<p>I already posted this in the UCSC forum, but 2 days with 300 views and nothing to show for it (lots of chatter about acceptances though) is making me think it might get more exposure here and I plan to be a transfer applicant anyway.</p>
<p>I've been thinking about UCSC as a college option and no matter where I go I am interested in obtaining a business degree (Accounting preferred). This turned me towards UCSC's Business Management Economics degree. So I have a few questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>How is this degree compared to other business cirriculums at UCs? I understand that this program is more Economics based, however the coursework includes 23 quarter units of Accounting, which is exactly what I would need for some of the jobs I am looking into.</p></li>
<li><p>For graduates or senior standing students, do you feel this program has adequately prepared you for futures in the business world? I understand this program wouldn't be on the calibur of recognition as UC Berkeley's programs, but is the coursework still relevant to employers (like is the undergradute program taken seriously, or is it mostly used for a gateway to a graduate or MBA program) and are applicants who graduate from the program still considered competitive against other programs other than UCB?</p></li>
<li><p>How exactly may Business Management Economics differ from Economics also offered at UCSC? I have viewed the differed course offerings and noticed that Business Management Economics offers a decent breadth of business related courses minus business administration.</p></li>
<li><p>As a side note - anyone commute to UCSC from San Jose? Is the drive on 17 a drag to do during a class schedule? Lots of traffic?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I can’t answer about that major since I have no personal experience, but I can say something about the commute.</p>
<p>Don’t do it. Seriously. Find a way to live on the Santa Cruz side of 17 unless you have zero choice. If you live in San Jose, you must know just how bad 17 can get. The traffic is ridiculous and accidents happen more often than they should. I have had it take an extra hour (so nearly two hours) to get over 17 once because of an accident that slowed traffic down (but was not one of the ones that shut it down completely, thankfully, like I saw a few weeks ago).</p>
<p>You will spend too many hours of your day sitting in traffic on 17 unless you are fortunate enough to consistently obtain a schedule that allows you to travel at typically low traffic times, but even then there can still be traffic when the idiots decide to ignore the posted speed limit and cause accidents.</p>
<p>In fact, if you can swing it, live on campus. Village is super cheap for transfers since it does not require a meal plan (or didn’t last I checked). Campus is up on a hill and isolated from the city itself.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback, Kender. Looks like I’d live in SC then. I’ve driven 17 a handful of times, but never during traffic times and I have heard the horror accident stories. I suppose it’s better to just avoid it.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t be able to live on campus in the dorms per se since I’m married, but when I visited they mentioned (and we drove by) what they called the ‘campus housing for couples’ which was technically right off the campus. I’ll look into it if I ever transfer in.</p>
<p>I’m majoring in Economics at UCSC, I hope I can adequately answer your questions.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The curriculum is fairly similar to that of other UC’s as far as Business/Economics programs are concerned. It is not a pure business degree, many people don’t realize that; there is a good deal of Economics. The accounting program is definitely popular here and probably the more competitive area of the major.</p></li>
<li><p>I’m not a graduate or a senior but I have friends that are. Course work is still relevant and since it’s not a top ranked school the competition isn’t as fierce. Because of this, if you’re dedicated and motivated you can stand out fairly easily, compared to top ranked programs. From what I’ve heard and seen, if you have good grades and relevant intern experience, Accounting firms recruit fairly well. A coworker of mine actually already landed a job with a top accounting firm in San Jose and he’s graduating in the Spring. As I said earlier, if you’re a motivated worker, you can distinguish yourself from the pack and land a job that a lot of the grads from more prestigious schools get.</p></li>
<li><p>I’m an Economics major and the biggest differences would be that BME has to take basic computer classes, accounting classes, and in upper division course work, more management classes. The core Economics curriculum is the same for both majors</p></li>
<li><p>I’m from San Jose too (small world!) and I highly suggest you do not commute. Gas is expensive, the drive can be treacherous, and it’ll wear you down over the course of multiple quarters. Traffic is definitely a problem around typical rush hour times.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Village isn’t dorms, it’s more many single rooms apartment style that are housed in glorified trailers near the base of campus. We have an actual trailer park as well ;).</p>
<p>There is Family Student Housing and it’s on campus, not off campus. It’s across the road from College 8 and Oakes and is just down the way from Porter. They do the leases in 12 and 9 month contracts if I recall right and are competitive. Priority goes to those with children, of course, but that’s understandable. I would contact them very soon to inquire about available housing.</p>
<p>The only campus housing that is not on campus is University Town Center.</p>
<p>Maninder, thanks for the info! It all sounds great to me.</p>
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<p>So is BME a more popular major than Econ at UCSC because of the required variety of courses? Are professional opportunities generally the same for both majors (for example, both BME and Econ majors getting local Big4 positions)? I may need to talk to my local CC about this, but you may know as well: I was looking on the Assist website and didn’t see articulation classes for Economics major pre-reqs, only BME. Can someone transfer into UCSC as an Econ major, or must they choose BME?</p>
<p>Yeah, I’ve decided NOT to try the commute then. Which brings me to housing options . . .</p>
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<p>Ohhhhhh, that must’ve been what I saw and I THOUGHT it was just off campus (the campus seemed so big to me and it has been the first and only one where we did the tour in a bus). I don’t think I’ll check into it just yet as I wouldn’t plan to transfer until another couple years (still haven’t started CC). I think that would be my first choice in housing though, since it’s right there and all.</p>
<p>Oh, on another quick side note: the CC I would be attending offers a TAG with UCSC. I see threads for transfer students inquiring if they got into UCSC though. Is this because they TAGGED somewhere else (since you can only do 1 TAG) and applied to UCSC through the regular transfer process or does TAG not actually guarantee you admission?</p>
<p>If I TAGGED to UCSC and was IGETC certified and had all major pre-reqs for the major I applied to, and met all other academic eligibility reqs like GPA, then should I expect to have guaranteed admission to UCSC, or would it be like competing with the other transfers still?</p>
<p>Pretty new to figuring out the transfer process, so I appreciate clarification.</p>
<p>Campus is huge :). Roughly 2,000 acres. We’re still only half the size of Davis in terms of land, though, but we are one of two UCs that is so big we need our own fire department (buildings will be lost if we relied on the city’s fire department). I’ve hiked deep into the back woods and been surprised just how far back the land goes that’s considered UCSC property. Also, I can make the bus tour more scary: during heavier tour times, buses are not used. People have to walk! It’s not that bad, but it’s sure a surprise if you didn’t know what you were getting into.</p>
<p>And oh yeah! I remember now about your situation from the financial aid forum! I’ll correct my comment to “talk to them as soon as you know what you’ll be doing in a couple years” then ;). From what I have been told, FSH is pretty good and it can be a very friendly community.</p>
<p>RE: TAG
The people who are concerned either:
a) Signed a TAG with a different UC
b) Did not sign a TAG at all for any UC
c) Signed a TAG for UCSC and screwed up/varied in some way on a part of their TAG contract
d) Signed a TAG for UCSC and are just nervous
e) Some other scenario I missed ;)</p>
<p>TAG is simply a guarantee of acceptance to the UC it is signed with. It is not a guarantee of major. Something to be careful of (but this is more for those looking to get into Baskin Engineering) is that IGETC will be acceptable for admission to a particular major. This does not mean IGETC cannot be followed (and honestly, I recommend it as it auto-satisfies a lot of UC requirements without worry), but that there are a ridiculous amount of classes that need to be taken to meet admission requirements as a transfer for certain majors. Like I said, I can only think of Baskin Engineering as one that recommends against IGETC, but still always good to check. Something to also be mindful of is that there are prereqs that must be taken in residence at UCSC.</p>
<p>I don’t know if it helps you, but I found spreadsheets to make the process of determining requirements fulfilled and those still needed much less stressful.</p>
<p>If you want to get a decent job in business, it’s more about where you went than what you’ve learned (unless it’s accounting). Why don’t you aim for ucla or cal?</p>
<p>Arrgh wow. I just typed a good response for you Kender, and I hit the backspace while selected on the window so I went back to the forum listing page. Pretty annoying.</p>
<p>Anyway, my summary response was thanking you for a great reply. I had been looking into the IGETC for the last few days and had discerned pretty much everything you covered. You cleared up the whole worrying about TAG people. It makes sense that they may worry if they did not fulfill their end of the contract because then UCSC would have grounds to rescind or void it.</p>
<p>John2, if I were accepted to UCSC for BME, then my emphasis would be on Accounting. I would try to take as many Acct classes offered although I know I will need at least 23 qtr units of it for jobs I would be applying to after graduation. If I went the transfer route, then I would be applying to UCB as well, but UCB doesn’t offer TAG, so I would reserve that opportunity for UCSC in case I would not be accepted as a regular applicant to UCB.</p>
<p>You don’t have a gpa yet? If not, forget making UCSC your target. Go on assist.org and take all the courses you need to transfer to Haas. Make sure to keep a 4.0 gpa, do an internship, and have a compelling story. You’ll get in.</p>
<p>John2, you mean since I have a clean slate (no college courses taken yet)that if I take all the classes on assist for UCB and do extremely well in them, then I would have a high shot at UCB with a compelling essay (bio)?</p>
<p>Would this route be suggested over doing the IGETC and major pre-reqs for a TAG with UCSC?</p>
<p>I’m a veteran and currently work in federal service so I’m sure I’d be able to write a boat load on that in the UCB essay requirement. Would that help?</p>