UCLAri

Terr,

My advice right now is to contact admissions and ask them about the specifics of international transfers. As this is primarily a site that deals with domestic students, I have very little experience with international admissions issues, other than what I had to do to get into LSE for grad...

Lemme dig up an admissions email for you: ugadm@saonet.ucla.edu

I would tell them your academic history and see what they have to say. Best of luck!

bzander28

UCLAri,

I'm a CCC transfer student applying to UCLA for Fall 2008 as a Japanese major. Just recently I decided I'd really like to double major with Chinese, but I'm not sure if that is do-able. I have yet to take a single Chinese course and I only have the spring to get started.

So here are my questions:

1. Would it be too intense to double major languages?

2. Is there any way that I could pull off finishing the Chinese pre-reqs?
*(so there are 4 semester classes of Chinese) If I took the first semester this spring would it be possible for me to take a placement test to take the UCLA summer intermediate Chinese intensive? Or would it be more logical for me to try and skip the first semester of Chinese at my CC so I could complete elementary chinese before going to the UCLA summer session?(No matter what I have to take a placement test, correct?) I'm very self-motivated and live really close to diamond bar/rowland heights(aka chinese central) so i think I could catch myself up pretty well.*

3. I want to go to law school afterwards, so would i be putting myself in danger of damaging my GPA? GPA and LSAT scores are what really matters in the end right?

(added)4. Would it be viable to just take the elementary summer session, then start taking the intermediate sequence, THEN apply to that major? or would that set me too far back/not do-able?
Thanks for your help [;

UCLAri

1. I don't think it would be intense, but I think it would be hard to get the units done in time to graduate.

2. My buddy did the Japanese pre-reqs all in a year through self-study and the intensive courses, but he also stayed at UCLA for a 3rd year after transferring.

3. I don't think your GPA would be in any danger as long as you're just willing to spend your next 2 or 3 years in front of flash cards.

4. It's doable, but you'll have to check the dates on the summer sessions. It's been a long time since I took summer classes.

My serious recommendation here is to just sit down and look at the times of previous classes and see if they ever conflict. If there are conflicts in the past, there are likely to be conflicts in the future.

bzander28

Thanks for your answers, but sadly answers only bring more questions

Do you know anyone who has gone through the Chinese program completely? Having yet to take a course in it I'm not sure what to expect. Most people say that Japanese is a hard language, but I find it easy and enjoyable.

I read an article from a European American graduate student who said, after 6 years of studying the language, he was still unable read a book written in Chinese without needing to have a dictionary due to the need to constantly look up characters.

I don't think learning kanji is hard and as of right now I'd say I can consistently write around 250-300 and read around 400 accurately. One other option that I wouldn't mind doing is the Poli Sci - IR major. Is it common for people to double Foreign language and International Relations? If I get in with the JP major is it hard to also get into the Poli Sci Major? I got from the department website that I have to declare myself pre-polsci when i get in, then "You must complete all pre-major courses with a 2.0 grade point average. Admission to the major is granted only after successful completion of all lower division requirements by 135 units." So once I complete the pre-reqs I'm in?

My main goal is law school for international corporate law, I'm just trying to figure out my way there. I want to go to a T14 if possible so I'd need my GPA to be as high as possible, and they might frown on me having a delayed graduation (not sure about that).

Speaking both Japanese and Chinese would definitely open up more career options for me as it would allow me to include the Chinese market, but I'm not sure if learning Chinese is for me.

Undertaking the task of self-learning Japanese seems like child's play in contrast to beginning self-learning Chinese. With 2 separate kanji sets (traditional and simple) and 4 different styles of romanization it seems pretty ridiculous.

I've already learned to love flash cards and writing the same character over and over again. Oh, by the way, did I mention I want to enjoy my time at UCLA? xD

PS. Did you take the language placement test? If yes, How hard was it? What book does UCLA use to teach elementary/intermediate Japanese? I'm using the Genki series.

(I realize that Chinese characters are called hanzi, just if anyone was wondering)

Merry X-mas everyone!

Altema

They use Genki as well Well, the elementary level does .

shirleyxY

Learning languages just because of economic gain??? You should learn Hindi, Punjabi and Vietnamese as well...

bzander28

learning a language for a global competitive edge. I'm moderately interested in Chinese culture though. Those 3 really hold no interest to me except for the first two being important globally. I wouldn't consider Vietnamese an important language in the import/export market even though Vietnam is definitely on the rise, it isn't important enough for me to learn it (Plus tons of native Vietnamese speakers are already graduating from good schools so they've already conquered that frontier).

jfk

Hey UCLAri,

I'm currently a Junior in high school and am still undecided on what I want to major in. I think I'm already set on going to a CCC and transferring (hopefully) to UCLA after two years. Anyway, I've always been interested in intelligence agencies such as the FBI, CIA, NSA, etc. So my question is, once I go to CC, what exactly do I major in? Poli-sci or International Relations? Which would give me a better shot at being accepted into one of these agencies after I graduate?

And once I choose one of these majors, what is the best thing to do to prepare myself for this career path (how to build up my resume) and to get accepted into UCLA as this major? Any specific EC/internships that I could do that would make me stand out?

I guess my question is a little overwhelming so sorry about that. I'm basically just a guy who knows very little and wants some direction.

UCLAri

bzander,

I think that the poli sci major is more doable than the Chinese one, simply because you have more course options. With the Chinese/Japanese plan, you're completely out of the running if you ever have a conflict. With poli sci, you just take another class.

The problem is that at the 100 level, you usually only have one or MAYBE two classes. If you can't take from that very limited time offering, you're screwed.

jfk,

FBI actually does VERY little intelligence work. If you're interested in them, however, they badly need computer science people. In fact, all of the federal agencies really want computer science people.

Acceptance to UCLA, however, is NOT dependent on major. It is dependent on the college you choose. So say you want engineering, then you have to get into the school of engineering. But if you want any other major, then you just have to get into Letters and Science (an easier task.) Don't worry about your major right now, though.

As far as getting into an agency goes, the best thing you can do is an internship with one of them in undergrad. I must warn you, though, there is a magic voodoo gate that may stop your glorious intelligence career before you even begin: the polygraph ("lie detector.") If you fail a polygraph, which you can do even if you are completely honest, you do not pass go, and do not collect 200. I won't discourage you, but trust me, it's not easy to get a clearance with any of the intelligence agencies. And even if you are completely honest, America-loving, and vote in every election there is... you can fail a polygraph/not get a clearance.

DO NOT PLAN YOUR LIFE AROUND FEDERAL AGENCIES. Take this from someone who is currently trying to get a federal job.

However, if you are really interested in intelligence, consider working for agencies other than CIA or NSA. DIA is good, and the clearance is not as intrusive.

jfk

Hmm...interesting stuff. What kind of questions do they actually ask you in the polygraph test? And if it is inaccurate a fair amount of the time, why do they bother using it if all it is going to do is produce unsubstantial answers?

How has your quest for a job at an intelligence agency been so far? Is it tough finding a job? Have you failed these polygraph tests? Thanks again for the response.

UCLAri

jfk,

I haven't polyed yet, but I don't honestly care if I fail. If I pass, great. If I fail, oh well. I won't put my life on hold for any intelligence agency.

And to answer your question about why they bother: momentum. They have for decades, why stop now? That, and the fact that the poly isn't used to get "truth." It's used as another hurdle to overcome. The guy who polyed a professor I had argued with him about the date. He told him he was lying about the date when he himself had shown him the date on his own calendar. The professor passed, but the point of the poly was to just tease out how the guy would do under pressure.

Not very scientific, though.

You can find all sorts of questions they ask on the poly, ranging from silly things like sex life to drug use to whether or not you've given up national secrets.

Don't be too surprised if you fail on the last one even if you've never had access to national secrets. It's happened.

jfk

I notice that agencies like the FBI require 3 years of work experience before applying. So what unique career opportunities are there aside from intelligence agencies with a rigorous application process? What's the general salary of a career in intelligence agencies anyway?

UCLAri

Pretty much all federal careers are based on the GS pay scale:

2007 Salary Tables and Related Information

Straight out of undergrad, you usually start at GS-7. That's about $40K to start. You get bumped up at a fairly regular rate, and in about 10 years or so, you plateau at around GS-13 if you're in a good upwardly mobile position.

In 3 years though, don't expect to go much higher than GS-9 with just a BA. That'd put you around $50K or so. If stick it out for about 3 to 5 years, though, you can easily get up to around GS-11 or so and expect $70K. But that's if you're good and land the right track.

If you really want my opinion, go private sector. The pay's better, and you can just as easily transition to the feds after that. The only problem, of course, is that you may get really used to the better pay and may never go back!

Deuces

Is there work for me in intelligence related agencies as a bioengineering major (or engineering in general)?

jfk

UCLAri,

So what, exactly, should I major in that would give me the best shot at being accepted into an agency? Would poli-sci be the best route? I didn't quite catch computer science under the UCLA majors

UCLA Undergrad Admissions: Majors - College of Letters & Science