<p>Mom in Virginia, As you’ve probably already noticed, the “assist” page is for California Community Colleges. My advice would be to look at which California Community colleges have Transfer Agreement Guarantees with UC Berkeley, and then match up some of the art classes at those schools with those offered by your local community college (or a four year college if he could enroll there). Then, I’d suggest that you and your son make an appointment with the local college’s academic advising office and perhaps the specific department (art, music, etc.) to discuss how the two line up. I would also ask if they would be willing to include a course description with the transcript they’ll send. I might even suggest sending the actual course syllabus with the transcript. This might be overkill, but better overkill than disappointment after its too late to change course.</p>
<p>The other thing I would strongly encourage you to consider is the cost of attending UC Berkeley as an out of state student. It pretty much lines up with what you would pay for many private universities. There is absolutely NO CHANCE of being declared “instate” for tuition purposes after you enroll, so that is the price you’ll pay for four years (actually, assume a 5 to 7% increase each year, perhaps more). Financial aid for out of state students is somewhat limited at the UC’s – out of state students often do not have their full need met (The UC’s don’t guarantee to meet full need for anyone). So, if money is an issue, I would consider the financial side of things very carefully before going forward with rushing to meet that VPA requirement.</p>