My daughter is a rising HS senior and is considering applying to Cal Poly this fall. She would probably apply as a Physics major.
We are trying to learn about the unusual admissions process for CP and see that they will calculate in some math and language classes, and maybe performing arts (?), from middle school.
My kid was in a dual immersion Spanish/English program from K-11th. In 6th, 7th, and 8th she took Spanish Language arts, and both her math and history classes each year were 100% taught in Spanish in middle school. I think those classes are labeled as Dual Classes on her middle school transcript.
How do you think CP will view this? Could she potentially get extra “points” for foreign language from these classes?
She was also in orchestra for those 3 years. Would this give her extra performing arts points?
@Gumbymom can probably give you the answers. I believe that at least the arts requirement must be taken in high school, not before. It sounds like she was in orchestra in grades 6, 7, 8. Is that correct!
Does your student have foreign language courses listed on their transcript in high school? Is Spanish a heritage language for your family?
Only Math and Foreign language taken in Middle school count towards the recommended a-g courses. Art/VPA courses need to be taken in HS.
Math and FL Middle school classes do not need to be listed on the HS transcript but must be listed on the CSU application. Middle school grades are not part of SLO GPA calculation only 9-11th a-g course grades.
Dual enrollment classes must be college affiliated and they need to be listed on a college transcript and submitted for credit for SLO.
You could call SLO about the dual program but what level FL she completes while in Hs is what is important. If she has 4 years of FL then that is the maximum points she can earn.
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What kind of “extra points” do you think she might get?
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I assume they are referring to the opportunities for extra points that are calculated into Cal Poly’s non-holistic admissions formula. For example, 5 years of English classes in high school is worth more than 4 years, but there are no extra points for 6 years of English classes. In the case of world language, there are no extra points for more than 4 years (as Gumbymom mentioned).
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CPSLO give extra points in its admission formula for extra semesters in various subjects beyond the CSU minimum. It does not assume lower level courses after completing upper level courses (unlike basic CSU requirements), so all foreign language and math courses taken prior to high school need to be listed for CPSLO purposes.
Yes, sorry I was unclear. She has also taken Spanish classes for 3 years in HS, including AP Spanish sophomore year where she got a 5 on the test, and one history class freshman year was also taught 100% in Spanish. Then she will also have 4 years of orchestra in HS too.
Thank you! The “Dual enrollment” I mention in my post is referring to it being a part of the Dual Spanish/English program not a DE class with CC. It just means those classes were taught in Spanish, not English.
So it sounds like she has the FL and arts requirements fulfilled.
@Gumbymom does the history class count as a foreign language class?
I’m going to guess that she has fulfilled the FL requirement by taking AP Spanish in HS. But @Gumbymom can confirm.
CPSLO has two thresholds: minimum number of years required to fulfill requirements, and maximum number of years that gives extra points in the non-holistic admission calculation. For world language, min is 2 years, max to give extra points is believed to be 4 years, and middle school can be calculated into this max. For arts, min is 1 year, max to give extra points is believed to be 2 years, and middle school doesn’t count.
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@Bluesky_99
A Dual Language/History class would not count as a Foreign Language, it would count as a History/Social Science. If the student took AP Spanish with a 5 on the exam, she has fulfilled the maximum number of years for FL which would be 4 years.
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If she attends a California HS, then she can look up the A-G course designations for all her classes here: University of California A-G Course List
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Thank you! This is very helpful
Thank you for that information. Some California HS’s have dual Language/History courses and those are listed under the History/Social science category on the linked a-g courselist so it probably is similar to your daughter’s program.
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