<p>I applied as an engineering major at berkeley thinking I could transfer later into the college of letters and science but not the other way around if i got in, but after reading threads it seems that its not that easy even to transfer from engineering to the reg. college. does any1 have experience/information on this because i want to major in economics now.</p>
<p>well the thing about that is from what I read is that Economics is an impacted major. Also it is easier to transfer out of there as long as it is early. It is much harder to transfer in.</p>
<p>read through this</p>
<p>It's difficult to transfer from L&S to CoE, but not the other way around. Some posters will mislead you in thinking that it's difficult to go from CoE to L&S, but that's pretty much a rumor.</p>
<p>In order to change colleges, you need:</p>
<pre><code>* Have completed at least one semester of coursework at UC Berkeley [you'll want to change after this]
* Have completed fewer than 90 units at the end of your last term before admission to the College [this is standard; 90 units is 3/4 your time at Cal]
* Are able to complete your degree within the College's unit limit [this is also standard; they want to be sure you can do it in 4 years, and most can]
* Have completed Entry Level Writing and the first half of the Reading and Composition requirement (by the end of your freshman year) [this is for everyone, unless you can opt out of it by AP credit]
* Have also completed the second half of the Reading and Composition requirement (by the end of your sophomore year) [this is for everyone, unless you can opt out of it by AP credit]
* Are eligible to declare a major (if you have completed 60 units or more) [standard]
</code></pre>
<p>The only way I can see it being difficult transferring to L&S is:</p>
<p>a) You're on academic probation (near or below 2.0 GPA)
b) You're transferring into an impacted program (like econ)
c) You haven't completed the prereqs (which is easy)</p>
<p>The user Decimal from the other thread had "difficulty" because he wanted to transfer out before the first semester grades had come out, when the (easy) rules clearly state to wait till after that. Once you have that, you fill out a petition to change your college (and that isn't difficult).</p>
<p>Here's what other current students say:</p>
<p>"as for the former situation, where L&S does not let people from CoE in --- i'm not sure that's entirely real. i switched from college of chem to L&S in my sophomore year and had no issues in switching. perhaps it's different for CoE but i sometimes feel that there are a lot of rumours about L&S which are false"</p>
<p>"i have never heard of problems for switching from CoE to L&S. and i know a fair number of people who've done it, too. maybe if you're on academic probation or some comparably unpleasant situation..."</p>
<p>"I transfered into L&S from COE and it was really easy. ... The real challenge is getting from L&S to COE."</p>
<p>"not true. except for certain impacted majors like economics, L&S majors are not selective at all. they let in anyone who has the prereqs completed. COE has some GPA requirements attached to specific majors - it is easier to get into some major than others"</p>
<p>"Everyone in COE has to take a certain number of humanities classes, both upper division and lower division, and we have to fulfill the R1A and R1B requirement. Also, depending on your major in COE, you may end up taking a lot of lower division classes that overlap and may count towards prereqs, like Chem 1A, Chem 3A, Chem 3B, Math 1A and 1B etc."</p>
<p>"I am not aware of any college-based priority enrollment for lower division L&S classes. COE majors sign up for the courses on telebears like everyone else. In fact, COE majors have major requirements that require them to take L&S classes like Physics 7A. Only in the upper division do we see major-specific enrollment policies."</p>
<p>"i went from COE to L&S, it was very easy. i just filled out some paperwork."</p>
<p>because econ is impacted, you will need around a 3.4 gpa in the required courses to get into the major (that has been the historic gpa cutoff).</p>
<p>transferring out of coe is not difficult if u have a 3.0gpa. plus, many will gladly take your vacated spot.</p>
<p>for the record a 3.0 gpa is the cutoff for many things. it's never a smart move to let it sink below that.</p>
<p>3.4 is what they say on the Econ website. But I've talked to the advisor and she said that 3.0 in the prereqs should be sufficient. And I've met a couple 2.9 people who've gotten in as well.</p>
<p>^ that is really strange. a year ago when i spoke with an advisor it was a 3.4</p>
<p>
[quote]
Some posters will mislead you in thinking that it's difficult to go from CoE to L&S, but that's pretty much a rumor.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>To the OP: some posters may mislead you into thinking it is easy to switch from the CoE to L&S. Hence, instead of simply relying on rumor or hearsay, I think it's safer to rely on Berkeley's official documentation, which says the following:</p>
<p>"Please note: Grade Point Average is also a significant consideration for admission to the College. Students who meet all other criteria and have a 3.0 or higher GPA are more likely to be approved."</p>
<p>Trust me, it's quite easy to end up with below a 3.0 if you're an engineering student which may mean that you may not be able to get out of engineering. That's right - do poorly in engineering, and you may find yourself stuck in engineering. You would think that precisely the opposite ought to occur: that those who do poorly would be the ones that should be able to get out. Not so, apparently the ones who do poorly are precisely the ones who are forced to stay.</p>
<p>Now, some posters may try to convince you that L&S may give you a break if you're an engineering student. Well, I don't know about you, but that's a pretty thin reed to rely on. After all, when push comes to shove and you have a sub-3.0 GPA and you're trying to switch to L&S and they ask you why they should let you do so, saying that you read some anonymous post on CC that said that it would be easy to do so ain't exactly the greatest argument in the world. </p>
<p>A better way would be for you to visit an L&S advisor and try to get one of them to commit to you in writing what you really need in order to switch from the CoE to L&S. For example, if it is indeed true that L&S will give CoE students a break, then get an L&S advisor to actually define what that break will entail and state it in writing. In other words, if it's really true that engineering students who have a 2.75 or even a 2.5 or below nevertheless find it "easy" to switch to L&S, then an advisor should have no problem in signing a document to that effect in writing. That's the way to cover your backside, for when the proverbial stuff hits the fan, you don't want to be left twisting in the wind. And if they refuse to sign such a document, then that should tell you something.</p>
<p>You need a 3.4 to get into Econ...that's indeed what the adviser says.</p>
<p>Some posters haven't been at Berkeley in quite a while and thus don't know how things work today. Not to mention it wouldn't make sense if L&S were to keep out students in hard majors because they're doing poorly.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Some posters haven't been at Berkeley in quite a while and thus don't know how things work today.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Simply examine what the current rules are today, as evidenced by recent L&S webpages.</p>
<p>Those who still disagree with me are free to cite even more recent websites or other such hard data. In the absence of that, they are also free to join me in writing an email to L&S and asking them what the real story is, and in particular, getting one of the advisors to commit in writing that they will indeed admit engineering students with low grades. </p>
<p>
[quote]
Not to mention it wouldn't make sense if L&S were to keep out students in hard majors because they're doing poorly.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>It actually makes perfect sense for L&S to keep out students who are doing poorly, as L&S doesn't want to be seen as a dumping ground for students from other colleges who are doing poorly. Note, it doesn't make sense for Berkeley across the board. But L&S doesn't care about that. L&S cares about itself, as one often times sees in any organization: individual divisions will optimize their own status at the expense of the organization as a whole. An entire literature in the field of org studies and sociology regarding local vs. global optimization can be referenced.</p>
<p>it's not hard at all.
Just switch out early! I know many people who just did it after their fist semester and it was easy like 123.....seriously and they are still undeclared in L&S too
just go ahead and do it (go to the counselors). stop wasting time here reading posts that don't really help you</p>
<p>
[quote]
it's not hard at all.
Just switch out early! I know many people who just did it after their fist semester ...
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Sure, if you can. What if you got bad grades in your first semester, as some engineering students do? Then you may find that L&S won't want to take you. </p>
<p>"Please note: Grade Point Average is also a significant consideration for admission to the College. Students who meet all other criteria and have a 3.0 or higher GPA are more likely to be approved."</p>
<p>Change</a> of College</p>
<p>say i want to do the haas business program, can i become a pre-business person easier or is there no such thing as a pre-business?</p>
<p>declaring as pre-business when u apply in high school gives you no advantage; it's simply a way for the administration to track how many people is interested in that major initially.</p>