<p>Hi, </p>
<p>Background information: I'm a student at UCLA (transferred last year), English major, and my career goal is in marketing.</p>
<p>Now, I had a few mess ups during my first year at UCLA. I have a decent GPA so far (a 3.7) but I've only actually completed a few classes for my major. Recently I've been reconsidering whether or not I should stick with English or try and transfer again (preferably Cal, UCSB, USC or UCLA again after completing a semester at CC. I want to transfer into communications/media studies or business administration. Since I only have a few classes (two actually and another two W's in major courses) completed for my major, I figured it wouldn't be a total loss to transfer. However, for this next year as well as last, I've gotten all of my fees covered and have had not had to take out any loans because of the UCLA achievement scholarship. I'm really bummed at how competitive UCLA is in terms of major opportunities. I could not possibly switch into comms. or economics or anything more related to marketing at this point. There are also no relevant minors. </p>
<p>Now I'm not sure if I should give UCLA a chance and try to make the most out of it with internships and elective courses in comms. and economics to get where I want to be or start all over by transferring somewhere else. Any advice?</p>
<p>I've been told that my current degree, costing me nothing, and being from UCLA would be enough to get me the career that I would want, especially if I supplemented it with the above. However, I tend to hear this a lot from adults who have "been out of the game for a while" and don't necessarily understand the dynamics of the hiring processes nowadays so I wanted to ask other people who are transferring and trying to figure this all out. Thanks!</p>
<p>You have to have junior standing to transfer to another UC. If you no longer do (or will), it’s definitely out of the question (for UCs). You’ll have to look into other schools’ policies on transfers. I’m not seeing what you’ll gain from transferring though. The grass always seems greener on the other side.</p>
<p>Can’t you take econ and comms electives while continuing your English degree? I doubt English would have that many requirements…I really don’t think it would be wise to drop out and try to transfer back in next year. I highly doubt you would get in.</p>
<p>I think you should meet with a counselor and ask if there is anything you could do to switch your major. Even if it’s something else that is less impacted but still somewhat related to econ or comms. Applied math or statistics would be a good substitute major for econ, and you would still be able to take econ electives and possibly use econ classes for some of the major requirements. </p>
<p>If you graduate and really can’t find a job, then you can do a masters in either econ or comms. But for now, you should just focus on getting a high GPA at UCLA and at least taking some classes you find interesting while completing your degree on time. I would utilize summer session. And definitely focus on finding an internship now. Perhaps you could join some sort of marketing club on campus.</p>
<p>My daughter just graduated from UCLA with a degree in Communications. The best advice I can give you is:1. Stay at UCLA. The name does matter. People know UCLA is tough to get in to and tough to graduate from. Not sure if you would really be able to transfer to any of those other schools at this point. 2. Take as many comm classes you can as electives. Then on your resume you can say you studied communications while getting a degree in English. The type of degree is less important than the fact that you are a UCLA grad. 3. Most importantly, get internship experience in the field. My daughter went to classes only on T/TH her last two years as she had 4 different internships on Monday and Wednesdays throughout her junior and senior years. Two were at PR firms and the last two were at Internationally recognized Ad agencies. Granted being a comm major at UCLA helped her get those internships but it’s the person that ultimately gets the internship (and the job). Being in LA is extremely valuable in terms of being where the internships are. Contact everyone you can at school, in your major, in the career center, local businesses, etc. to find internships.</p>
<p>My daughter is home now (after taking a couple months off to travel) and is job hunting. Besides graduating from UCLA Summa Cum Laude, the single most important thing in her job search is her internship experiences. Update: My daughter just got up and confirmed everything I just wrote. Her last two internships she found on her own by researching every Ad agency in LA and contacting them. She confirms that she cannot imagine job hunting right now without that internship experience. AND that LA is the place to be for marketing and advertising. Good Luck!</p>
<p>^ I think that major trumps school prestige when it comes to finding a job. It sounds like your daughter graduated from UCLA Summa Cum Laude several months ago with a degree in Communications and is still looking for a job. My son who is a junior Geology major at Sacramento State tells me that every senior majoring in Geology at Sac State already had multiple high paying job offers to start working as soon as they finished their degrees well before they even graduated in May of this year.</p>
<p>My daughter graduated June 17 so it was not "several"months ago. UCLA is on the quarter system so while many of her friends were finished early May my daughter was still taking classes mid June. She then went to Paris (where she had studied for a semester) to continue her goal of French language fluency. She lived with a family while attending a language program. Then she was lucky enough to go to London with friends for 2 weeks during the Olympics, an experience she will remember forever. She has only been home for a week and has had several phone interviews with Ad agencies and has 2 in person interviews in SF next week. She is confident that her education and her internship experience will result in a job very soon. It’s only been a week so she is not discouraged yet!</p>
<p>I was merely trying to give advice to the poster about whether or not she should remain an English major. I am sure many will admit that a computer science major or an electrical engineering major or another “science” major will have and easier time getting a job than an English or Communications major but I was hoping to encourage her to stay the course and utilize the resources available to her.</p>
<p>Thank you Shannon13 and Inquiringmind2. Both of your advice has really helped me to see the opportunities that I can take advantage of at UCLA instead of starting all over. I decided to enroll in electives in the communications department and did find out that UCLA has an awesome marketing club that I’m really excited to try out this next year! I am also looking into a minor in statistics, so thank you both for your advice. Good luck to your daughter Inquiringmind2!</p>
<p>PS. Lemaitre, I think that school prestige and major completely depend on the individual and how they utilize internships, clubs, course work, and even alumni placement. I took a quarter off from UCLA last year and landed two jobs offering me more than 50k a year, which I don’t think is too bad considering I hadn’t even graduated. This was largely due to the fact that I was really involved all throughout community college and at UCLA while I was there. I also have 4 years of administrative experience but the fact that my potential employers determined I could read, write, and think well definitely gave me a leg up over say someone who was a criminal justice major. It really just depends on what type of career that you’re looking to get into. I decided not to take them because I want to have my degree from UCLA but I can say that even when my own meager experience at UCLA came up during interviews, it really impressed my interviewers. I know that my specific major or for instance a communications major does not lead more directly to a specific job but I’m okay with that because it gives me so many options to bend my abilities to different fields but that’s great that your son was able to secure himself a job in his desired field. :)</p>