Rate me -- CA community college transfer

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

I’m about to finish my first year at community college and kick off my apps for a few schools. I’m pretty good at gaging acceptances/rejections at the high school level, but not college. It just works so differently and is both less and more competitive in so many ways. So if anyone could honestly tell me how they think I’m doing, I’d appreciate the feedback!

Note: I go to a cc with a Transfer Alliance Program, a direct relationship between my cc and UCLA, which provides priority consideration to applicants in the program; we also have a Transfer Alliance Guarantee with all UCs except UCLA and Berkeley

GPA:
-4.0 both semesters
-on Chancellor’s honor roll first semester for taking full load with 4.0 (expect to get it again)

Classes:
-taken 15 units of honors coursework, fulfilled honors program requirements in one year (plan to take more, but school just cut a ton of classes)
-plan to double major (complete prerequisites for 2 majors): English (possibly with a concentration in creative writing) and History
ECs:
-member of honors program
-(incoming) secretary for college Honor Society Club
-Phi Theta Kappa member
-outgoing secretary/founding member for our campus Red Cross Club (got blindsided, long story, not my fault)
-founding member/staff writer/layout designer for college newspaper (literally did Vol. 1 Issue 1)
-assistant for student gov. director of marketing and information; designed the entire student gov. election campaign (slogan, posters, etc)
-(incoming) assistant editor on college newspaper
-presented academic research at a student symposium for human rights and an honors student showcase
-(plan to) start a club on campus, founding co-president

High school:
-UW GPA: 3.94, W 4.71
SAT (old): 1950; ACT: 30 (took it once without studying)
-AP Psych and AP Lang: 5; AP Lit and AP Stats: 4
-ECs: yearbook staff/editor 3 years, member in NHS, Cal Scholarship Fund, NSHSS, member in a few campus clubs, classically trained in studio art for 12 years (I know that’s not a lot – probably part of why UCLA didn’t take me the first time)

Schools I plan to apply to: UCLA (top choice), Berkeley, Stanford, Yale, Columbia, (maybe) Harvard – yes I know all these schools are competitive, and I’m hesitant to apply to Stanford and the Ivies because I’d basically be paying for rejection, but I haven’t liked any of the Cal States I’ve researched so far and don’t know where else to apply/if I’d want to go anywhere other than UCLA

In short: what are my chances for acceptance as a Fall 2018 transfer?

2

I think you have a good shot with Stanford and a great one with UCLA. UCLA and Stanford are also my two top schools. I would love nothing more than to get into Stanford but I know it’s such a long road ahead… With Stanford transfer admission is so tough that there will never be a definite answer… Your major plays a role as well; at UCLA, there are very competitive majors and also less competitive ones. There’s more information specific to each major’s transfer rate on their website. The 75th percentile for English/History is around a 3.8, so you have a great shot. As for Stanford, it’s all dependent on how many slots are actually available… Here are my stats if you’re curious:

College GPA: 4.0. President’s Honor Roll. Planning to maintain perfect GPA as I continue to take much more rigorous courses in this coming semester. Planning to transfer as a Symbolic Systems major or Cognitive Science.

Classes/Extracurricular:

  • Intention to take about 18 units next semester.
  • Phi Theta Kappa
  • Starting as an intern as a research assistant dealing with mental health
  • Currently working at a part-time job

High School Stats:

  • W GPA: 3.76. My high school transcript demonstrates a very evident trend of improvement over my high school years. My senior year I never got below a 4.0, but by then it was too late.
  • SAT: 1680, ACT: 27. (I should probably retake these tests but I seriously despise the standardized tests…)
  • AP Psych: 4; AP Lang: 4; AP Lit: 4; AP Stats: 3; AP Art History: 3; AP Euro: 3.
  • Winner of Outstanding Senior Award in the English Department at my school
  • Placed top 3 in the AVID Write-Off three times out of the four years I was in the program.

I’m familiar with the Transfer Alliance Program and unfortunately my school doesn’t offer it! But that gives you even more of an edge with transfer to that school. Your chances overall are great for Cal and UCLA. Ivy leagues and other ivy league level universities can be tricky. Best of luck to us both. :slight_smile: Maintain that perfect GPA and write decent essays and you’re golden.

3

Thanks @nick1234567892 and best of luck to you too! Your major is much more competitive than mine, so more props to you if you get in!

4

paying for rejection… an interesting concept… but, you do get to say you "haven’t heard back from Stanford and Harvard yet."for a while. What is that worth to you? You already know that they accept less than 10 transfers most years and they are Olympians, etc… That said, you won’t know if you don’t apply. You are obviously very bright. - I’d give it a shot.

In addition to UCB and LA, You should definitely find a school you would be comfortable TAGing into.- perhaps Davis or Irvine.

Good luck

5

@NCalRent thanks! I’m definitely going to apply to a maximum of 3 Ivies because I am interested in seeing if I get in. I only hesitate to apply to more because I don’t qualify for a fee waiver and submitting all the apps is very pricey. I only wish I was a higher caliber student that could get into an elite school like any of the Ivies, Stanford, etc. since my top schools are pretty much some of the most competitive colleges in the country. Having the reassurance that I could get in to those schools would make it less stressful to think about getting into the fantastic but less-renowned colleges I’m interested in.

In the end, I think I’m most worried about my high school stats coming back to haunt me, regardless of how well I do in college.

6

for UCs and CSUs, it is like high school never happened… Other than any AP credits you earned, you get a complete reset or better or worse.

Also, keep in mind that the secrets of the universe aren’t passed along only to Ivy League students. They don’t graduate with a magic wand that makes the rest of their lives easier. You will can get an outstanding education and meet lots of interesting people at every UC and CSU.