I’m currently a freshman at a CCC. My high school grades were terrible, but I’m doing pretty great at community college. Anyways, it’s always been a goal for me to attend a nice college - somewhere that would make me happy. Initially I wanted to transfer to UC Davis through tag (the safe choice according to my counselor), but now I feel that I can do better. I want to transfer to Berkeley. Not just for prestige or anything, but so I can make my family proud by attending “one of the best colleges in America.” I fell in love with the campus and area, but I know it’s incredibly competitive. I’m acing all of my classes (5 classes, 18 units). In high school, my counselor laughed at me for wanting to attend college (I graduated with a 2.8 due to my terrible freshman and sophomore years).
Is it silly to set goals? I’m afraid of Dissapointing myself and my family if I talk too much and don’t do enough. I don’t know honestly, I’m just confused.
If anyone can provide some help with majors here’s this: I love analyzing literature, helping the environment, thinking about ideas, doing math problems (I’m in a basic Algebra course, but I really like it), foreign languages, and writing.
It is silly to pick a college based on some perceived prestige. Pick colleges strong in your major that you have a reasonable chance to get into and can afford.
Setting goals is fine. But I agree-- your goal should not be on attending “one of the best colleges in America.” It should be finding the best college for YOU.
I don’t think that you should think of UC Berkeley as “better” than UC Davis. Both are very good schools for some students. Both are a bad fit for some students. You should try to understand the strengths and weaknesses of multiple schools, and should find a school that is very good for you.
People who set a “goal” of one hyper-competitive college are often disappointed. It seems to me that the “goal” should be to get to a 4 year university that is affordable, can give you a great experience as a transfer student, and get you where you want to go in life.
A quick history lesson on UCB and UCD. UCD started out as the University Farm, the research and science-based instruction extension of UC Berkeley in 1908.
Also of interest is the Intercampus Bus service which provides transportation between the University of California Davis and Berkeley campuses for UCD/UCB faculty, staff and registered student.
So again really not that different as stated above.
It’s great to have goals in life. Your desire to do well in community college and be able to continue on to a four year college is a goal. Where you end up transferring to is far less important. Your choice of four year school should be based on what you want to study and affordability.
Attaching yourself to one specific school can lead to a lot of heartbreak if affordability comes into play. Keep your eye on Berkeley, but know that there are other equally-viable paths toward your goal.
