Hi, I’m a sophomore currently looking at colleges. I am wondering what my chances of getting into UC Berkeley?
GPA: 3.875 on 5.0 scale
I am currently in an aerospace engineering program but I still learn basic engineering, how will that affect my chances? (I want to double major in biomedical and mechanical engineering)
EC’s: SGA, NHS, MESA
Volunteers at stem camps and libaries
Also, during senior year we will conduct a research practicum where I will either make a prosthetic arm that does sign language(I took sign language in school) or design a heart tissue.
If I improve my grades, will I have a chance at Berkeley?
If so, it will be a challenge to get your GPA up to even minimum in-state UC eligibility standards (3.0, or 3.4 for out-of-state). And UCB is much more selective than the minimum UC eligibility standards (and even more so for engineering majors).
Are you in-state for UCB? If so, then make sure all your Honors courses are UC approved. You can check your HS’s UC approved honors classes on this link: https://hs-articulation.ucop.edu/agcourselist
Any UC approved Honors courses will have a yellow star next to the course name.
If you are out of state, HS designated Honors courses do not count for the extra points, only AP/IB courses.
Please post your Unweighted UC GPA, Capped weighted UC GPA and Fully weighted UC GPA. Also have you taken a PSAT test yet? For any Engineering, you want to target a minimum 1450+ SAT or 33+ ACT.
FYI: UCB does not offer Aerospace Engineering. Mechanical Engineering might be a better option all around since you can also work in Aerospace with an ME degree.
I am out-of-state and I want to do Biomedical Engineering, but I also want to do Mechanical because a Biomedical undergraduate degree doesn’t do well for job opportunities. My unweighted UC GPA is 3.88, my Capped weighted UC GPA is 4.25 and my fully weighted is 4.25 also. I have taken the PSAT and I got 1040(I didn’t really study). I plan on taking the ACT and studying though.
Since your are OOS, please be aware of the high costs of attending UCB or any other UC school. UC’s offer little to no financial aid, so you should expect to pay around $65K+/year to attend. Make sure that UCB is affordable before worrying about your chances of getting into such a competitive school. For Engineering, consider UCB a Reach school regardless of your stats.
2018 Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 4.20 or above capped weighted and not major specific so Engineering would have a lower admit rate than 37%.
Thank you, I am aware of how expensive UC’s are. I will be applying for tons of scholarships. I just wanted to know if trying for UCB was within my reach or should I look for other schools like Georgia Tech, Boston University, UMD-College Park?
Outside scholarships rarely give you enough money to help defray the high UC costs. The best scholarships are directly from the school themselves and you will not get that amount from any of the UC’s. You can apply to UCB but I would run the Net Price calculator on any schools of interest before actually applying. UCB could be possible but much depends upon how well you do in HS through Junior year along with your test scores, EC’s and essays. I would look at a variety of schools since you are only a Sophomore but keep in mind affordability and identity 2 solid safety (very likely) schools you are willing to attend no matter what before focusing on the Reach schools.
Start with your in-state universities and re-post once you have your ACT scores. Also sit down with your parents and come up with a budget (actual $$ amount) they are comfortable in spending for your college education, since this will help other posters help you with good target schools to consider.