. </p>
<p>For all your new Bruins or who really really want to join UCLA, you are now probably waiting for that admission letter and might have lots of concerns and questions. If you have any doubt about the process, the school, the math program, the accounting program, UCLA in general, etc... I'm glad to help answering your questions.</p>
<p>Awesome! I love “graduated” CC-ers coming back to help out. Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Where did you live? How did you choose your roommates? Did the location change your ability to mix with the social scene on campus? (especially juniors & seniors that have already established their places there)</p>
<p>How many years (or semesters) did you stay at UCLA? Were you able to finish all the courses in the time expected? Are you glad you chose UCLA over Cal?</p>
<p>Did you have a car? Where did you hang out? On-campus or off-campus mostly?</p>
<p>THANKS AGAIN :)</p>
<p>How worthy is the punani at UCLA?</p>
<p>so how hard are the math classes.</p>
<p>i ask because i’ve always been really good at math and then i came to ucsd and i started getting B+ average in my upper div math. wondering if it’s even harder at ucla, or possibly easier.</p>
<p>beardy, the kos is the best :D</p>
<p>whats your soc. sec. number? </p>
<p>jk</p>
<p>what was your gpa @ ucla and for which major</p>
<p>How does it feel going to the 2nd best UC? haha im just playin…UCLA is a great school.</p>
<p>lol at beardy’s comment… </p>
<p>how well did you adjust to the quarter system? or how long did it take for you to adjust?</p>
<p>Alright, I’ll answer everything in 1 batch. </p>
<p>About the living place, I and 3 other highschool, community college friends rent a 2 rooms apartment off campus and divide the renting expenses + all the bills equally. About how you should choose the roommates: the main issue is make sure they have the ability and willingness to settle and pay the bill and rent on time.
Some tips: when you first started there, make some general rules that you all can agree upon and not violate to make others upset like for the one who share room with you, no loud music during your general studying time…</p>
<p>About the social scene:
I think many have misconception that UCLA has majority of students entering as freshman but you will find that especially in your upper division level courses a not so small number of transferring students especially the ones from PCC or SMC. Making friends there is easier in smaller upper division courses (your major courses) than the ~200 students courses (accounting courses, GEs, lower division …) and in general, you will meet the same people over and over again in the same majors (it is true for math majors, not sure others) and lots of time people form group to study together too.
There are plenty of cute girls around. Furthermore, the diversity is also large here where you can find almost all different races, and age. </p>
<p>About math courses:
I got straight A from calculus to differential equations and I still think the upper division courses are very hard (rating of 8-10 on difficulty depending on the courses itself). </p>
<p>About choosing UCLA over Cal: I’m very happy having graduated from UCLA but I still have some regret not choosing Cal because Cal is even more difficult to get in as graduate student so now I have very little to no chance to see how Cal is. I really do want to compare Cal and UCLA to see if Cal is really better than UCLA or not. However, I’m very proud of joining UCLA alumni network. </p>
<p>2nd best UC? ahahaha according to the world ranking of best university 2009 from US News, UCLA is better than Cal so it is best UC! j/k. Well, one pretty darn good thing is that many employers in CA recognize the values and the name of UCLA and that counts a lot in job hunting. </p>
<p>Me: Math/Accounting major with GPA of 3.5 @ UCLA.</p>
<p>Quarter system adjustment from semester:
It took me 1 quarter to adjust but the quarter system was super fast. </p>
<p>The pace: Started about 3 weeks==> Midterm, 1-2 weeks = 1 chapter of math book, another 2-4 weeks==> second midterm, near the end of 9th week, studying like no life ==> final either on 10th or 11th week. Passed? yes==> Yahoo but another quarter started in 1 or 2 more weeks!
In CC, the lecture is usually boring and long but in quarter system, the lecture is usually 50 minutes a day, 3 days a weeks. Some courses has about 1:20 minutes a day, 2 days a weeks… in math department, professors tend to run out of time because there are lots of materials to cover.</p>
<p>Hello Kevin101:
I’m a biochem major who wants to attend UCLA if admitted, my first question is: I want to know what is the normal course load for upper division (Major courses+electives) for a regular quarter and summer session. </p>
<p>2nd question: I will be done with all my major preps before entrance except LS2, so do I need to retake the whole LS-series again just cos I haven’t completed that one course ?</p>
<p>3rd question: Can I take any courses to fill up the 180-unit grad cap? Assuming I have already completed all my upper divi major requirements and upper division electives?</p>
<p>4th question: Because I don’t like noises to distract me from studying, I’m kind worried that if I share a dorm with many others, I might be distracted. In this case, should I get a dorm or rent an apartment near UCLA? </p>
<p>Thank you for your time, I really appreciate that.</p>
<p>Kevin, I am waiting for my decision into UCLA. My questions are as follows: How hard is it to get into UCLA as a global studies major? I know this is a faily new major that began coincidently in 2006 but I have heard that it is very competitive. Like what GPA do they usually admit students? Have you had any friends that have pursued this major? If so, what have they thought about it? what have you heard about this major in general, please tell em the ins and outs if you know of them? oright, and congratulations on your achievements, look forward in hearing from you</p>
<p>Hi Kevin,
I am transferring hopefully to UCLA. Do you know anyone who was transferring with you who did have TAP but was rejected from UCLA with a Bio major. I have a 3.95 GPA with a Bio major. What are my chances??? Also, how is the atmosphere is UCLA. I heard the college town is great…Thanks!</p>
<p>To Kahn1988:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>For biochem major, it is competitive to get in as well as competitive to stay in the program. Your particular major is hard and you would also expect a tougher course load than many other majors except engineering or math/science. You have 2 options: either take 3 courses per quarter and graduate in about 3 years or make them 4 courses per quarter and graduate in about 2 years. My recommendation is not to rush, just take your time to digest the materials and take about 3 courses (12 units) per quarter and go with that pace until you graduate; also take 1 course in summer if you can and within 1 year, you would have 3 X 3 +1 = 10 courses done. Your major would be a lot of biochem courses plus some electives that you can choose from in any math or science majors. For more details, check out this handbook from official UCLA bio chem :
<a href=“http://www.chemistry.ucla.edu/file-storage/publicview/pdfs/2008-2009Handbook.pdf[/url]”>http://www.chemistry.ucla.edu/file-storage/publicview/pdfs/2008-2009Handbook.pdf</a></p></li>
<li><p>My recommendation is that you should finish the entire series before transfer for the reason that even though you might get partial credit but sometimes they might make you retake 1 or 2 courses. For example, calculus in CC has 1,2,3 but calculus in UCLA has 31a/b and 32a/b so if you take 1,and 2 and miss 3 in CC, they might make you take 32a/b but if you finish 1,2,3; you get credit for 4 courses. This is one example of math series but the general rule applies to other majors as well. </p></li>
<li><p>I believe yes. Let me explain more in details:
There are mainly 3 requirements:
a. College requirement: all the GEs and lower division (transferring students usually have credit for this if they have IGETC certified).
b. Upper division major requirements (this is critical because you need to complete all of these required with LETTER GRADES (no P/NP option here)
c. Unit requirement:
I. Total minimum 180 quarter units and maximum 216 quarter units. Any credit course will count here so you can take course even outside your major.
II. Upper division units requirement: minimum 60 quarter units. They call this residential major requirement. </p></li>
<li><p>I think it really depends on whom you are living with so make sure you choose your partners carefully. Dorms are generally more expensive than off campus and dorms are usually reserved for freshmen so my recommendation is look around the Westwood area to see opening cheap off campus apartments around.
For quiet studying time, you will always have libraries and you will love the libraries in UCLA if you visit them! </p></li>
</ol>
<p>You are welcome! I’m here to help out as much as I can. I have been here since 2006. I have been there and done that so I know how you guys are going through! Especially during these waiting days, don’t worry too much! Relax and wait for a surprising good news! Let me know if you get admitted. :)</p>
<p>To chesserforlife:
Generally, non-engineering admitted students tend to have GPA about 3.5 so general thumb rule is >3.5 GPA + finishing all major requirement + IGETC = a safety! I’ll get back to your question once I find the relevant statistics, i believe they have it every year. </p>
<p>My friends are generally in the math, science, business, biochem and engineering departments so i don’t really know much about your major. Thanks for the nice words! Feel free to ask me further questions! </p>
<p>**To everyone: **
I hope to bring some relevant information, let you guys at least feel calm down a bit during these waiting period for the admission letters, and prepare you to become a new Bruin once you are admitted.</p>
<p>Kevin 101, well you do deserve all the congratulations and thanks for making this new thread. this will ultimately and most importantly help us all out with our anxieties as we are approaching the decisions. I actually know all the stats for it as someone gladly helped me a week ago. what I want to know is why a new major only 3 years into it has gotten so competitive? Like for instance, last year 152 students applied to my intended major of global studies, and only 51 were admitted? the average gpa of admits was 3.72, and average of applicants was 3.43 so what do you think that they factor in accepting and rejecting students? Also, the major coursework is not required just RECOMENDED, until next year. I am actually doing all the major coursework hope that gives me an advantage, and my GPA is pretty solid higher than the average admit they took last year, I also fonished IGETC, and solid essays I would say. i don’t have TAP however. Oright Kevin and once again congrats on everything you have done up to this point and look forward speaking with you soon.</p>
<p>how hard is it to get classes as a transfer student?</p>
<p>i believe that it depends on which orientation you attend.</p>
<p>do you know anything about the sociology department? also, how are the clubs and organizations on campus, any worth looking at? do you know anything about taking a minor? I was interested in doing so but was wondering if the class load is significantly more or about the same. Thanks!</p>
<p>do they put a limit on how many courses u take on your first quarter there? how much? thanks</p>
<p>Thank you Kevin 101. You are really helpful</p>
<p>How is the business economics program at UCLA? I know it’s really selective on getting in but I’m just wondering how it squares off against USC Marshall in the Business major.</p>