Im currently in senior yr of hs and was wondering if taking 3 yrs of math would just have the UCs completely disregard my admission. I’m currently doing a required time heavy internship for my school due to me being in the health and medical careers academy, which is essentially a program on campus with some special medical based classes. So now as senior I realized I’m not as interested in the medical field. Overall, I dont really have the time to really study for my math classes and feel that a really bad grade in that would effect my chances more. I am worried that the 3 yrs would also hurt my chances as I understand that recommended 4 yrs sometimes means mandatory. I took AP stats my junior yr, passed with an A, and plan to apply for an English, History, or PoliSci major. I have also passed the APWH (3), APUSH(3), and APLang(4) tests.
What math have you completed?
The minimum math requirement for UC admission is geometry and algebra 2. However, precalculus is desirable if you want to major in anything requiring calculus (or calculus-based statistics). None of your majors typically requires that, although it may be helpful to have a stronger knowledge of statistics for political science other social sciences at the graduate level if you want to go in that direction.
Also, check general education requirements for the colleges you are interested in. For example, UCSD’s Revelle College has calculus as a general education requirement.
Thank you for the quick response! Ive taken alg 1 in middle school, geometry as a freshman, alg 2 as a sophmore, and then AP stats as a junior. All passed with an A or higher.
bump
You have met the minimum Math requirements + 1 but to be a competitive applicant, the UC’s like to see 4 years of Math and will consider your HS course rigor in their admission decisions. Since you are leaning towards a non-Math heavy major, you should be fine but with the UC acceptances becoming more and more competitive, I would try to meet the recommendation of 4 years if possible.
What happens if you change your major and a higher level Math will be needed?