My son is a very smart hard working student. He got a 32 composite score on his ACT, putting him in the top 1-2% of nationwide scores for math. He also has a GPA of 3.75 (unweighted) and has taken lots of AP classes, including a 5 in AB Calc in 11th grade. He got straight A’s first semester of his senior year, and did a sport for 4 years of high school, as well as participation in other science groups and clubs. He is currently taking BC Calc, and 4 other AP classes his senior year.
He applied to the UC schools as a Mechanical Engineering major. The application process was a catch-22. If you don’t put down the major you want to study, then you don’t have priority to get into the required classes, and furthermore many schools do not let you transfer into Engineering majors (since they are impacted). So he wanted to apply to the program he was most interested in. But then your chances of getting into these schools are much harder, declaring yourself as an engineering major. Would he have been better off saying he was “undeclared” or an “English” major to get admitted to these schools?
UC Davis was one of his “safety” schools, and we were all shocked that he did not get in. According to the UC Davis website, the average ACT score for a student admitted last year was a 29. He is well above that with a 32. Many of his other friends have already been accepted to UC Santa Barbara and UC San Diego, but he has not heard from them (are they accepting the best students first?). The only school he got into so far is UC Santa Cruz. Thank goodness for that, though it was not his first choice. He had really wanted to go to UC Davis.
I know that this year saw record numbers of applicants to UC Schools and competing for admission into an impacted major like Mechanical Engineering is highly selective. But did he shoot himself in the foot by declaring that as his major? Would he have been better off applying as “undeclared” or with a different major that was NOT impacted? He is very fearful that he is not going to get into any of the other schools he applied to such as UCSD, UCSB, UCLA, and Berkeley.
Can anyone help shed any light in terms of why they think he did not get in, and if it had to do with applying to an impacted major? We are just trying to get a handle on the situation because it threw us for a complete loop. Also, has anyone been through the UC appeal process and have any advice in terms of how to best appeal a rejection for admission?
Could his credentials be so high relative to the usual student who matriculates at Davis that they knew he would not attend? Are they protecting their yield?
ME is probably the most popular Engineering major at all the UC’s, so it is just a huge amount of competition with a record number of applicants. My definition of a safety is that you are comfortably above the 75th percentile in test scores and GPA, with that said, I would have put UC Davis at a Match not a safety school. UCD also admits Engineering students by Department while many other UC’s admit first into the University and then into the specific college, so this can make a difference on the acceptances. Add in essays and EC’s to the application review and you will have more variability in the subjective portion of the application. Having gone through UC admissions with 2 son’s and my niece, all I can say is many times it is a crapshoot.
In regards to applying to a less competitive major, many times this can backfire since it can be very difficult to switch majors later on, so I do agree that your strategy was sound. I used the same strategy with my younger son for CS, but his stats were good but not great. We tailored his college list to very realistic choices so he had several options in the end that he was more than happy to attend.
For appealing a rejection, he would need new and compelling information to make UCD consider taking a 2nd look. Any notable awards? Competitions? Significant increase in grades?
Where he goes for undergrad will not define him but what he does with opportunities given to him.
Good luck to him and I am sure he will do very well where ever he ends up this Fall.
When I visited the UC schools with my D over the summer they basically all told us the most popular major on an application was undeclared and that this was perfectly right to select. They talked so much about it that we both got the feeling it was actually preferred. That said, my D did end up declaring a major - psychology. She has lower stats than your son and she was accepted at Davis. I’m sorry your son didn’t get in and I’m very surprised since his stats are great!
My daughter also applied to UCSD and has not heard back yet.
I don’t think that my son’s credentials were too high, thus giving UC Davis the impression that he did not want to attend. On the contrary, he really wants to go there and most likely would go if he had been admitted. This has us quite scared because if he did not get into Davis or Cal Poly SLO, we are thinking that his chances of getting into Berkekey, UCSD, UCLA and UCSB are even more slim. Those are the bulk of the schools he was hoping to get into.
Thanks to all who replied and offered me some input. I greatly appreciate the fact that you took the time to help shed some insight on this matter.
I guess we as parents did not understand the ramifications to applying to an impacted major. Nobody ever brought this to our attention…on the school tours and info sessions when we visited the UCs, at our high school (ie, the guidance counselor), other parents, other students, our child, the college and career office at our high school, reps from the visiting collages, etc. We had been in touch with all these people, many of whom are experts, and never did the discussion of whether to apply to an impacted major ever come up. Furthermore, we did not know to even ask the question. Had we known all this ahead of time, he may have instead wanted to put down a different major other than mechanical engineering. Now it feels like it may be too little/too late.
OP, it is difficult to understand at many schools. The admissions process is not designed to reward the most worthy candidates. It is for the administrators to assemble a student body that they wish to matriculate. Major choice can be an issue, but it is just as likely that they already had too many students that looked like him. Racial profiling is illegal in California for admissions (IIRC) but administrations use other factors to achieve the same goals. They will use address, high school, socio-economic factors, etc. to build their preferred student body.
The time is not right for this advice, but with smart kids (my S1 had a 34 and was NMF) you still need to apply to an actual safety. That means a college where they get automatic admission and even with no aid you or they can afford to attend. Our rule is they apply to 9 schools. 3 absolute safeties. 3 dream schools. 3 ‘match’ schools. That way once the dust settles they can be the one making choices rather than feeling like the last kid getting picked on the playground.
His unweighted GPA was 3.77 and his weighted GPA was 4.19. His first semester senior year GPA is 4.0 unweighted and 4.5 weighted. His essays were also extremely well written. He is a kid who is great at math/science and is also an excellent writer (and artist). I have been told that he was also competing with kids from his high school, as each school only accepts a certain number from each specific school. You make a good point about him being too similar to other students…ie, with a similar “profile.”
UCD is not a safety for a student with a UC-weighted GPA of 4.19 applying to a popular major like mechanical engineering. UCs tend not to emphasize SAT/ACT scores as much as courses and grades. The second tier GPA range of 3.80-4.19 had a 52% admission rate last year; the top tier GPA range of 4.20+ had an 89% admission rate last year. With a 4.19 GPA, one might expect that the admission rate would be between those percentages (but obviously not anywhere close to 100% that would make UCD a safety), but then applying to a popular major pushes the chance down.
Remember also that subjective criteria like essays are significant as well.
In the other threads about UCD, most of the “odd” rejections are of applicants with second tier GPAs applying to popular majors. Most posters seem to be overestimating the value of high SAT/ACT scores, when UCs tend to emphasize them less.
Note that students who apply as some other major and then try to change into a popular major after enrolling may find it very difficult to do so in terms of needing a high college GPA and/or a competitive admission process to get into the major.
He would have been better off adding additional less selective schools where he can be admitted to his major as actual safeties (e.g. all UCs except UCSC have mechanical engineering, as do 13 of the CSUs). Of course, if he is willing to start at a community college and then transfer to a UC or CSU as a junior, that can be his alternate plan (use http://www.assist.org to plan course work).
Note that if he met either of the “top 9%” criteria for UC, he may get admission to UCM (which does have mechanical engineering) if he gets shut out of his other UCs.
Thanks so much for your suggestion. You indicated that I should have my son contact UC Davis ASAP with his first semester grades and try to get in on appeal. Two questions: 1) Would it be better to wait another week and possibly see what other UCs he is admitted to before appealing to Davis, or is time of the essence? 2) Should he say that although he is interested in mechanical engineering now, he looks forward to taking a lot of breadth courses, and is open to other majors if something else piques his interest? I am wondering if he shows flexibility and is willing to be open to other majors, if that would make more of an impression on admissions personnel. After all, he has not taken any engineering classes and isn’t even sure how much he will like them. Further, statistically more than 70% of college students change their major at least twice during college. Thanks very much.
If UCD really is his first choice, he should say so and, essentially, commit to going (morally).
Have him think ralistically: if he got into UCSB and UCD, which one would he prefer?
If not, wait till he hears back. He could also call Admissions and say UCD is in his top 2-3 choices and, indeed, send his 1st semester grades + any update + ways in which he’d contribute to college life, along with the appeal.
I don’t think indicating interest in other majors would help at this point, since it wouldn’t really seem “genuine” and perhaps perceived as an attempt to game the system.
I agree that 4.19 UC GPA for MechE didn’t make UCD a safety.
I think if he really wants to go to Davis, he should use the CC route.
My dd is a senior at Davis and since she’s been there, a number of her friends have switched out of the engineering majors because of the level of difficulty and their dwindling GPAs. I’m sure the College of Engineering is aware of the numbers. I agree with @ucbalumnus and think they are really looking largely at stronger GPA’s for admission into the STEM majors.
At this place and time, I don’t think contacting admissions will change your son’s admissions status unless there was new information that was missed on his initial application, as per @Gumbymom 's post.
I think that a number of students, recently, are making the mistake of considering the UCs as “safeties”. The sheer numbers of applications with more than qualified students is making it tough. Davis has become a “decent” alternate for many students who would like to get into the top tiers or similar schools. Their School of Medicine is a hope for many Bio majors.
I agree that the CC route is a great option. He is really eager to start college at the same time as his peers and is looking forward to living in a dorm and having the “college experience.” To parents, two years is nothing, but to teenagers, it’s “forever.” But I will speak to him about it again, as it is something to take into consideration. Thanks for your reply.