So I am a rising senior with a 4.15 W GPA,1420 SAT, an officer in Chemistry and Avid club, and I am looking into Computer Science as my major. My dream school is UCSD but I am doubting my chances of getting in there, especially in this climate of admissions. Is going into the honors program of a Community College (Mt. San Antonio College) worth it for a better shot at UCSD? Or is sticking with Cal Poly Pomona/SLO a better option?
You do not need to go to UCSD for CS to get a good job/education. SLO which has a lower acceptance rate for CS than UCSD and Cal Poly Pomona have great CS programs, so I would apply to a wide range of schools, see where you are accepted and then decide if you like your choices or going the CC route would be better.
For Fall 2017, UCSD accepted 300 of 1,465 transfer applicants for Computer Science. That’s an transfer acceptance rate of about 20.5%. That might be “a better shot” than the UCSD freshman acceptance rate for CS, but the odds still aren’t great.
https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/transfers-major
I would lean towards a 4-year program at a less selective UC or a CSU, rather than targeting a CC+transfer route with only 20% odds of success. Incidentally, I think UCSC is underrated for CS.
One issue with the transfer pathway for CS is that lower division CS course work at the various UCs and CSUs is not that consistent, so that CCs have a harder time offering matching courses for all of the various UCs and CSUs. Having to “catch up” after transfer could mean needing more semesters or quarters at the four year school.
Mount San Antonio College to UCSD CS listings show that MSAC covers some, but not all, CS courses listed at UCSD:
http://web2.assist.org/web-assist/report.do?agreement=aa&reportPath=REPORT_2&reportScript=Rep2.pl&event=19&dir=1&sia=MTSAC&ria=UCSD&ia=MTSAC&oia=UCSD&aay=16-17&ay=16-17&dora=COMPUTER+SCIENCE
Regarding transfer admission difficulty to UCSD CS, note that the 25th-75th percentile college GPA range of transfer admits was 3.77-4.00. Earning a 3.77 or 4.00 GPA in college is generally more difficult than earning that GPA in high school.
In any case, since you have not yet started 12th grade, you can apply to the various four year schools and then decide later whether to enroll at one that admits you to the CS major or start at CC.
it is WAY premature to be having this discussion - there are hundreds of good schools for CS in the US. Apply to a bunch of them and see what happens - then pick your path. A CC may be the right one but, you haven’t been rejected by anyone yet. Apply to the schools you list above but also UCSC, UCR, SDSU, USD, LMU and Santa Clara. All are likely to accept you and the pvts will probably offer significant scholarships.
See what happens, then consider your options.