I didn’t really take a bunch of honor/AP classes, and I’m really scared it’ll hurt me.
Sophomore year there were really only one-two options to take(AP euro and honors Chem) but I couldn’t take either due to a bad freshman year.
Sophomore year courses(a-g):
English 2
Spanish 3
World history
Algebra 2
Chemistry
Junior year:
APUSH
AP Bio
AP Lang
Computer science/engineering
Trigonometry
One concurrent enrollment community college class over the summer: philosophy(got an A)
Senior year:
AP psych
Honors anatomy/physiology
AP literature
Statistics
Ww2/ethnic cultural diversity
Civics/Econ
In total it’s about 12-14 semesters of honors by the end of senior year. But after looking at everyone else’s classes, I’m afraid my classes look too easy and my grades aren’t on par with the level of classes I was taking. Is it a hindrance from getting into UC schools like UCI, UCSB, UCD, and UCSD? Or some CSU schools?
Try to take AP Statistics rather than regular Stats, as well as Physics (regular is fine) rather than A&P. Try taking Spanish 4 if you can.
Congratulations on the A in Philosophy - hard class and superb grade. 
CSU’s will be fine, assuming decent grades and a minimally impacted major.
UC’s: you should be okay for rigor. Have you calculated your UC GPA?
@MYOS1634 unfortunately, the only flexible part of my schedule is taking AP stats, so I will try to do that. However, I suffered a bad grade in geometry freshman year that I’m currently retaking(I got a D) so they placed me on the routes without everything for math. I was supposed to take alg 2 with trig but I got alg 2, and I was supposed to take trig/precalc and only got trig.
I couldn’t take physics because I didn’t have precalc 
And I discontinued language after sophomore year, opting for computer science instead.
Yes, my UC GPA is calculated and is rather low–I’m one of the cases with low GPA and high test scores.
I have a 3.82 weighted UC GPA, which I know is really low for the UC schools–but I have a 34 act. I kind of had an upward trend from freshman year(which I got a 2.8 in) and went 3.4/3.4/4.0/4.33 sophomore - junior year.
UCSD is out of reach, and the other UC’s you listed will be reaches.
Make sure you apply to UCSC and eiher UCR or UCM.
Your high ACT score will help you at SDSU, CPP, and you may even make it into Honors at Chico or CPP.
Considering you profil, it may make sense to apply to private universities, and apply widely.
St Mary of CA, URedlands, Lewis and Clark, UPuget Sound, UPortland, Willamette would all be strong academic matches for your potential and they’ll look at your story/upward trend. Whittier, LaVerne, Sonoma would be safeties. Chapman, UDenver, would be reaches.
ASU Barrett may be a possibility (not sure, but they like high test scores).
What will you apply for? (majors)
AHHHH I’m so nervous because I don’t have precalc/calc either or physics I wanted to major in cognitive science or social sciences at Irvine…psychology/health elsewhere 
@MYOS1634 cognitive science at UC irvine( their average HS GPA for admits in this major is 3.84, so somewhat similar to mine)
Health/kinesiology/psych at other places…I’m really more of a social science person.
Haha yeah, I probably shouldn’t apply to UCSD because it’s just 70 dollars for a rejection. I really don’t want to go to CPP/Chico(my parents have said they won’t support me if I go to a cal state other than SD, LB, and F)
I’m pretty much an immediate reject most places, and I was planning on applying mainly to publics because I didn’t want to pay the cost of privates(we can afford it but I would really rather not pay $60k a year)
Perhaps I should consider CC? Idk, I’m not a super bright student but I’m willing to give everything a try.
Well, you need schools where your odds of getting in - try to talk them into visiting for the honors program - you’ be a VIP student read abou these and talk it up. BTW, CPP these days is considered as good as CSULB.
Why Fresno, which is not as residential than these?
A 34 ACT is very valuable. You get full tuition at Ole Miss and consideration for Honors College. A 3.5 weighted gets you full tuition and guaranteed Honors College at UAlabama (a higher ranked university than Ole Miss, with an excellent Honors COllege.)
It may welll get you merti scholarships at the privates.
@MYOS1634 the problem is, my parents are rather set that CSU schools are bad and they’re already disappointed I’m applying to CSULB.
I don’t like the area in Fresno; I’ve always been more of a city girl. Sadly, I don’t think I’ll get into schools that I want to so perhaps CC is the only option…I’m just really attached to CA because that’s where I’m from. I don’t think my chances anywhere are high but it’s just my parents already disdain a lot of schools I was applying to being that I’m Asian but rather underachieving…
I realize I’m probably rambling now, haha. Maybe I shouldn’t apply to any UC schools? Seems like I’d just waste my money to get rejected I suppose these are the repercussions for doing poorly throughout high school. Thanks for your help, I’ll reconsider my choices.
Your parents would probably hate it more if you were shut out. Ask your parents if they’ll support you at community college - you’re lucky to be living in a state where the cc network is strong All students need two affordable safeties, and I think one of them should be a residential, 4-year university. Take your parents to Sonoma State or Chico State : their original.life as private colleges is visible when you visit the campus. It should reassure them - and they don’t even have the ‘CSU’ moniker and most people outside California wouldn’t even know they’re CSU’s (in some States, ‘State University’ means top public universities : think of Penn State, Ohio State, both top flagships…)
Explore all the colleges that offer scholarships for your stats (WHICH ARE QUITE GOOD).
You need 2 safeties, so with one community college, you need to find one more. Then, you need 3-5 matches, which means that you’re near the top 75% for our stats but in your case, due to your act score, I think being above average for your GPA or GPA should be enough thanks to your high score.
Then, you can add any UC but keep in mind the ones you mentioned will be a crapshoot since they factor GPA more than test scores.
Apply to Alabama and Honors, it’ll be one down - hopefully your parents will agree on visiting, and read the thread 'colleges your child gave up to attend ‘Bama’ or results thread in the Alabama forum.
Asu Barrett has a terrific record for national prizes and fellowships, and is in the top 10 nationally.
If your parents can pay, UWashington is a nearby large university similar to the UC’s.
For universities in the South and Plains, you’ll be considered URM - look into St Olaf, Rhodes, Denison, Centre, for reachable reaches?
with a 3.8 UC GPA and 34 ACT make you a solid applicant for several UCs, don’t write them off altogether.
I also agree with @myos1634 take your parents on a tour of Sonoma and Chico. While you are there, talk to the people who run the Honors program at each school. You and your parents will come away impressed.
This may sound manipulative but, I am a the parent of a college kid so I know what sells to my demographic. It will be a long day and a long time on the road but, see if you can arrange to tour Chico, Davis and Sonoma on the same day, or back to back days. The comparison will be stark. Davis is an outstanding school but, if admitted you’d be one of the less qualified freshmen in the class. You’d need to find you way through that massive campus without much coddling. At Chico and Sonoma, not only is the student population and campus smaller, you would be a stand-out freshman, no doubt invited to participate in their Honors program - which gets you priority registration all 4 years, smaller and more academic GE courses, better access to professors among other things. Not only that, they are $5k a year cheaper than Davis.What’s not to love?
@NCalRent I appreciate the help, but my parents have told me that if I get into none of the mid tier UC or better CSU schools, I will have to go to a CC. They are unwilling to pay for a CSU below Fullerton and they have made it clear they’d rather I not even apply to college than attend a CSU. It’s a poor mentality but unfortunately that is the way my parents think…I come from an Asian family and my parents are in a sense ashamed I even consider asking them about Sonoma or Chico…they compare me to their friends kids who attend UCB and such…
That’s the point: Chico Honors or Sonoma State ARE very good, and the campus is fantastic. They are DEFINITELY better than Fullerton (not sure how you thought otherwise). Some programs there are excellent - Hutchins, Honors Progam.
In the end, apply. You’ll make the choice once you’ve received your acceptances.
Do you think you’re the only kid from an Asian family in this situation? Don’t you think there are excellent Asian students in Chico Honors and Sonoma?
(5% students are Asian American at Sonoma; 6% at Chico. About 5-10% are ‘unknown’ or ‘multiracial’, plus international students, many of whom are Asian).
The minimum requirement for Chico Honors is an ACT 27.
http://www.csuchico.edu/honors/
I know they’d like to boast “My kid got into … College”. Well, imagine if you got into Macalester or Centre or Connecticut College, both elite colleges in other areas of the country. They’d have rights to boast, because those are excellent colleges, highly selective, providing a great undergraduate experience, with excellent outcomes. If their friends hadn’t heard about them, would it negate the achievement?
Can you buy a used copy of “Colleges that change lives” and lay it around?
It doesn’t matter whether other kids got into UCB. With the budget cuts and the huge classes, you may end up with the best experience, and if you attend a top LAC like Whitman or Pitzer or Oxy, you could return to Berkeley or UCLA for grad school, when you are able to enjoy the actual benefits of these tremendous research universities.
(You can also look for the thread “so disappointed with UCI”; also, note that PHD programs do not like to recruit their own undergrads, because they would prefer more cross pollination of ideas and networks. So, if you want to go to grad school a UCB, attending another college is better. And, in the end, people will only care about the last degree you get.)
If UCB/UCLA are your parents’ goals, tell them or make sure they can say: my kid targets a MASTER’s degree from UCB or UCLA. Since they’d rather take students from other, undergraduate-intensive colleges, that’s where s/he’ll be going.
Email all the colleges on your thread. Ask, in the past 10 years, how many students got into UCB or UCLA in any field. Or what percentage of applicants. Use that data.
I will say, I toured Sonoma and Chico as a very skeptical parent and came away impressed.
CSU ‘better than Fullerton’ is pretty subjective.
Which schools do your parents feel fit on that list and why?
Also - not to be a downer but, transfer admission to top UCs is also very competitive. It is quite possible you will end up with the same options (perhaps fewer) you will have as a freshman.
I would encourage you to apply broadly, include some of the CSUs with Honors programs, see where you get in and make your decision in April/May. That will give you lots of time to visit some campuses, learn about honors programs, etc. CC will still be an option.
“… a top LAC like Whitman or Pitzer or Oxy.”
Not sure I’d put Oxy in the “top LAC category”, and even Pitzer is a push.
@MiddleburyDad2 it wouldn’t matter lol, I have no plans on attending a LAC.
@NCalRent no worries,even if I attend community college, I’m most likely not transferring and probably may just end my education there(no hope for myself anymore lol, I’ll just get a job at McDonald’s or something)
@MYOS1634 I’m not aiming for UCB or UCLA. That’s what my parents want. I’m just trying to get a good job. I don’t even mind if I never get a college education but I just need a job and connections. In the end, honors college or not, I will end up having to go to CC and paying for it myself. I cannot get funded for a lot of schools, and my parents are unwilling to pay 60k a year for a private, although we can afford it. For me, it’s really all or nothing for me now on my apps… If I succeed, then I get to go to college. If I dont, then I suppose I get a job and pay for cc on my own.
The official name of Chico State is CSU Chico. See http://www.csumentor.edu/select/compareview/ .
Your stats may get an automatic full ride; see http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/ but check school web sites to verify and note the difference between full tuition and full ride. That way, you could have a safety that your parents will not have to pay for.
With a 3.8 UC-weighted HS GPA, the “mid tier” UCs are probably high matches to low reaches (can depend on major applied for). See http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/freshman-admissions-summary , where you can see past admit rates by HS GPA.
I’ll also say kids on here are freaks of nature…on here 31 ACT = 22…challenge yourself in courses you like and show you can handle hard classes
Definitely apply to the automatic full rides (and even full tuition) you qualify for.
If for your parents it’s UC’s or bust, does it mean they’ll let you live at home and commute to the nearest CC?
I still think you ought to apply widely, to various universities. If anything, it’ll show your parents you CAN get into those schools and get scholarships. They may revisit their stance then, or they may not, but at least you’ll know you got into all these schools. If they decide to use college to control you, you’ll have the escape route of the full ride you earned. And at least you’ll have real choices.
Your GPA and test scores are good. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
As an FYI - I attended a CC, transferred in 2 years to Sac State, graduated 2 years later. I went on to earn an MBA and a rewarding career - so, I am not down on CC as a path to success.