Shrinkrap

Whatever the intention, it was not my impression that the UC application prevents ANYONE from applying , and my daughter applied to 6 of them last fall. I could be wrong since she met that top 12 percent criteria, but I don't remember there being any way to keep you from applying.

juillet

Pretty much every state on the East Coast has a pretty good public university system -- Massachusetts has UMass, Connecticut has UConn, NY has the SUNY system, PA has Penn State, MA has UMD-College Park, VA has UVA, North Carolina has UNC-Chapel Hill, Georgia has UGA and Tech and Florida has UF. They may not be highly ranked, but they are all decent public colleges/universities. And in the case of UVA, UNC-Chapel Hill, and UGA and Tech they are on the US News lists.

tocollege

Hi Shrinkrap!
I applied last year, too! On the application instructions, you are supposed to stop and figure your eligibility. (page 8 of the paper instructions: http://www.universityofcalifornia.ed...uctions_FR.pdf ) On pages 5 - 7 it talks about the different types of eligibilty and how to achieve them, and that the FIRST step in admissions is they determine if you are eligible, and only eligible students are considered. (The trade-off is that ALL eligible students who apply are guaranteed a spot at one of the campuses - but not necessarily their top choices.) There are similar instructions and "warnings" on the online application. I suppose a non-eligible student could go ahead and apply, but they would know before submitting it and paying the $60 per campus that they would not be considered for admission.

kyledavid80

Well, it depends on the eligibility requirement. For example, if you don't fulfill a-g requirements for courses (which you have to list on the application in a very organized fashion), you can't finish the page--it will keep telling you that you don't have all the courses.

calicartel

Please humor us -- which schools are you planning on applying to... which ones are "matches" and "safeties?"

Shrinkrap

tocollege, kyledavid, of course you are right. Is there some way to enforce the top 12.5 percent part? FWIW, my D got into five of the six UC's she applied to, and to my ( financial) dismay, STILL chose to go south.

kasjalkjs12

TheBlackLantern:

So UC Davis and San Diego are just... What, exactly, to you? Not exactly Santa Cruz or Merced, are they?

Gimme a break.

tocollege

Congratulations on your D's success, Shrinkrap!

I guess if an ineligible student REALLY wanted to spend the $60 per campus (knowing they would not be considered for admission) they could get around the online application lockout by printing the paper application and mailing it in.

The summer before senior year, nearly all California high schools submit the transcripts of their top 10% of students to the UC for evaluation. (Juniors get a letter in the spring requesting permission to submit the transcripts - if they don't give permission, their transcript will not be submitted.) You can check to see how many transcripts your D's high school submitted by searching here: https://www.ucelc.org/ucschoolstatus...tus_search.htm - you don't need the "ATP" code, just name of school and city.)

The UC evaluates each transcript and then sends letters telling the students they are either 1. ELC (Eligible in the Local context - VERY helpful at the selective UCs), 2. On Track to Statewide Eligibilty, or 3. Not on track to Statewide Eligibility (meaning there is no way they can - in the one year of high school left - get all the courses needed to become eligible.) Eligible students are directed to the online application that has already been set up for them. There are eligible students (that other 2.5%) who do not get the letter - and they can start applications on their own - but hopefully they will do the calculations to determine if their application will even be considered that BEFORE spending the $60. By its own rules, the UCs are only allowed to consider a tiny % of ineligible students (and as a public institution they are often audited), so they are very strict on that point.

Like your D, I was very pleased (and relieved!) to be accepted at my UC choices, and like your D, I also chose another option. It was a very difficult decision because (it is probably obvious) I am a big fan of the UC system.

christalena2

It's interesting how the OP considers all West Coast students as Californians...

Shrinkrap

tocollege; Think you and I'll pass on the congrats. Are your parents "fans" as well? I'd love any suggestions for resolving her "choice" in my mind (and bank account).Joking..... Yes, I am familiar with the ELC thing; she got submitted (class size of 89!), got a letter, and was "on track". I guess that's what made me think there must be kids also were not "on track". Now realizing that the letters don't reflect the applicant pool.

StitchInTime

bclintonk: Nice fact-based analysis.

StitchInTime

Maybe this cover for The New Yorker provides some insight.

tocollege

Thanks Shrinkrap, and YES!!! My parents are a bit partial to the UCs. They did their best to stay in the background while I made my chioce, except that after receiving all of the financial information, they told me there was one (private) that they simply could not afford. (That was fine because it was not on my personal list of finalists - whew!) After my decision was made, my mom did confess that she was a tiny bit sad that she wouldn't be able to say - in a very offhand way with a toss of her head - "My daughter's at Cal..." to anyone who would listen.

As for the $$$, my parents were actually very pleased with my choice because I was very honored to receive some wonderful merit scholarships that made that (private) school less expensive than the UCs. After attending orientation, I really feel as though I made the right choice - it is a great "fit." (If you're wondering - USC!!! Fight On!!!)

Shrinkrap

^Wow! That turned out great! I can see why schools would be happy to have you!

Yeah, we wanted to say Cal too...