UCR to Cornell (Transfer Option)/UCLA

Transfer Students
1

Hi everyone!

This is my first time on College Confidential and I’m actually getting pretty nervous since applications are going to open up for transfer students soon. I am currently a 2nd year attending UCR as a Biology major. My top two (and to be honest, only two) universities that I want to transfer to is Cornell and UCLA. I already did get a TO from Cornell back from when I was a senior in high school but now with the classes I’ve taken and the extracurriculars I have, I want to know my chances for both schools for Fall 2019. Here is a description of what I did/do:

Major: Biology
GPA: 3.68 (got 1 B and 1 B+)
Classes taken (grades):

  • will be finishing the entire introductory Biology series by the end of this fall quarter w/ labs (2 B’s)
  • finished introductory Chemistry series w/ labs (3 A’s)
  • Took 2 Calculus classes (2 A’s)
  • Took 1 English class, going to take a history/writing intensive class next quarter (A)
  • Taking Psychology right now along with O Chem and Physics

Extracurriculars:

  • Honors Program
  • Marketing Director of a new club that started this year on campus: HOPE (Hospice) Club
  • Communications Chair for AMSA Club (American Medical Student Association)
  • Working as an undergraduate researcher in a Botany Laboratory (studying mutant plants)
  • Volunteering 4 hours per week in a community hospital
  • Intern for Virtual Student Federal Service for the Agricultural Department in Berlin, Germany

Intended majors for each school:

  • Cornell (TO): Human Development in the Human Ecology Department
  • UCLA: Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution

Omg I am so sorry this is so long but I wanted to give you guys a pretty good idea about my profile. Please advise as to if I should do anything to have a better chance at getting into these schools!

2

I believe your grades should be at least a little higher, say 3.7+ or 3.8. The 2 B’s in biology might hurt, especially your major relates to biology. A lot would depend on how well you do in the Fall and Winter Quarters. At the minimum get A’s in your 2 science classes,… Org. Chem and Physics.

3

This link is for 2017 but it lists the UC GPA admit range for each campus and major so it could help gauge your chances:

https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/transfers-major

4

Yes I assumed that my grades being the lowest for Biology would hurt my chances… and I’m worried because the major I wanted to apply to for UCLA did not have a difficult GPA to get to transfer last year, but the year before that, the GPA was higher. So now I’m wondering if maybe this year, the average GPA is gonna rise.

5

If you’re pre-med I’m not sure it’s in your best interest to go to a more rigorous school. GPA and MCAT are king in the MD application process

6

This is true but I genuinely do not feel like I belong at the school I am attending at right now. I really do not like the school and the people here.