so many people is calling, I am on hold for 10 mins already
I am so angry. They were like we have to do the best for the school, that is why we chose the best student. And if you don’t have anymore questions
She was like I will hang up if you don’t have questions.
@dpeng72 that literally so nasty LMAO let’s all be glad we don’t have to go to a school that treats its applicants like that ¯_(ツ)_/¯
this is such bulls* honestly. i wish i was just rejected back in april
i wouldnt care about this if i even had 1 acceptance. even UCSD. sucks to get rejected everywhere
@ucberkeley2019 I think you should go to community college and use the UC TAG program. I don’t know if you know what it is but basically if you feel out all of the critical for at least one of these UCs: UCI, UCSC, UCR, UCD, and UCM, then you are guaranteed admission to the school you sent your TAG to. Of course by the time you apply youll need at least 30 semester units or 45 quarter units and youll have to have all of the schools critical done which im pretty sure you already have done anyway. I say just stick it out for two more semesters, take really easy classes, and use this tag program to try to get into one of these schools
@RPlatypus I already have 90 semester units including 10 upper-division semester units. If I take any more upper-division courses I would be ineligible to apply to a UC school. I’ve also completed virtually every lower-division class offered at any CC in computer science and economics (my two main areas of interest).
So I basically have no more classes left to take, and even if I could find one, the credits would either be meaningless (if its lower-division) or make me ineligible to apply (if its upper-level),
I’m also already a student at a four-year school (top 25 ranked) which is likely why i didnt get into an any UC. UCs prioritize CC students. I have withdrawn from that four-year school for a number of reasons (including some personal), but since I’ve already attended a four-year, I’m automatically in that group even if I go to a CC now.
Berkeley literally lied in front of my face.
I happened to be calling them at the exact time they release the email because my Visa status had just changed from International student to permanent resident. They told me that my visa status will not make any difference for my application. Before I hung up, I ask them why are they releasing so much later for the wait-list compare to previous year, they just said it’s gonna be before July 1st, and the guy said "YOU STILL HAVE A CHANCE TO GET IN". After I hung up, I check my email, and see the rejection notice laying in my inbox, the delivery time is 2 min before I hung up.
@ucberkeley2019 Actually, that’s not true. I transferred from a 4-year to a CCC to a UC. I was looked at as a cc student.
Also, if you decide to reapply next year, definitely add some safety schools. CS is extremely competitive. You can look at the transfer rates here:
https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/transfers-major
(but keep in mind you only get to see what the average GPA was and most students who got in probably had good essays/ECs too).
You might want to double-check to make sure the courses you took at your 4-year are transferrable. Counselors have access to a website (I forget the name) where they can look and see if certain courses from your school will transfer/count as an equivalent at another school.
Besides major prep, have you taken the required lower division courses to be accepted to a UC?
You can use cross-campus enrollment options and take some important classes at Cal. Commuting from Davis to Berkeley is pretty easy - there are buses, and the Capital corridor train. That what I was going to do, but I got into a better school on the east coast. Good luck!
@cloud7 Really? I was told by an admissions officer than once you attend a four-year you are permanently placed in that bucket (because you were at a school where you could earn a bachelors, compared to students who were only at a CC that couldn’t earn a bachelors).
I also applied to Econ not CS since its less competitive.
I did complete the lower division requirements – I was waitlisted at Berkeley which means obviously I’m both admissible and a competitive applicant.
UCLA only admitted 3200 students this years so probably those people who got in Berkeley don’t wanna give up the spots.
@ucberkeley2019 I did a semester at a 4 year - it didn’t work out and went back to cc. I was admitted through TAG to UCSB…TAG is only available to ccc students…talk to different counselors. Why not try a less competitive uni?
@ucberkeley2019 Eh, I doubt I would have been accepted if I was looked at as a 4-year applicant. I also met a handful of other UC Berkeley transfers who took the 4-year → CCC → UC route. Once you’re in cc, regardless of whether or not you’ve been to a 4-year before, you really don’t have any other option but to transfer (which is why cc, especially CCC because they’re in-state, students are looked at first).
@ucberkeley2019 I just wanted to chime in as well and say that I was in the same position (or nearly the same) position as you. Out of high school, I went to a top liberal arts school in the midwest, which I absolutely hated. I took a LOA after two semesters, which eventually ended with my going back to a CCC. Going to a CCC honestly sucked, but I did what I needed to, and I’m transferring to UCB for engineering in the fall.
Given you have a 3.7+ GPA from USC, you should apply to other private schools for transfer, in addition to enrolling in CCC to do TAG. At the very least, you can end up doing econ or CS at Irvine/Davis/SB via TAG. A 3.7 GPA from USC and being admitted to a few top schools out of high school shows that you have the aptitude for academic success, so please don’t let some rejections get in the way. You’re likely more than 40 years away from retirement, so having to take another 1+2 years to finish undergrad is honestly nothing.
@RLSSME I could go to a CCC now, I’m not opposed to the idea. But I’ve taken pretty much every lower division class in my major (and related areas) that CCCs offer. I can’t take upper divs since I would become ineligible to apply, so that leaves me with the choice of taking random classes just for the sake of gaining CCC credits – I’m not sure this would make much sense to a UC school though.
I also did apply to a few private schools for transfer (4), and was rejected or waitlisted then rejected at all of them. Given these were also other top 25 universities that are competitive, but I don’t think going to a far lower tier university from USC (i.e a CSU) would make any sense. I was waitlisted at Berkeley and a number of ivies, so I know I’m competitive, but I"m on the wrong side of the edge.
Ratings schmatings - there are plenty of CSU schools that are excellent. We are all so hyped up about branding that it’s ridiculous! Some of the CSU’s have remarkable programs and the students come out with more hands on experience than those graduates of UC’s. Give up the prestige factor. It doesn’t matter that much unless for example you wanted to work on Wall Street - then you would probably want a snobby east coast ivy. For the sciences, employers want to know that you can function and are competent. A few years after graduation, the university name matters less and less. My father owns a research company and interviews people frequently. Sometimes the prestigious school gets the person in for an interview, but it’s so much more than that to get hired. It’s who the person is and what they can do. Some prospective employees are turned away because they lean too heavily on their college thinking it will do the trick.
So - also consider that many (if not all) CSU’s allow spring transfers with application deadlines in Sept. Why not just pick a CSU and get the degree? I just hear you continuing to roadblock and you’re not helping yourself.
I’ve already forgotten about UCB. I put my name in the hat and moved on. My only frustration was they way we were kept hanging. It’s history.
“so that leaves me with the choice of taking random classes just for the sake of gaining CCC credits – I’m not sure this would make much sense to a UC school though.”
If it means getting in via TAG, I say go for it. You can take a lot (possibly all) of classes online, and a lot of CC courses are super easy, so you can also work full time or do something else that advances your career.
I’m a little hesitant to trivialize TAG for your situation due to the USC credits, so maybe ask around on this board on how it might work and if there are any you can retake. TAG would have to be a two-year commitment, however. For reference, I took a semester-long multivariable calculus course at my private school, then retook the third and fourth quarters of calculus at a CCC, which I got transferred without a problem.
“I can’t take upper divs since I would become ineligible to apply, so that leaves me with the choice of taking random classes just for the sake of gaining CCC credits”
Double check the rules. AFAIK, every UC permits a limited number of upper divs. It’s not a lot, but you only need to fill two semesters or three quarters if you apply for Fall 2020.
“I also did apply to a few private schools for transfer (4), and was rejected or waitlisted then rejected at all of them. Given these were also other top 25 universities that are competitive, but I don’t think going to a far lower tier university from USC (i.e a CSU) would make any sense. I was waitlisted at Berkeley and a number of ivies, so I know I’m competitive, but I"m on the wrong side of the edge.”
I can empathize with your situation more than you know. Before admission decisions were released this year, I was also facing the risk of not having any school to go to in the fall. I would, again, strongly recommend you not give up on pursuing a college degree at all. When you reapply, don’t skip the safety schools. If prestige matters to you, as I suspect it does to many people on this board (it is about getting into good colleges after all), you can succeed in our upper divs and go to a prestigious grad school.
Just so we have an idea of where you stand—which UCs did you apply to this cycle?
One more thing—you should try calling the admissions office of some of the UCs during their phone hours, I’ve been able to reach real admissions officers that way, and have gotten valuable information. Generally speaking, CCC counselors would not be able to give you any helpful information, especially for non-traditional CC students.
@RLSSME
I applied to UCSD, UCLA, and UC Berkeley.
A few notes
( @Tillamookie )
I don’t doubt that CSUs have some good programs. First off, this doesn’t apply to computer science. If the program is worse than at USC, that defeats half the reason why I left in school in the first place – and I’d get my degree 3 years late, which makes no sense to wait 3 years and take a bunch of extra classes for (prestige-aside) at best comparable or probably worse CS degree.
Second there’s no doubt that there are some exceptional students at CSUs and some will be better off than UC students. There’s also no doubt that the average student at a top 3 UC is far better than the average student at a CSU and the general quality of student body is considerably different. Downgrading isn’t a problem because of the prestige, but there is a real difference in the student experience and students at the school when you go from a ‘top 25’ university to a state school with a 75+% admit rate. I simply use rankings here as a proxy – I don’t care about actual rankings.
Lastly, tech is a very different industry from the others – it’s probably the most meritocratic, cares the least about prestige, and has the most employed college dropouts of any other industry. I’ve already worked at big companies (including 2 of the biggest 5 tech companies), so I’m distinctly aware of this. I find this particularly relevant as well because, the question of spending 7 years to get a CSU cs degree vs. cutting my losses and just going for a job without a degree becomes a relevant question. If degrees don’t matter, going to a lower tier school for the sake of having a degree makes no sense for this industry.