@goldencub, I’ll be finishing 2/4 anthropology prerequisites for uc berkeley. and I’ll be taking the third one in spring. the fourth prereq isnt offered in my cc (Cerritos College) so it won’t be counted against me. Do you think berkeley would have a soft preference for those who finish all prereqs by this fall?
From profiles of fellow admits during your application cycle, how difficult would you say getting into uc berkeley as an anthropology major would be?
And from your experience in the application cycle, would you say personal statements play a big factor in admissions? (considering the new format of the ps in this years application)
“Do you think berkeley would have a soft preference for those who finish all prereqs by this fall?”
No.
“How difficult would you say getting into uc berkeley as an anthropology major would be?”
Not too difficult. I think having a ~3.7 with most, if not all, prereqs completed, and full IGETC certification makes one competitive. You’re obviously more competitive than this.
“would you say personal statements play a big factor in admissions?”
Generally, only if you’re borderline/applying to specific majors (capped majors + College of Natural Resources + Haas + CoE, probably). If you have great grades, demonstrated interest in the major, and you’ve handled your business, the PS won’t be too much of a factor.
Naturally, it’s something you should put time and effort into. But the PS cannot be counted against you - it is only viewed as supplementary to your application. It’s definitely something they look at, but it’s not too big of a deal for you in my opinion.
@ericeo Thanks It’s not bravery when you have a plan B. I do have a plan B. @briank82 Anthropology B.A.
I thought having a 4.0 GPA would be a good enough reason to apply to one school. I want to attend UC Berkeley and UC Berkeley specific. I didn’t want to be an another work for adcom for other campuses… and plus, one more applicant makes the pool more competitive. So I just deleted all other campuses on my UC App.
It’s a terrible plan. But I do have a plan B. And that’s staying another year at CC woot woot!
Hundreds if not thousands of students applying to UC Berkeley get turned down with a 4.0 every year. Having a 4.0 definitely keeps you competitive, but unnecessarily spending an additional year in community college (when you already have a 4.0) isn’t exactly plan B, it’s just wasting a year of your life unnecessarily.
Clearly you’ve thought about this, but I would strongly consider applying to other schools just in case you don’t get in, or if you do get in and want other options. Options are good.
@briank82 Yeah, I have a personal reason to stay another year at CC. So it’s alright
But getting accepted to Berkeley can overturn that reason to stay another year.
So I’m applying to Berkeley only.
@genieforuboi It’s
3.61-3.90 GPA 23% accp. rate in 2015,
3.65-3.92 GPA, 22% accp.rate in 2014
3.65-3.93 GPA 20% accp. rate in 2013
Hope this answered your Q. With a linear pattern, it’s actually getting easier for applicants to get accepted each year.
Can someone pls chance me:)
in-state cc student
Major: cell and developmental biology
GPA: 3.96
IGETC: complete by spring
Honors Program: complete by spring
major prep: completed (finished all required class, and will be done with all the recommended classes by spring)
EC: one year of internship at Hoag hospital
@ssweidan, i think you’ll get in. You have very good gpa and i think ur internship will set u apart really well. In addition, i think finishing honors will be looked upon favorably as well.
The person statements have changed this year from the old two essays to the new, more specific, four short answers (although not really short in my opinion). Is anyone concerned that the uc’s, especially berkeley, will take this as an opportunity to make transfer admissions more stringent by really nitpicking on who would be the “best fit” for their campus? Im worried there might be a sudden plummet in transfer admissions this year due to the new essay format.
@genieforuboi No. The point of the personal statement (or personal insight questions) is to learn more about you. They will be looking to see if you are a good fit for the campus, but that does not mean that they’ll discriminate against you for what you write in your personal insight questions.
The PS is purely supplemental, and they don’t hold anything you say against you (unless you confess a crime or something.)
The personal insight questions are more focused than the PS prompts. They’re less general, and you can write about whichever prompts you feel fit you best. It’s really a win-win sort of thing.
I am having 4.0 gpa now, but I might get a B at my cal 3 class which is my last major-requirement, so should I drop it with a W to maintain the 4.0 for my Major gpa or just fight for the B ? Hope you guys can help me
@jw77777 What school/major you trying to transfer to?
Seems kind of a waste of time to retake it. The difference between an A and B–overall–isn’t going to be that big of a deal besides you losing your shiny 4.0.
That time can be much better well spent unless you have absolutely nothing better to do.
my major is statistics, and I want to transfer to UC Berkeley. I am not sure about should I drop the math class or not. Because it is a major requirement and if I get the B on that Cal 3 class, does that look bad on my transcript?
@StevenToCollege
Hello. I have a question. I am going to be applying to Berkeley EECS transfer next year as junior transfer. However, I am just wondering do all those required core preparation courses need to be done before I apply? Or, is it do I need to get those courses done by Spring of the year before that Fall??
Also, can you advice me on what I should do over this year for next year’s transfer? I am going to try to take some of those courses that are recommended like cs 61a,b,c.
GPA?
Internship, research necessary?
How about extracurricular activity? Should I focus on EECS related activity?
@jw77777 I am also a stat major, and I was in a similar situation at the start of the semester, but with diff eqs. I quickly saw that I wouldn’t be getting an A in the class, so I dropped it a day before the drop deadline. Especially with both of these classes being worth 5 units each, I decided finishing my last prereq would not be worth losing my 4.0.
