How does admission into one of the UCSD capped majors work? For example, I’m looking to get into Bioengineering in UCSD. What stats should i have and how competitive do I need to be?
UCSD admits into the University first than into your major. Since capped majors are ultra competitive, you want stats above the averages or higher to be competitive. You also want to select a non-capped major as an alternate unless you would be happy being accepted as Undeclared. If you do not get into your first choice major, then switching can be problematic so make sure you look over the requirements to change majors later just in case.
The only way for a student to become a Bioengineering major as a freshman at UCSD is to be directly admitted from high school at the time of entrance into UCSD.
As an entering Freshman, if you either apply are not accepted OR if you didn’t initially apply to one of those majors, you will be able to apply “one time only” to one of the four “impacted” majors in the first week of school in the subsequent fall quarter, as you begin your Sophomore year as a “Continuing” student.
If applying to the Bioengineering or Bioengineering: Biotechnology majors, you must have already completed the following 9 lower division courses, obtaining a grade of “C-“or above, before the start of your fall quarter, Sophomore year: MATH 20ABC (20AB = 2 courses in Calculus for Science & Engineering & 20C = Calculus & Analytic Geometry for Science & Engineering); CHEM 6A (General Chemistry I) and CHEM 6B (General Chemistry II); PHYSICS 2A (Physics-Mechanics) & PHYSICS 2B (Physics-Electricity & Magnetism). PHYSICS 2AB are intended for physical science and engineering majors; MAE 8 (MATLAB Programming for Engineering Analysis); and BILD 1 (Cell Biology).
Here is the Freshman profile for admitted students this year (25th-75th percentiles):
High School GPA (capped weighted): 4.04 - 4.28
ACT Composite Score: 29 - 34
ACT English Language Arts: 27 - 31
SAT Evidence Based Reading & Writing: 620 - 710
SAT Mathematics: 630 - 720
so do you have to take all those courses before you enter college or can you just take them during freshman yr of college
You take those courses while you are a UCSD and then apply to transfer majors if you meet the criteria.