Transferring to a UC in one year

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

Hello. I’m a currently a high school student, even though I put undergraduate looking to transfer as my account information, since I will be starting community college at De Anza in California in the summer quarter. I didn’t get accepted into UC Berkeley this year, which is the only UC to which I applied. I also got rejected from Duke, but I got accepted into NYU and BU. However, not only did I realize that I can’t pay for them unless I want to give up the dream of getting a PhD in philosophy, but I also don’t want to go anywhere but Berkeley after it brutally rejected me. Thus, I’m going to go to community college, and I’m looking to transfer in a year.

After I take my six AP tests this year, very likely getting a four or five on all of them, I will have taken fourteen AP tests. In the UC system, they count as the 88/90 quarter units that I need to transfer. Thus, if I take the maximum number of units at De Anza in summer, fall, winter, and spring quarters, I will easily meet all the required units to transfer into my junior year of a UC - not as a lower division transfer student. Furthermore, if I take only one course of history, political science, art, biology, and chemistry, then I will have all the GE requirements of Cal and UCLA, where I plan to apply, as well as of all the other UCs. On a different measuring system, for the College of Letters and Science at Berkeley, if I get a 5 on the AP English Lit exam, I will already have all of the GE requirements for that college. The rest of the courses I want to take are philosophy courses.

However, the trick is, if I apply after one year, I can only show off summer and fall quarter GPA and classes, because the application is due in January for transfer applicants. Is that enough solidity for the schools? For instance, if I have a 4.0 until then, what if I have lower than that the other two quarters? The UCs will only see my credentials from such a short time period, even though I will have already met the requirements by then. Also, how do I demonstrate leadership skills in clubs and student government in this short amount of time?

Also, feel free to comment on my transfer plan. Does it sound too far-fetched? Or do you think I can do it?

2

For reference - I’m a philosophy major (with a 4.0, with a major prerequisite taken at Berkeley, etc.), and I’m waiting to hear back from Berkeley. I know the transfer process thoroughly - especially so for philosophy transfers to Cal/UCLA.

If you have your heart set on Berkeley’s Philosophy program, I highly recommend taking the prerequisites at CCSF either over the summer, or during the regular school semester - that is, unless you cannot afford to go all the way to San Francisco for philosophy classes. Anyone can also take classes at Berkeley over the summer via summer sessions - I did that, got an A in Philosophy 12A at Cal, and I’m sure it will help my application.

I took a class at Foothill - De Anza’s sister college - and while it was good, I didn’t feel it was challenging enough. That is, at least in comparison to the class I took at Berkeley, some of my more rigorous CC classes, and the classes I’ve taken at CCSF. I learned a bit - but philosophy should be hard, and that was not particularly difficult.

To answer your questions -

Is that enough solidity for the schools?

Yes. The average GPA for philosophy transfers to Cal seems to hover around a 3.6, and most applicants do not have the lower-division requirements completed - any of them.

Just so you know, they are Philos 12A - Symbolic Logic, Philos 25A - Ancient Philosophy, and Philos 25B - Modern Philosophy. CCSF offers all three. Berkeley is very particular with what they view as equivalent courses (check assist.org - Foothill or De Anza offer only one, I think, and only rarely).

So, I highly recommend taking the three classes at CCSF, so that (1) you will have your lower-division requirements completed by the time you transfer to Berkeley, such that you will be left with only 9 upper-division classes to complete, and (2) you will be receiving a superb quality of education in philosophy from a community college. The classes are modeled after UCB’s courses, and I believe the professor attended Cal as an undergraduate - anyway, he is good. The classes feel like university-level philosophy classes, and they are much more conceptually demanding than many philosophy courses offered at other community colleges.

For instance, if I have a 4.0 until then, what if I have lower than that the other two quarters?

Given your desire to attend graduate school, you will want to maintain a 4.0 throughout community college. Difficulty of classes will increase. Work hard now so that you’re prepared for Berkeley.

However, if you get all A’s (ideally with some of them in philosophy classes), you should be fine. Write strong personal statements, articulating your passion for philosophy, and your aspirations.

The UCs will only see my credentials from such a short time period, even though I will have already met the requirements by then.

You will not be penalized for being a one-year transfer. It’s manageable, especially with the amount of AP units you have.

It’s generally recommended to follow IGETC instead of Berkeley’s L&S breadth for your GE requirements, but you should be fine. It’s probably best to talk to a counselor at your CC or somebody at Cal to clarify, though.

Also, how do I demonstrate leadership skills in clubs and student government in this short amount of time?

Join your school’s philosophy club, and try to secure a leadership position. Transfer admissions is much more focused on your GPA, coursework, and whether or not you will have your requirements completed - so put academics first. Be active in clubs if you’d like, but that should be an afterthought.

Other thoughts -

Philosophy is a difficult subject, and it may be better to avoid rushing your transfer so much. If you transfer in one year (and complete all three of the philosophy prerequisites for Berkeley), you will be moving up to upper-division courses, which are much more rigorous. It’s good to develop adequate skills to prepare - but it’s up to you. You have plenty of AP courses under your belt, so you’re evidently capable of doing well in college.

UCLA also has an outstanding philosophy program.

3

Thank you so much! I don’t know about taking any classes in San Francisco, though. It takes two and a half hours by public transit to get to the community college in San Francisco, and that’s the only way I would be able to get there. Will I be penalised if I don’t have the lower-division transfer requirements completed until I actually get to Berkeley/UCLA? If I don’t complete them, can I still be accepted into the philosophy department? Will I have the opportunity to take them the year I arrive? Or do I have to compete those courses first before declaring the major of philosophy? All of the UC pages on transfer requirements have recommendations of what type of philosophy classes I can take at a community college; they don’t specify that completing the lower division requirements for a philosophy major is required.

Thanks again.

4

You will not be penalized for missing any courses that De Anza does not offer, and you will be able to take them after you transfer. Most philosophy transfers are missing them as well - in that case, I recommend taking summer sessions prior to the Fall of 2016 (when you will transfer), so that you can get 1-2 prerequisites out of the way. Keep in mind that Modern Philosophy is not offered in the Fall at Cal, so it would be ideal for you to take that over the summer, and Ancient Phil / Symbolic Logic in the Fall.

The courses listed on assist.org may not be required per se, but it is best to complete them. Recommended essentially means “taking these will help establish your proficiency in your major”. Again, they will not penalize you for not taking classes offered at your CC (they will penalize you for not taking classes that ARE offered at your CC, though). To reiterate, most transfers into Berkeley’s philosophy program are missing all of the prerequisites for the major.

5

Wait, if I do decide that I can travel to San Francisco, will it be fine if I take the courses the summer before my first year at Berkeley? That would be summer 2017. As I said, I’m still in high school, so my community college year is 2016-2017. It’s just that I’m taking summer session at De Anza this year in 2016, so it might not be possible right now. Also, I don’t drive yet, and by car it takes only one hour to get there.

Can you please clarify if I can take these prerequisites at the community college in San Francisco, or at Berkeley via summer sessions?

6

Oh, no. All community college classes must be taken by the end of the Spring prior to enrollment in the Fall. Anything you take that Summer won’t count, and can be held against you I believe -

I meant that you could take 1/2 prerequisites at Berkeley in Summer 2017 if you get admitted for Fall 2017. Many philosophy transfers do this to get a head start on completing upper-division classes.

Honestly, it’s probably not worth commuting 1 hour each way to San Francisco just to take these classes. I commute there via BART, and it’s pretty awful - driving is bound to be worse. Focus on getting good grades, and completing all of the necessary requirements. Have your english/math requirements done by the end of the Fall.

“If I take the maximum number of units at De Anza in summer, fall, winter, and spring quarters…”

Don’t overload yourself. College is paced much more quickly than high school.

7

Okay, thank you. Last question: if I only have part of the prerequisites done by the time I am at Berkeley that fall, can I still declare the major of philosophy/guaranteed a spot in the philosophy program? Once again, this has been SO helpful.

8

I mean, you kind of already said that yes, since transfers into the philosophy program are, obviously, in the philosophy program. I am just afraid of being denied options and opportunities.