UCLA Psychobiology Transfer willing to give advice

Transfer Students UC Transfers
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<p>Hey guys, I haven't been on here for a while. I transferred as a Psychobiology major to UCLA last Fall from a CC in Los Angeles. I'm bored as hell waiting for my Winter quarter grades.</p>

<p>I came on here just to check out how everything is going. I remember being in your exact position last year. It was stressful, but in the end, it's so worth it. </p>

<p>Stay focused and you can accomplish anything. </p>

<p>I saw Simon doing this for Psych on another thread, so I decided why not, I'll do it for psychobio/LS majors who are transferring. </p>

<p>I also remember getting crucial help at this moment in my life that really made a difference on my perspective as a college student. I hope to help anyone who has any questions.</p>

<p>Here are my stats:</p>

<p>At my CC:
GPA: 4.0 with all prereqs completed except one year of Physics (which is totally OK, because it's only "recommended" to take Physics at a CC, I took the Physics 6ABC series at UCLA)</p>

<p>TAP Certified
IGETC Certified
Member of AGS and PTK Honor Societies
Won the Regents Scholarship to UCLA</p>

<p>At UCLA:
Current GPA: 4.0
Currently in the Honors Program
Doing a bunch of extracurricular activities</p>

<p>Ask me anything you want to know. I think UCLA is an amazing school, but honestly go wherever your happy. I didn't even apply to Berk or any other school because I knew exactly where I wanted to go. Most people are not like me, so I would suggest actually going to the schools your interested in and looking around, also talking about it with your family and friends, and especially other people who have gone to those specific schools. </p>

<p>Good luck with everything.</p>

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<p>How big is the difference in amount of work needed to get an A?</p>

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<p>what peter said.
also, what is the difference between the psychobiology major and the neuroscience major at UCLA. Does the neuroscience major focus more on molecular processes while psychobiology focuses more on the psychological concepts?</p>

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<p>How is the honors program at ucla? Is it worth it?</p>

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<p>How difficult was it to get A’s in your Physics classes?</p>

<p>How many classes should we take per quarter to keep good grades but not fall behind?</p>

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<p>SnYpaJY,</p>

<p>First of all, thank you for taking the time to answer some questions! I actually just joined this site today after reading your thread. It seems we are in very similar shoes so I wanted to pick your brain a little.</p>

<p>My Backround: I am planning on APPLYING this fall from a CC, so far I have a 4.0gpa and plan to do everything I can to keep that, I will have completed all of the pre-reqs for the psychobio major by time of transfer.</p>

<p>My questions: I see you received the regents scholarship to UCLA and that is exactly what my goal is as well. If you do not mind can you disclose all of the benefits of this scholarship, both financially and academically? Also I am not in AGS or any other type of club, do you think it would be crucial for me to join a club in order to better my odds for the regents? Lastly, can you take me through the process of what it was like and how you obtained the scholarship?</p>

<p>Thank you so much for all of your time.</p>

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<p>I am going to answer each person individually. I am kind of low on time, so please excuse me if I write with inappropriate grammar. </p>

<p>TO peterr86: It really depends on the person and their major. Overall, to get an A in a UCLA science class, you definitely study more than a CC science class. Each science class is different in how someone should study, but the main differences that set UCLA science classes and CC science classes apart is the curve. In CC science classes, you actually had to get a 90% or better in the class to get an A. At UCLA, my 84% overall grade for example was an A, because, the class average was a 67%. Keep in mind, UCLA professors for the most part suck. They don’t know how to teach, and the ones that do have classes that fill up quickly. The reason most students at UCLA do not have as high of a GPA as they should, is due to the +/- grading. An A+ = 4.0, A= 4.0, but an A- = 3.7. That means you have to get a 94% or higher to maintain a 4.0 instead of a 90%. So in that regard, UCLA grading is harder, but remember, there is always a curve in a science class. So as long as your well above average, you will do well. This isn’t easy though, considering everyone in your science class is shooting for an A. The competitiveness and drive of UCLA students does not compare to CC students. </p>

<p>Let me know if that didn’t answer your question or if you have any other questions.</p>

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<p>TO Coolaid317: </p>

<p>Please see my post to peterr86 for your first question. For your second question, your correct. Neuroscience classes deal with molecular processes that occur in the brain while Psychobiology deals more with the behavioral aspect of the brain. For example, a Neuroscience class would discuss synaptic pruning in detail, teaching you how it actually occurs. In a Psychobiology class, you would discuss the affects of synaptic pruning, and how it regulates our daily lives. </p>

<p>If I could go back, I would definitely choose Neuroscience over Psychobiology. Both majors are difficult, but obviously Neuroscience would probably win in a survey of which major is more difficult. That’s simply because of the word “Neuro”. That word alone scares people. </p>

<p>Besides that main difference, Neuroscience classes emphasize more on short answer tests, while Psychobiology exams/finals are multiple choice tests (tricky multiple choice tests for that matter.) </p>

<p>I am the type of person that finds everything interesting. But Psychobiology gets really boring. There is really no challenge in these classes. I am more science oriented, and I like the molecular approach a lot more. Go for which ever you think interests you the most, because that will ultimately push you to study more thus giving you a higher overall GPA. </p>

<p>Let me know if that didn’t answer your question or if you have any other questions.</p>

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<p>TO Volleyballchick: It’s a waste of your time and a great risk to your GPA. If I could go back, I would have probably not signed up for the Honors Program. </p>

<p>You have any specific questions in regards to the Honors Program, I’ll try my best to answer them.</p>

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<p>TO ioi:</p>

<p>Physics classes are like math classes. The more you practice, the better your grade. I’m not going to sit here and tell you that Physics is easy. But I’m also not going to tell you it’s super hard. If you want an A in Physics, you have to work for it. When I mean work, I mean study effectively. My study habits are probably different than yours, but what I do works well for Physics/Math classes:</p>

<p>I go to every lecture and take good notes. I read the book on any topic the teacher covered. I talk about the concepts with my friends/peers to make sure I have a solid grasp of the concept. I then do every homework problem twice before a midterm and one more time before a final. </p>

<p>Keep in mind, the more times you do the homework, the faster you will be. Speed is crucial at UCLA, because you have only 50 mins per midterm. 50 mins is almost nothing for a midterm of this caliber. You will most likely have 4 questions that you have never seen before with multiple parts. Each question is worth 25 points, so imagine if your stuck on question 3 and never even look at question 4. Your simply screwed. </p>

<p>Anyone can get an A in any class if they really want it. I never took physics prior to entering UCLA, and I got a A+ in 6A, an A+ in 6B, and an A in 6C. </p>

<p>For your second question, don’t take more than two science classes a quarter. Any more and you are going to have a really hard time keeping up. I think two science classes, and one or two non-science classes is good. But make sure at least one of those two non-science classes are not time consuming.</p>

<p>Let me know if that didn’t answer your question or if you have any other questions.</p>

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<p>TO: TonyPreMed2013</p>

<p>I like the drive. Keep it up and you can accomplish all of your dreams. </p>

<p>The Regents Scholarship is great. They treat you like a king here if you have it (not really don’t get your hopes up!). </p>

<p>Actually though, I am blessed to have received this. Some of the benefits include priority registration (my registration is 2 weeks before any other science students normal registration). On top of that, we get to sign up for more units at a certain time. So for instance, my friend can only sign up for two classes at a certain time, while I can sign up for three classes. I pretty much have my ideal schedule every quarter. This alone is a good enough reason to win the scholarship.</p>

<p>Their are other benefits like guaranteed parking. The beauty of this is that you don’t have to show any proof of work outside of UCLA. You automatically get parking as long as you apply by the deadline. </p>

<p>There are other perks, but those are probably the best. </p>

<p>Financially, the scholarship gives you $2000 per year regardless of your family’s income. However, the scholarship will cover all of your financial need as stated on FAFSA. So if FAFSA reports that your financial need is $26,000 for the academic year, they will cover all of it without a loan. Remember, your financial need is solely dependent upon your parents annual income. If your financial need is 0, they will only give you $2000 per year and not cover tuition/books/housing. So your not automatically going to get a “full ride” if you get the scholarship. </p>

<p>Your number one goal is to get a 4.0 next year. In order to get the scholarship, you will have to first be invited to compete for it. People who have really high GPA’s are the only people invited, so maintaining a high GPA should be your priority. </p>

<p>Once you get invited (sometime in February) you will have to send in your official transcript, get a letter of rec from a faculty, and write a 300 word response to a question they provide. Don’t worry about this stuff yet. </p>

<p>Don’t take this the wrong way, but you remind me of most premeds. Don’t do certain extracurricular activities because “it looks good”, do it because you want to. If you do this, and write in your normal UC application what you got out of those experiences, you will stand out to admissions. Join AGS only if you want to and if you think you can learn something or gain a new experience from it. </p>

<p>Good luck</p>

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<p>Thanks for the great advice! I’ll keep that in mind when I take physics next semester. :)</p>

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<p>Hi SnYpaJY, thanks for taking the time to answer some questions!</p>

<p>This is my dilemma:</p>

<p>I love biology. I was focused solely on majoring in biology until I took a psychology class in my CC and was completely fascinated by it.
I even considered switching to a psychology major but I don’t want to give up biology. </p>

<p>How much ‘biology’ is actually in psychobiology? How much of the chemical and molecular processes of the brain do you actually learn ?
I’m not a much of a fan of biochemistry but I do enjoy challenges biology offers and from what I have read, psychobiology doesn’t seem to offer that much of a challenge in that area.</p>

<p>also, does it increase your chances of getting into UCLA if you complete a year of calculus-based physics before transferring ?</p>

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<p>What other activities before transferring were you involved in to make you ‘stand out’? and how long were you in cc before transferring?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>