My son is part way through his junior year at a California school and I would love any advice about how he can improve his chance of getting into the Aerospace Engineering program at UCSD. Of course, he is doing his best to keep his grades up and will put a lot of time and effort into his essays but we would appreciate insight about what else he can do to stand out. There were many students with high stats that got denied or waitlisted last year. Thank you for any input/suggestions.
GPA 4.34 (9-12) 4.58 (10-11) 4.0 (UW) 4.2 (UC capped)
Class Rank (18/765)
ACT 35 (E35 M36 R34 S33 W8)
AP Scores: 5 on Human Geography, Biology, Computer Science, Lang
Junior Year Classes: IB HL Physics, IB HL Math (Calc BC), IB HL English, IB SL World Religion, IB SL Spanish, and CTE Engineering Pathway Capstone
Senior Year Classes: IB HL Physics, IB HL Math, IB HL English, IB Music, IB SL Spanish, AP Gov and Econ
Subject Tests: Biology 760, Math 2 790
Activites:
Robosub Team (2 years) Lead CAD designer, Treasurer
Track (3 Years) JV Athlete of the Year Award
Church High School Youth Group Leadership (2 years)
Worship Team-Plays guitar and cajon in band (2 years)
Church Middle School Group Leader (2 years)
Lots of volunteer hours helping community (activities at church, food bank)
Youth Court Juror (3 years)
Math Club (3 years)
Fellowship of Christian Athletes (3 years member, 1 year leadership)
CSF
Peer tutoring at school
Full IB diploma
Trained for, raised money and ran the LA Half Marathon as part of a group to bring clean water to children in Africa. Group raised over $100,000.
Paid Tutor outside of school
I would say as long as he keeps up his grades, he will be a competitive applicant next year. Based on your post, he seems like a great young man which makes him stand out already.
Based on UCSD application review criteria, he ticks all the boxes.
- SAN DIEGO
- Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores
- Important: Character/personal qualities, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, State residency, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience
- Note: High school course pattern, GPA, essay and test scores most important. Admission for out-of-state applicants more selective than for residents. The campus does not admit students on the basis of academic major or choice of UC San Diego undergraduate college. Alternate majors are considered. Also note: Capped majors require additional pre-req courses and specific GPA to be able to qualify if changing majors.
@Gumbymom Thank you for your input. I really appreciate it:)!