<p>@christian612 - I don’t think HS sports count much after you’re in community college as a transfer. I think your GPA is strong. In my opinion the essay doesn’t matter very much. I think GPA is the most important criteria because they get so many apps, they have to weed them out based on GPA. I think your GPA makes up for lack of EC’s and the OK essay, but I still think you’re a toss-up because isn’t the average GPA of admitted transfers into poli sci right around 3.7 or 3.8? </p>
<p>@christian612 -What do you think of the Hungry4UCB’s chances? That’s who this thread is about.</p>
<p>^I’m a perfect example of that: Rejected from UCLA PoliSci with TAP and all prerequisites but accepted to Cal for Spring. I had a 3.4ish GPA, but my most recent 61 units were a 3.95 (the others were at a random, unknown four-year).</p>
<p>The take-away is that UCLA really focuses on the GPA, and doesn’t give much consideration to extenuating circumstances.</p>
<p>Impacted generally means that the school gets a high volume of applicants to that major so they implement higher standards for admission into that major.</p>
<p>For schools that require you to specify a major on your application, you might be shooting yourself in the foot by writing down an impacted major. </p>
<p>One of the benefits of UCLA’s TAP is that you get to put down two majors. You get a first choice and a second choice. For Berkeley there is no TAP so you only get to put down one major on your application, so if you pick an impacted major, you’re rolling the dice. </p>
<p>The oldest trick in the book is to apply to an easy major, get accepted, and then switch majors once you have your foot in the door. Some departments let you do that, but they will probably have a bunch hoops for you to jump through and GPA requirements you need to satisfy.</p>
<p>I really think you’re going to be rejected unless you change your personal statement and major. They don’t care if you did well in a corporate job.</p>
<p>@SMCguy - Sorry to break it to you, but he got accepted to UC Berkeley as a poli sci major. The only catch was he was accepted as a spring admit. Its interesting to note that he was rejected from UCLA! That’s why I was so happy for him when he got his UCB acceptance. I worried that UCLA’s rejection was foreshadowing of what was to come from UCB.</p>
<p>I’m curious though, why wouldn’t they care about the corporate job? They only care about academics and on-campus leadership experiences?</p>
<p>UCLA has had considerably more applicants per year than UCB so they have larger administrative task in their admissions process of reviewing applications. They could never admit it but they probably start by sorting apps by GPA and then paying significantly less attention to apps that were on the low end. That’s what I would do if I was running an underfunded and short-staffed admissions office that is overwhelmed with apps. Fortunately Berkeley was able to read my app in detail and not just judge me based on my GPA.</p>
<p>I believe the upward grade trend was incredibly important to my acceptance as well. I wanted Berkeley so badly that I quit my job for my last year of community college in order to ensure that I improved my GPA. I also took 6 classes and did a lot of extracurricular work in my last semester that the university would consider. I did every available class under my major because that also helps dramatically. Also, I believe it was critically important that I write about these factors in my personal statement instead of just counting on the admissions officer to analyze everything and put the dots together. I wrote about my sacrifice in quitting my job on a gamble at improving my odds of acceptance. I wrote about my upward grade trend and my dedication to the major by having taken much more than just the required courses for transfer.</p>
<p>I believe that every student who wants to get into a certain school should plan well in advance and if their GPA isn’t competitive their best chance is to show evidence of their true potential GPA and to stand out in as many other positive ways as possible.</p>
<p>I feel fortunate that someone at Cal actually paid enough attention to my application to see what I bring to the table. I know that a lot of people who are deserving of acceptance aren’t as fortunate, but my case is evidence that GPA isn’t everything, and that people shouldn’t give up on their target school even if they fear their GPA isn’t strong enough. Determination and planning can pay off.</p>
<p>I really have nothing to add except for - that’s so awesome for you! I remember reading this when it was first posted, and I’m glad that your hard work paid off! I was a fall admit for Poli Sci at Cal this year too, and so far it’s been pretty great. Good luck to you in the future!</p>
I remember reading this when it was first posted, and I’m glad that your hard work paid off! I was a fall admit for Poli Sci at Cal this year too, and so far it’s been pretty great. Good luck to you in the future!</p>