UCSD Rejected - Appeal?

Colleges & Universities A-Z University of California - San Diego
1

<p>Hi I recently got rejected from UCSD and UCLA. These are my stats:</p>

<p>GPA: 3.8 out of 4.0 (weighted)
ACT: 30 (Math 34, Science 34, Reading 27, English 26)
SAT II: Bio - 680, Math Level 2 - 780
AP - Bio (5), Comp Sci (4), taking Calc AB, Environmental, Macro</p>

<p>EC: Business Professionals of America (9-12), Finance Club (11-12, President), Aspiring Medical Professionals (11-12), UNICEF (11-12, Volunteer Coordinator), NeuquaLaw (Law Club 12, Co-Founder and Vice-President), Volunteered for 640 hrs at doctor's office</p>

<p>Awards: BPA state contestant (9-12), BPA National contestant (12th, found out after I submitted my app), BPA Ambassador Torch Award (11, I'm also doing it this year, next month), UNICEF national video contest winner (11), YouthAboutBuiness national champion (team event, 11)</p>

<p>Major: I applied for a PSYCHOLOGY major because I heard that Biology was impacted at UCSD and that this was my best chance at getting in (At UCLA, I chose Biology and Biomedical Engineering). I initially wanted to become a doctor so I wrote my essays on why I wanted to become a doctor for the first prompt and for the second prompt, I wrote about my experiences with YouthAboutBusiness. However, after conducting my college interviews, I realized that Medicine wouldn't be the best fit for me. So, now I have decided to pursue business and I want to major in FINANCE/ECONOMICS. Also, is it possible to get a business minor at UCSD?</p>

<p>Other Info: Illinois Resident, but Dad has CA residency, Asian, Male</p>

<p>Does anyone have any advice for me, how should I fill out the appeal? Should I call an admissions officer and explain my situation, that I want to switch majors? Can I still get into UCSD or are there no hopes? </p>

<p>Could Someone Please help me out ASAP?! UCSD is my top choice and I would really like to go there since my family is also planning on moving there, regardless of my college decisions.</p>

<p>Thanks you so much for taking your time to read my scenario!!</p>

2

<p>I see no grounds for an appeal. You were rejected. I know that is painful, but I suggest you move on. Hundreds of thousands of kids are rejected at their top choice, every year. So you are not unique in that respect. UCSD has far more qualified applicants than available spots. Last year, my son was waitlisted at his top choice. But he had no choice but to move on to his second choice. If you really want to go to UCSD, you can always try to transfer in. A couple years ago, my friend’s kid got rejected at UCSD. He wound up going to UCSB, and is doing just fine. I know it is painful to not get in to your first choice, but you will face a lot of rejection in life. Girls. Jobs. Graduate School. Get used to it.</p>

3

<p>Can anyone tell me HOW to appeal? I cant find any information on the website.</p>

4

<p>I think you can contact the admissions officers</p>

5

<p>You need to provide new and compelling information. UCSD doesn’t have a business major/minor to my knowledge. The closest thing is management science. I don’t think switching majors would make a difference either. UCSD has a very strong economics program and likely had a ton of qualified applicants. I agree with Floridadad55. If you really want to get into UCSD, transferring in from a CCC is an excellent option. You’ll also have a shot at UCLA and Berkeley which have very good economics/business programs. Good luck!</p>

6

<p>What defines new and compelling info? Would an increase in GPA count? Also if I said I was changing majors would that affect anything?</p>

7

<p>Here is a link to an article that details exactly what criteria you should have to consider an appeal for admission that my friend found when she tried to appeal admission</p>

<p>[Appeal</a> Admission Decision - If Rejected, Can You Appeal the Admission Decision?](<a href=“http://collegeapps.about.com/od/theartofgettingaccepted/f/appeal_reject.htm]Appeal”>Can You Appeal A College Rejection Decision?)</p>

<p>Hope that it helps.</p>

8

<p>The link photolover12 provided is great. Also I snagged this from a similar appeal thread:</p>

<p>Grounds for appeal:

</p>

<p>I do not think changing majors would affect anything. In fact, I think UCSD is one of the few schools that does not admit by major. At least I know this holds true for transfers. Not sure about freshmen. </p>

<p>If you’re looking to go strictly into finance, UCSD may actually not be the best choice. Berkeley and UCLA do very well in the finance area. For Economics, UCSD is very good. They don’t have to be mutually exclusive but what area are you looking to focus on? Business is very broad. Even finance is pretty broad. You can go into investment banking, commercial banking, corporate finance, etc. San Fran and Los Angeles are huge finance hubs.</p>

9

<p>I would like to go into investment banking.</p>

10

<p>UCSD is very selective AND, you need to know that OOS students usually pay full fees. Local students also have a hard time getting admitted and I know that CA state residents selected have higher GPA’s. I know my dd’s friend got into Berkeley but not UCSD. She is doing the CC route and has TAG to try to get admitted to in 1 year. Did you ask for FA? I don’t think an appeal would help because, unless something was left out on your original application, they have a pool of local valedictorians they can pull from. Sorry to tell you that.</p>

11

<p>@emprex: SD has a business minor</p>

12

<p>Ah I didn’t know that. Thanks.</p>

<p>@theman95, </p>

<p>For investment banking, you want to aim for UC Berkeley or UCLA. They are targeted by bulge brackets (the elite IB firms). It’s not impossible out of UCSD but much more difficult because UCSD is not really recruited for ibanking. It’s not because UCSD isn’t a strong school or anything, it’s simply because Los Angeles and San Francisco have a very strong investment banking presence. San Diego doesn’t. </p>

<p>Investment banking takes serious commitment and is very cut throat. Read up on target schools. These are schools targeted by investment banks for recruiting. UC Berkeley and UCLA are the two public targets. Then you have USC, Stanford, and Caltech(sort of). Target schools are debated a lot but the general consensus is these are the target schools in California. I think I left out a few LACs.</p>

<p>The vault career guide is a good start if you want to learn about the investment banking lifestyle. It’s pretty brief but a good starting point. </p>

<p>[Vault</a> Career Guide to Investment Banking: Tom Lott: 9781581311334: Amazon.com: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Vault-Career-Guide-Investment-Banking/dp/1581311338/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364101166&sr=1-1&keywords=vault+guide+investment+banking]Vault”>http://www.amazon.com/Vault-Career-Guide-Investment-Banking/dp/1581311338/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1364101166&sr=1-1&keywords=vault+guide+investment+banking)</p>

<p>And here is an example of recruiting at a target school. UCLA(look under investment banking):</p>

<p><a href=“http://career.ucla.edu/Files/PDF/OCR/BVBlast_Winter2013_010713.pdf[/url]”>http://career.ucla.edu/Files/PDF/OCR/BVBlast_Winter2013_010713.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Those are some of the top firms in investment banking. And here is the investment banking workshop at UCLA:</p>

<p>[Investment</a> Banking Workshop - Undergraduate Business Society](<a href=“http://www.ubsbruins.com/investment-banking-workshop/]Investment”>http://www.ubsbruins.com/investment-banking-workshop/)</p>

<p>For UC Berkeley, it’s tough to find information because its off limits to non-Berkeley students. Here is a list of firms that attended their 2010 investment banking forum:</p>

<p><a href=“https://berkeley-csm.symplicity.com/events/students.php?cf=ibforum10[/url]”>https://berkeley-csm.symplicity.com/events/students.php?cf=ibforum10&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>UC Berkeley is really a goldmine for investment banking.</p>

<p>UCSD isn’t impossible but this is a good starting point if UCSD is really your first choice:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.ucsdfpn.org/resources/UIS_FPN_IBankingGuide.pdf[/url]”>http://www.ucsdfpn.org/resources/UIS_FPN_IBankingGuide.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Page 3 is important.</p>

<p>If you are truly dedicated to Investment banking. Your best bet is to go the CCC->UC Berkeley or UCLA route. Keep in mind that the transfer rates into the respective business programs are very low. Haas(Berkeley) has a 6% rate(it’s actually something around 21% for qualified applicants) and UCLA has a 3.93 average admitted GPA. You will also need some good work experience/internships/ECs/leadership etc.</p>

13

<p>I also got rejected from ucla and uci. Is CCC my only option? I still am waiting for Berkeley and Stanford. But at this pace I wouldn’t be surprised if I got rejected. So far I got into Indiana university Kelly school of business as a direct admit, UIC honors college, and SLU. I got wait listed at UIUC (Urbana Champaign).</p>

14

<p>Only if you are seeking a much easier path(which can be subjective I guess). Obviously if you are accepted into Berkeley/Stanford, then you are well on your way.</p>

<p>Kelley is actually a target so there you go! I also think UIUC places well in investment banking but honestly I don’t know for sure. I’d imagine it’s a semi-target. Don’t quote me on that though. </p>

<p>Kelley has an investment banking workshop where they guarantee placement on wall street. I heard it’s pretty competitive though. Here are some links:</p>

<p>[The</a> Investment Banking Network at Indiana University: IBA Index](<a href=“http://kelley.iu.edu/ibn/IBW/workshop.cfm]The”>The Investment Banking Network at Indiana University)
[Undergraduate</a> Program: Department of Finance : Kelley School of Business: Indiana University](<a href=“Finance | Finance | Indiana Kelley”>Finance | Finance | Indiana Kelley)</p>

15

<p>Ok thanks for all of the help. Anyone have any appeal suggestions? Should I mention that my personal life goals have changed due to my experiences during senior year?</p>

16

<p>theman: I don’t think an appeal will get you a better result. They’re pretty firm on their decisions. If there were a compelling health issue or a drastic change, then they might take a look, but they stick to their guns. My Neighbor was on adcom at UCSD. She said they go over each of the apps with a kind of “fine-tooth comb” and really get a sense of the student especially in impacted majors. Grades are a biggie in points. Some OOS students have a better chance at acceptance b/c they pay full fee. But with the average grades being at 4.0, it may have been a decision made by the gpa.</p>

17

<p>Ok thank you everyone for the replies. Now should I choose another school? Or do the community college route?</p>

18

<p>I think they stopped the TAG program into UCSD because they had too many applicants. You can always try the CC route. Why so into UCSD? Uber cutthroat and competitive. SDSU and then, if you want, transfer.</p>

19

<p>I didn’t apply to SDSU, but am I still eligible for rolling admissions? Also what is the TAG program??</p>

20

<p>TAG is still there, the requirements are just higher. Transfers must have a 3.5 instead of the old 3.0. Guaranteed admission into UCSD with a 3.0 was an absolute steal for CC students and it got out of hand. But I believe TAG will be gone after the next application cycle (Fall 2014). Pretty sure. </p>

<p>TAG stands for transfer admission guarantee. You’re guaranteed admission into a UC from a community college if you meet certain prerequisites and a specific min. GPA. UC Berkeley and UCLA don’t offer it and UCSD will stop offering it after the Fall 2014 cycle. I think UCSD is trying to switch to a more holistic approach. It’s a little tougher than it looks though. The prerequisites and GPA requirements vary by major/campus. Impacted majors are very strict.</p>