Right now I’m a sophomore at UCSC with approximately 75 quarter credits. From my experience from Santa Cruz, I don’t think the vibe of the school is really for me when I was on campus during freshmen year. Another big reason I want to transfer is because I decided to pursue urban planning, which UCSC doesn’t have any major specifically related to the field, and I am not very satisfied with the quality of the major I am in now (Environmental Studies). I am thinking of transferring to UCI, UCD, UCSD, or possibly UCLA either through intercampus transfer or CC route.
However, I messed up my freshman year since I’ve gotten too many C grades so I can’t retake those courses. My GPA (including the few courses I took at CC) is around a 2.8, and I’m worried I’m not able to transfer anywhere. Does anyone know how big a factor it is transferring for a specific major/program at another UC that UCSC doesn’t have?
I really don’t want to spend another full year or two out of my college career and spend maybe a year at the transferred school, considering I’ve already lost more than a year’s worth. Also, I’ve done some calculations, and even if I got a bunch of A/A- grades, my GPA will only go up very slightly, help?
So I am in a SUPER similar situation, as I am currently a sophomore at UCSC, however I applied to transfer this cycle. I, like you, want to study a more specific major that UCSC doesn’t offer (animal science) and didn’t really enjoy the overall vibe of the school. I think my largest piece of advice would be to GO FOR IT! If you feel like UCSC is not the right school for you, It doesn’t hurt to apply to other places! At least at that point you have put yourself out there and gotten to explain your situation, and tried your best to end up where you want to be. I’ve also found that in applying to transfer, as I think about leaving UCSC, I have been starting to find things that I enjoy about the current major I am studying, so maybe if nothing else, applying will help you realize there are more things at UCSC that you enjoy than you think!
Unfortunately, on a more logistical side, based on my research and my experience thus far applying as a UC to UC/ UC to CSU, GPA is going to be a large factor on your application and your shot at admissions. However!! Don’t count yourself out just yet! The UC website states that you must have at least a 2.4 cumulative GPA to qualify for any transferring, so you already meet that requirement, even if you feel like you’re on the lower side you have already ticked one box! Before transferring, you MUST also have 90 quarter units, so taking CC classes will help increase the number of credits you have and give you an even better shot at being accepted.
Also to boost your GPA take classes that you KNOW you will be successful in! That way you are confident when you begin the course and able to keep increasing that GPA to give yourself the best opportunity to be successful and to be accepted into another school!
Let me know if you have any other questions about my transfer application experience thus far, and I hope this helped!
You should go to CC and then transfer. Imo 2.8 gpa is low, and on top of that UC to UC transfer gets last priority. Unless you’re happy with your current major and you can chug your way through the campus, go to community college and transfer.
While ordinarily good advice, raising your gpa at a CC, this is risky if the goal is to go to another UC campus. UCs limit junior transfers and many don’t allow senior transfers. See the chart at University of California Counselors Furthermore just because they say it is possible doesn’t mean they actually will accept any. Before doing this be sure to contact admissions at the UCs you are considering to find out their current policy.
Why this matters to the OP is the way UCs calculate standing which is by transferable units. As explained in the doc above they take the CC units earned (capped at 105 quarter units no matter how many you have) but then add on all units earned at any UC campus. With 2 years already at UCSC this is going to push the OP into junior or senior standing by units.
Also worth pointing out is that xfer apps were due long ago for the upcoming fall. If the OP stays at UCSC and applies to xfer for fall 2022 the same high-unit issue may be present since they would have completed 3 years worth of UC classes by the time they would xfer.
While ordinarily good advice, raising your gpa at a CC, this is risky if the goal is to go to another UC campus. UCs limit junior transfers and many don’t allow senior transfers. See the chart at University of California Counselors Furthermore just because they say it is possible doesn’t mean they actually will accept any. Before doing this be sure to contact admissions at the UCs you are considering to find out their current policy.
Is this aiming at senior level transfers or Juniors?
What if the student changes majord and thus has credits but they sont match the newly chosen major? Do the non gen eds/non major credits count toward the total?
The counselor info above doesn’t have any provisions for excluding units, so I think every unit taken at a UC will count. But since I don’t work in UC admissions I don’t know for certain; the OP might want to check with UC to see if there’s some unpublicized provision to exclude units.