<p>I received an email today telling me that I would have to take a Mathematics Diagnostics Proficiency Test for precalculus for incoming freshman engineering students, though I’m kind of stuck in a bind. It says that you are exempt if you have a 3 or higher on a AP Calculus exam, but I won’t receive my scores back until after I attend orientation (I’m signed up for the first week). And being an out of state student, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to travel to take the exam in May. Ugh this is so frustrating considering the coordinator for the test is out for the next week…</p>
<p>Is anyone else having a similar issue? </p>
<p>They were pretty clear that you had to take the test before your orientation session at the Engineering Day we attended. If you absolutely can’t take the test on one of the two tests offered in California, and there’s no way to arrange a proctored test close to where you live, maybe you can move your orientation date to after your get your AP scores. Of course, if you don’t pass the AP test, you’ ll be in bad position. </p>
<p>On different topic, if you don’t mind my asking, how did you choose between SLO and Pomona? Was it mainly location? Or, were there other factors?</p>
<p>I do hope that Pomona has a way to accommodate OOS students.</p>
<p>Well being out of state (from TX specifically), I also didn’t attend engineering day, so this is something out of the blue for me. I mean I don’t mind going out there to take the test if it’s required, it’s just kind of a unexpected hassle. I was also thinking about moving my orientation, but apparently honors college students are required to attend the first orientation. I’m pretty confident that I’ll pass the AP Calc test, but I guess it’s better to be safe than sorry. Hopefully they will find a way to accommodate me, considering that the person I talked to on the phone said that they have solved this issue in the past. </p>
<p>And about choosing SLO vs Pomona, I had a few different factors. A big part of it like you said was location. I have a lot of family in OC, and I would also prefer being in a large metro area for a larger array of internships, especially my major which is Civil Engineering. I did like both campuses when I visited, but for me I did enjoy Pomona’s campus vibe, which was an isolated feeling close to a big city. I also earn some money on the side filming theme park videos on YouTube, so having a good array of theme parks close by is also a plus. </p>
<p>Probably the biggest factor though is my academic ability. I honestly don’t know why I was accepted at SLO, considering I had below average test scores and GPA, but I’m not sure if I would like being in the “bottom” of my class academic wise. I would much rather be at Pomona, where I would be in the honors college, as well as having more confidence in myself I guess academically. </p>
<p>In the end, I would really just like to go somewhere that would offer me good job opportunities, in which both of the schools do an excellent job in that aspect, and I would also prefer to stay in SoCal after college since that’s where most of my family is from.</p>
<p>Thanks for sharing how you arrived at your decision. Clearly, you’ve put a lot of thought into this, and your reasoning seems sound to me. I’m not sure your stats are that far off the average for SLO, though. This the freshman profile from last year: </p>
<p><a href=“Cal Poly Admissions”>Cal Poly Admissions;
<p>Regardless, you have several other logical reasons for choosing Pomona over SLO.</p>
<p>Maybe you’ll be seeing my daughter at Pomona. She hasn’t quite finalized her decision yet. She did sign up for the MDPT test yesterday.</p>
<p>Best wishes!</p>