I had a quick question that I was hoping someone could give me some guidance on. I applied to Berkeley the day applications opened (my intended major at Berkeley is the only program in the country I’m interested in).
I have a 4.0 GPA coming from an out of state community college (graduating with an Associates degree this semester). I feel like I did really well on the personal statements and have a pretty solid application overall (I feel like I meet all of the criteria that Berkeley traditionally looks for in transfer students except for that I’m not coming from a California community college).
My concern comes from the fact that I chose to CLEP out of about 20 credits in my AA degree to save time and money (I’m a mom of 3 and felt immense pressure to finish my Associates degree as quickly and cheaply as possible). I noticed just recently on the transfer credits page through UC that it says they don’t accept CLEP as transferable credit. However, it then goes on to state that ultimately the decision about what is and isn’t accepted is on a case by case basis at the discretion of the school.
Given the strength of my application and the fact that I’m applying to an unusual major (Celtic Studies), I thought my chances were pretty good…until I saw the bit about CLEP credits. Now I’m really concerned that I’ll likely be denied on the basis of CLEP credits not transferring (which, would then put me below the 60 transferable credit requirement, even though I’ll be transferring in with an Associates degree).
Sorry for the long post; I guess what I’m wondering is if there is a chance that they might overlook the requirement about CLEP for a strong applicant in an underrepresented major …OR… if rules are rules and I should start coming up with other plans.
Thanks in advance for any guidance/insight/help. I kind of put all of my eggs in one Berkeley shaped basket (perhaps not the smartest decision in hindsight) and any reassurance or clarification (whether positive or otherwise) would be greatly appreciated.