Help! Too many credits?

nick_scheu
Thu, 12 Aug 2010 10:36:40 +0000

@atlanta101

I’m not sure about that. I’ve done a lot of research on this issue, including talking with reps from several UCs. From what I can tell, three colleges (San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz) have firm, no-exception policies when it comes to excess units. In short, if you have 90 or more semester units, you’re ineligible for admission, period. Here’s UC’s page on the matter: http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/educators/counselors/adminfo/transfer/advising/answers/applying.html#5

This only applies if you have four-year coursework. If you’ve only attended a CCC, you can have as many units as you like. However, if you took one three unit class at a CSU, this cap applies to you.

Other UCs have what I think is a fairer system. At UCLA, if you took less than 86 units at a four-year, then transferred to and remained exclusively at a CCC, you won’t violate the policy. You’ll still be considered an entering junior, because you couldn’t have completed any upper-division coursework.

I originally planned on taking as many classes as I could to boost my GPA, but now I’m going to have to take just 10 units this Fall, and none next Spring, in order to maintain my eligibility for UCSD and UCSB. I’ll end up with 88 units total.

As for DeVry, the problem is, you don’t know for certain how, if at all, the units will transfer before you apply. You can get some UCs to look at your transcripts ahead of time, but their comments aren’t binding. That’s why I chose to stay below 90, even though I suspect many of my old four-year units will be judged to be non-transferrable. I’m playing it safe.

If you’ve already exceeded 90 units, there’s really nothing you can do. I’d put down DeVry, because if you don’t and they find out, they might rescind your application or even expel you. Ideally they’d just decide the units were non-transferrable.