Rejected by every UC/CSU, need some advice.

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

Hello All,

I just got rejected by every single UC/CSU school I applied to (which was most of them), and statistically my chances of making it off the UCI waitlist are slim to none. I thought I had it in the bag (full-time major-related job, great hooks, Honors, 3.9+ GPA)

Now I have nowhere to go and nothing to show for all that work.

I’ve got 100 Lower-Div Quarter Hours between my CCC and a visiting scholars program (which I confirmed makes me subject to the max transfer credit hour limit).
I can take 4 more classes and get my AS-T in Business with exactly 118 Quarter hours, but I have some questions.

1: Do any schools have a credit limit lower than 120 Quarter Hours for “CCC + 4Yr” students? The lowest unit cap I could find was 120 Quarter hours for Cal/D/R, but the most recent data I could find was published in 2014…

2: Will re-applying to schools for the second time hurt my chances at admission? Will they negatively factor in the number of years I’ve been attending college for? Should I apply to more Ivies/Elites and only target UC’s?

3: I took one of my UCSB TAG prereq’s at the 4-Year I briefly attended, will this affect my chances for TAG admission? It is a pretty standardized class at most universities but I’m not sure UC will see it in the same light.

4: Most importantly: Can I take all four of my last classes Fall 2020 and still TAG for Fall 2021? I saw that I had to attend school for my “last regular session”, but I’d prefer to work full-time and save up for tuition if it is an option.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
-Apparently Not “Hip To The Game”

2

@Gumbymom , @MYOS1634 , any advice for this student?

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I am moving this discussion to the UC transfer forum where more knowledgeable posters on the transfer process can help.

You might also want to post in the Cal State University, General forum.

For the Cal states, being within the local service area is very important for transfers since they get priority.

Which schools did you apply besides UCI?

Do you have any upper division courses from the 4 year university?

Found this on the UC Transfer forum FAQ:
**Can I have too many units to transfer?

Without going into all the details, the simple formula is all lower division courses (freshman/sophomore level) will cap at 70 semester units no matter how many you take or where you take them. So you can have 100 lower division courses and you will still be eligible to transfer, as only 70 units will transfer. The complicating issue is if you have any upper division courses (only available at a 4-year institution), because those upper division are added on top of any lower division and can put you over the ceiling max. [If you are adding in UC units see next question.]

Current semester unit ceilings by campus:
—Berkeley, UCSD, UCSB, UCSC, UCI, UCR: 90
—Davis and Merced: 80
—UCLA: 86.5

Being over may or may not prevent you from gaining entry. Some UCs are more lenient than others. Best approach is to reach out to the UC for some feedback. And by the way, they do not count AP, so those units will not affect the ceiling. The UC only counts courses.

4

@Lindagaf @Gumbymom Thanks for the reply!

I’m only interested in going to Cal Poly or SDSU at this point, I value the alumni and career recruiting of UC’s much more than the low cost of CSU’s. I have to live in the Bay Area for work and taking care of family so I can’t do Cuesta classes.

Applied to UCB Haas, UCI P.M. and Riverside all for Business Admin, but am now more open to doing an Economics or Accounting degree if it creates more options.

No upper division courses from the 4yr but I am worried that my CC Managerial Accounting will be counted as UD at UCSB, since it is UD for them.

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SDSU and Cal Poly SLO give priority to local in-service area applicants so both are tough admits if non-local.

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@Gumbymom Yeah, I’d honestly rather get job experience and dollars saved for tuition.

I hear undergrad programs like Haas and Paul Merage look at work experience in the same way an MBA program would, so I’m thinking increasing my responsibilities at work will be a good use of time while I’m taking 1 class per quarter at most.

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Just make sure you apply more widely in the next application round so you have some options.

Work experience can definitely help but ultimately it will be the whole package including a competitive GPA.

UC Davis is the only UC that will require you attend Full time for TAG during Spring semester/quarter prior to matriculation but they do make exceptions.

I would still contact the schools that denied your admission and find if the High unit cap is an issue.

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@Gumbymom Will do, thanks. Not sure which accounting classes are considered upper-division so I’d definitely benefit from some more clarity.

Thanks so much for the help!!

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It’s hard to give advice when we don’t know GPA.

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@Ohm888 As of 4/12 it’s between [3.9 , 4.0] cumulative.

4.00 at my CCC and 3.9+ in the few classes I took at the 4 Year.

Don’t want to dox myself, as my situation is unique and I know admissions officers lurk the forums.

11

All CC courses should be considered lower division. To count units for the purpose of the unit limit for transfer, add up all lower division non-UC units, cap them at 70 semester units, then add any UC units and upper division units to that. Note: 1 semester unit = 1.5 quarter units.

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Have you looked at out of state? I applied to a bunch and had amazing scholarship options. To the point where OOS tutition was waved

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I don’t think they do. They have enough on their plate than to come here and try and match up names.

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I would find some safety schools for your list, it seems reality snuck up on you this time, I do not get you asking fi you should apply to more ivy’s what makes you think you can get in? what schools did you get into?

15

Which “most of them” did you apply to? (and for which major at each)

16

I filed my taxes independently from the time I was 18 onwards, but still have little luck.

I live in Northern California, and my modest salary (for the region) disqualifies me for most need-based scholarships, even though a majority of it is eaten up by taxes and rent.

17

I agree, reality gave me a well-deserved uppercut this year.
Dunning-Kruger in full effect.

My safety is UCSB via TAG, 99% chance I’ll end up there if I get another wall of rejections next year. Only thing that would prevent me from getting in is the credit hour max I mentioned above. All prereqs have been completed and my GPA is well above 3.4.

Got into 3 of the 7 Top-40 schools I applied to, but I’m not comfortable taking out $100K+ unless I’m at an Ivy or Stanford/MIT/Caltech/NYU/UMich, none of which I applied to. Wondering whether to leave all my eggs in the UC basket, or go all-out with admissions. Hope the way I am wording it makes sense.

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Hip, did you TAG any of the UC schools that allow TAG (All except UCB, UCLA, UCSD)? I found your situation quite odd.

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I genuinely thought my hooks, work/volunteer experience and GPA set me up perfectly for Haas. Had a rude awakening this Spring.

Didn’t TAG, as Irvine (the 4th best UC, behind UCB, UCLA, UCSB) doesn’t accept TAG for my major (Business Administration) and I wasn’t open to switching my major until last month.
Next-Best for TAG in Bus. Admin was UC Riverside, and after touring that campus I have absolutely no desire to attend that school or interact with that student body.

I plan on tagging next year to UCSB for Econ+Acct, even though I have zero interest in the Keynesian Economics they teach.