Hello Guys,
I am in a bit of a situation.
I graduated high school and I am currently in community college, wishing to transfer to a UC (hopefully Berkeley for engineering).
My community college GPA after graduating high-school is pretty good, a 3.87 (mostly all STEM classes, though, I do have 3 W’s between 3 semesters).
However, I took a crap load of UC-Transferable courses during high-school, dual enrollment courses, and I did horribly in them.
My dual enrollment courses are just a bunch of Academic Renewals, C’s, and W’s. It drags my overall transfer GPA pretty bad.
When admissions looks at my application, they will be first be seeing a bunch of AR’s, W’s, and C’s, which is pretty bad. Do I still have a shot? Will they throw the application just by seeing those? Also, after graduating I still have 3 W’s, is that bad?
Thank You All!
All UC transferable courses will be considered as part of your UC Transfer application. W’s are usually not an issue for the UC’s unless there is an excessive amount on your transcript. Your recent success at your current CC may help overcome your bad DE course grades however with such a competitive campus like UCB and major, there are no guarantees. What does your CC transfer advisor recommend in regards to your chances at a successful transfer?
1 Like
I have a feeling that UCB is not going to be an option for you. I’d look into other transfer options.
1 Like
Here is a link to the UC Transfer GPA by major to give you an idea of your chances. The data is from 2021 which is the most current.
2021 Transfer admit GPA overall for UCB was 3.79-4.00. Depending upon which Engineering specialty you are applying, the lower end of the GPA could be higher.
Jeez, do you think if I explained it was during high school they’ll give me a chance? Do you think they will look at the AR’s and C’s and automatically toss the application?
If you had straight A’s with no W’s from community college for the past 3 semesters, and the trouble were only with what you had done while in high school dual enrollment classes, then I think you might have had them look at it and say, “Well, applicant was immature, but has totally gotten their act together.” The issue is that you had a W every semester for the last 3 semesters, plus you don’t have perfect grades for the last 3 semesters at the community college. So yes, go ahead and apply to your reaches/dreams. I’m just saying that you should also focus on making other options, since I think that it is highly unlikely that you would be accepted for transfer to the most selective UCs.
Also something you can add at the end of the application in the additional info section. There may have been a reason for the poor performance and you can talk about how you have gotten yourself together since then and made positive changes that have brought success.
As noted by @parentologist, the UC’s consider your more recent college record more than your HS record. The application does have an additional comment section where you can explain the DE grades. Just realize that your whole college transcript will be evaluated and you need to have a backup plan if UCB gives you a denial. Shoot for the stars but have a realistic list. Plenty of great Engineering programs at the other UC’s and even Cal states. There is a college that will understand you have grown since HS and those past grades are not a reflection on where you are now. The issue is finding the right fit college or colleges.
And no your application will not be automatically rejected.