Yep, I'm doomed. Major and max units dilemma

Transfer Students UC Transfers
1

<p>So I was planning on transferring next fall to either UCSB or UCD. I really liked chemistry in highschool so since then my goal for college was just chemistry, chemistry, chemistry. I've come to the realization that I've always wanted the title of a chemist, but I didn't know what I wanted to actually do. I think my goals were too romantic and ambitious. I had a roommate who was in pharmacy school and now I'm looking at being a pharmacist as a realistic life career for myself. </p>

<p>I only just found out about the pharmacology major at UCSB and it seems like the perfect major for me. I like to read about drugs because I take some medication and want to know what I'm putting in my body. I've even asked my Dr. prescribe me a new brand of medication that he and the pharmacist didn't even know about :P (I thought that was kind of odd actually) Don't laugh, but I didn't even know that pharmacology existed as a major. </p>

<p>So just apply to UCSB as a pharmacology major right? Well, here's the thing, since I thought I was going to major in chemistry all this time so I haven't taken any biology classes that would fulfill the prereqs to even get in as pre-bio and it seems that transfers MUST fullfil those prereqs in order to ever major in a biology major at UCSB. I'm qualified for the UCSB TAG under Chemistry major as long as I don't screw up my classes from now on. </p>

<p>I can't go in as a chemistry major and change it to pharmacology later on because on the UCSB website it says:</p>

<p>Biological Sciences - **Transfer students may not change to a Biological Sciences major.* Admission to the Pre-Biological Sciences major was granted based on a screening for major preparatory coursework. Further information about Biological Sciences may be obtained from the Biological Sciences undergraduate advisors at <a href="mailto:bioadv@lifesci.ucsb.edu">bioadv@lifesci.ucsb.edu</a>.*</p>

<p>Then I thought about staying at CC for another year in order to get the general biology prereq done but I will already have 84 semester units at the end of Spring 2011. A year later I would have done the biology classes along with some intro courses needed for pharmacy school like econ, I'd have 109 semester units. That shouldn't be too big a deal because max units don't apply to CC BUT I did my first year of college at a state university so different rules apply. </p>

<p>Someone on here posted this information last year but I'm not sure where they got it from because I wasn't able to find the source with a search:</p>

<p>UCSB: The College of Letters and Science does not accept applications from students who have earned 135 or more transferable quarter (90 or more semester) units from a combination of two-year and four-year institutions </p>

<p>So if I stay another year to qualify to get into the major I want I'd have too many units to get accepted at all, even if I ditched the extra classes and just took the bio classes, and if I go in now I'll be stuck with a major I'm not happy with. :| Another thing is that if I go in as a chem major, I'd have to take more time and courses in order to fulfill the major requirements and get the classes needed for most pharm schools since the upper division courses needed for both don't overlap. I'd actually end up being well over the 200 quarter unit limit which isn't really allowed... However, with a pharmacology major I'd be under the unit limit and finish in 7 quarters without having to cram any classes in.</p>

<p>Then there's UCD which does not offer pharmacology major but they do offer pharmaceutical applied chemistry which is close enough I guess. There doesn't seem to be a prereq requirement in order to get accepted but it will take a little longer since some of the requirements for pharm school like biochem and molecular bio don't go towards the degree. I wasn't accepted for UCD tag because I'd have too many units to qualify for their tag unless I only take 6 units next semester which I'm not going to do because that would waste my time. </p>

<p>Ideally I'd like to UCSB as a pharmacology major. I don't know how strict they are for people to be able to change major to a biology one. I'm assuming that's one of the impacted majors so I don't have high hopes. Then there's UCD and since I'm not in TAG I don't know if I'll get accepted. </p>

<p>Please try not to laugh at my complete ignorance about college :| I'm a first gen college student with no siblings and no friends in college until this semester so I have no idea what I'm doing! I had a personal situation that caused me to drop out of the university I was attending before and a couple bumps along the way. I didn't really think I'd end up getting this far in schooling. Now I'm at the point where I should be transferring but I just feel like I'm doomed and I don't know what to do anymore...</p>

<p>I'm going to talk to the counselor and transfer center person next week. Any further advice is greatly appreciated thank you!</p>

2

<p>Well, in UCSD’s info page, they state that if you only went to a 2 year college, you will not reach the “senior” status, meaning you could have taken as much units as you can possibly take but still be fine. </p>

<p>I mean, the best way to ask is asking them directly :P</p>

3

<p>You don’t need to major in pharmacology to get into pharm school. Major in what you want in undergrad. Chemistry is fine. If you look at the curriculum, for the pharmacology program it is just bio sci with a year of pharmacology. Not a really a big advantage. Pharmacology is just one of the topics you learn in pharm school. There are others like med chem, therapeutics, or pharmacokinetics.</p>

<p>If you enjoy chemistry then major in it. Just do well whatever you decide to do. Major matters very little.</p>

4

<p>A chemistry degree will work fine for you to apply to Pharmacy School. You can’t become a pharmacist with just a college degree; you will need to go to graduate school.</p>

<p>The UCSB information is accurate and it came from the Transfer Q&A. An updated version is at <a href=“http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/counselors/files/ETS10_TransferQA_final.doc[/url]”>http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/counselors/files/ETS10_TransferQA_final.doc&lt;/a&gt; (the information about UCSB is on page 16).</p>

5

<p>For the chem major, I will need 220 quarter units to fulfill the requirements needed for the major and the requirements needed for pharmacy admission. Is that okay?</p>

6

<p>There might be a silver lining in this after all, depending on your EXACT circumstance.</p>

<p>First off, I do agree with the other posts that you should pursue what interests you. Your undergraduate major will have virtually no impact on your plans to pursue pharmacy.</p>

<p>That said, it is my understanding that only a maximum of 70 units are transferable from a Community College. This means you could take 5 million credits at your CCC and only 70 would transfer. However, they will give you SUBJECT CREDIT for the rest.</p>

<p>What this means for you is, as long as you have taken less than 20 units at the University you attended, you will be safe no matter how many units you take at the CCC. If that’s not the case then you might have to limit your total units (someone correct me if I’m wrong). In either case, it is best to talk to a counselor at your CCC AND a representative at UCSB.</p>

<p>Also, another key word is transferable. It is sometimes easy to forget and include everything in the total count. So if any of the units you took at the university are not tranferable (check this out) to a UC, then you could also exclude those from the count. Good luck!</p>

7

<p>you can get in as a chem major and while taking upper division chem courses you can take the courses required for pharm school</p>

8

<p>Each UC campus poses a maximum unit ceiling. After you hit it you can no longer register (a crude way to get you to graduate and leave). You’ll have to plan your courses carefully to avoid getting kicked out. </p>

<p>A friend of mine finished his degree in Berkeley then took upper division courses at CSUEB to fulfill the pre-med requirement before going to Columbia Dental School. So there are lots of different ways to get to your destination, it’s not always a straight road.</p>