[lakers]

im facing a serious dilemma right now and need some opinions and advice.

who ever went from a cc to a prestigious uc (la, sd, or ber.)
-was the work hard?
-did the two yr wait seem long?
-if u got accepted to other uc's in HS before but decided to take the cc route to a more reknown uc, was it truly worth it?
-do you regret your decision?

any additional advice is welcome. thanks for replying

[g1na1011]

thanks for making this thread. im hoping for some good advices too! =]

[choang121]

ok i don't know if i can help here. so i HEARD that its better to go to cc before transferring cuz you'll save alot of money (which seems to be a major issue for people like me n the ones i know). also, you get more preparation. and school work is never going to be easy. if i had a choice i woulda went to cc. anyways, i think you u start off at cc. it doesn't really matter cuz after u graduate you're still getting a degree from the uc right? and isn't that wats most important?

[709394]

-work wasnt that hard
-2 yrs took forever
-i had no choice but to take this route
-do i regret it? if i had gotten into berkeley via HS, i wouldve done that instead...i do feel like i missed out and im having a GREAT time here right now...but stop dwelling on the past and make the best of what u have. I did save a lot of money though, heh~

[Gotericshin]

i'm in the same boat =/ i got accepted to sdsu but i rather do 2yrs in cc then transfer to uc(la,sd,ber) i'm hoping to hear ppl's advice and opinion's

How much money do you actually save doing 2 yrs in cc transfer to uc? maybe around $50,000?? in those 2years(i heard dorming+food,etc is really expensive) maybe this way once you finish college and get your job you won't have to worry paying that much for your college loans etc.

OH and another question is don't you make wayyy more money going to UC then going to state(sdsu)? [in terms of computer engineer(my major)]

[ngaouction]

it's really good that u guys asked. i went through this. cc for 3 years, and am now at UCLA.

so here's my story. i would consider myself to be fairly smart, but somewhat unmotivated. i did pretty badly in high school. i took honors classes and whatnot, but ended up with about a 2.7/2.8. NOT good enough for decent universities. my counselor in high school told me that i pretty much had no chances at even decent CSU's, so i was pretty bummed out.

here in town, going to a CC is sort of like the losers route, but i DEFINITELY recommend it if you're unsure. going to a community college is like a fresh new start and isn't as bad as most ppl think. csus and ucs will never ever look at your high school grades once u complete your undergrad requirements for transfer. i intended on doing two years, but i did three (partly because i kept dropping classes and partly because i had no idea what i wanted to major in). i was really worried about not getting into any schools. i applied to ucsd, ucla, uci, ucd and sdsu and got accepted to all 5 with a 3.3 (by my last quarter at my cc it went down to 3.1) gpa (applied as an english major with A's and B's in my english courses). many of my friends who went straight into a university (such as ucsd and davis) somewhat regret it because they say that it's such a huge jump from high school and they did badly their freshman year.

ok, so now to answer questions.

"was the work hard?" - the cc i went to (san joaquin delta college) was known to be one of the top in california, but classes were actually not that hard. in all honesty, classes can be even easier than high school, but sometimes as hard as a course at a university. it really depends on the professor. some classes i didn't need to attend at all, but others i really had to study hard for.

"did the two yr wait seem long?" - yes and no. it's really a matter of how much you need to leave home. like, i wanted to get out of the house, but then independence can also be a little overrated. we have the rest of our lives to live on our own. i made some really great connections with friends who i knew in high school and became closer w/ them because i lived in town.

"if u got accepted to other uc's in HS before but decided to take the cc route to a more reknown uc, was it truly worth it?" - i never really finished applying for universities, so i can't answer that question. each persons experience will be different. just don't feel regret with your decision.

"do you regret your decision?" - not at all. i'm actually really glad i went to a cc because it saved a lot of money and i like i mentioned, i made good connections w/ friends i wouldn't have otherwise.

"How much money do you actually save doing 2 yrs in cc transfer to uc?" it really depends, but in the end you do end up saving thousands. living at home is much cheaper than living on/off campus yourself because you don't have to cook and you don't have to pay rent. you also save a LOT on tuition. actual prices will vary of course.

so, here's some cc advice:

1. go to a community college if you want to save money. loans can be an ass to pay off once you graduate. go to a community college if you don't have an idea as what you want to major in. in my case, i decided on english as a major during my third year and now that i'm at ucla, i've changed to sociology (which will require me to take extra classes). here at ucla, there are MANY transfers who live on campus in the same building, so you can still get that "community/freshman" experience once you transfer.

2. be your own counselor. a lot of times counselors at your cc will be dumb. find out what requirements are needed for the school/major you want. AND DO YOUR IGETC REQUIREMENTS. that's really damn important for UCs. i can't emphasize it enough. it's one of the number one things they look for (as well as your gpa of course).

3. apply for financial aid, even while you're at a community college. fin aid pretty much pays for ALL of your cc needs, and u even have some extra to spend. it takes maybe 2-3 hours of your life and you get thousands.

4. GO TO CLASS. that was probably my #1 mistake while at my cc. i mentioned earlier that there were classes i didn't need to attend, but there were others i needed to and didn't. i think the number one reason why people don't do well in college is because they get lazy and don't push themselves. classes really aren't that hard (for the most part).

5. join clubs/extra curriculars if you can. it really makes a difference towards your total cc experience and can help you with uc applications (although csu schools don't look at extra-curriculars). the only honors society that's recognized by ucs is alpha gamma sigma (and no it's not a frat); most ccs will have it.

6. if you have a job/work, don't get caught up in it. about half of my friends have dropped out of school because they started to focus too much on work/making money and their grades dropped. it's really easy to slip up, so just make sure you keep school on top.

other good things to know:

- your major will not necessarily determine what you do for the rest of your life. during my 2nd year at my cc i freaked out like crazy over the thought that what i majored in would be a life changing factor. it may be, and it may not be. i thought about doing majors from cs to international business to english, and am now with sociology. i have no idea what i want to do with it, but it's a degree.

- once you get into a uc, your cc gpa no longer matters. i was pretty damn surprised when i found this out. you basically start out fresh again. but some grad/law/med schools will look at your cc gpa, so don't slack off.

- go visit counselors/career centers at both your cc and university. there's a lot of info out there that ppl don't really know about. also, intern if possible. when you apply for a job after school, your employer will love the fact that you interned.

- this is a big one. cc classes may and may not prepare you for higher up ucs like ucla and cal. classes here at ucla are a SERIOUS jump up from community college, but for the most part, classes are doable. i'm just very lazy and unmotivated. many of my friends do well. it's just a much bigger workload, so don't expect classes to be a walk in the park.

i didn't expect to write so much (especially at 2-3 in the morning ), but hopefully it helps some of you. csu and less renowned uc schools can still be really good. in the end, going to cal or ucla will make getting a job easier just because of the name, but you have to put in effort and do good on your own. community college is a GREAT choice. don't knock it just because it's a step lower than going directly to a csu/uc. if u have any other questions, feel free to ask.

[eugene]

Thanks ngaouction for your input =) I'm hoping to transfer to UCLA too, but it won't be for 3 years since the requirements are so overloading. :T (bio major woo.)

[Battle Cat]

i went from a cc to a uc

is the work harder in a uc?

depends. some classes at uc are ridiculously easy. you just have to know what teacher to take and what classes to take. its good to talk to people and see who is who and what is what as far as classes go.

while others like some core classes are ludicrously undoable

[thealmightyGOD]

i got into ucsd and ucla. berkeley was like you too dumb b*tch why'd you even try. i decided to go to uci.

[michinsarang]

I go to a CC and am doing guaranteed transfer (called TAG) to UCSD. You just need a 2.8 minimum (although if your going into grad school you'll want more then that) and take the required courses. If your going to a CC to UC then you might wanna find one with a transfer agreement like that, so you can basicly automaticly get in with the required courses and GPA.

[Gotericshin]

^ when you do TAG to UCSD could you still apply to other UC schools while your in TAG to UCSD? (like LA, Berk, Uci)

[thealmightyGOD]

^ when you do TAG to UCSD could you still apply to other UC schools while your in TAG to UCSD? (like LA, Berk, Uci)

Why not?

[Jay Chou]

i'm transferring out of ucsc to ucd.
so if you end up in a not-so-good uc after high school, you can always transfer to another UC during your junior year.
i know some ppl at ucsc that got into ucd as a transfer. but if you're talking about prestigous schools like ucb/ucla/ucsd, it would be harder to transfer.

although a presitigious UC is always good and its name is good to hear, consider if you can really compete with the people there. i don't consider myself to be that smart and hard-working, so i didn't even bother applying to ucb/ucla/ucsd for transfer. in fact, i just applied for uc davis, and got admitted. so happy! =)

[michinsarang]

^ when you do TAG to UCSD could you still apply to other UC schools while your in TAG to UCSD? (like LA, Berk, Uci)

Yep, as long as you fulfill their requirements (most of them are very similar anyway, even with the TAG program). I know some people do that because they want to get into LA or Berk and use TAG as a backdrop.

[B0hemian_Sprite]

Yep, as long as you fulfill their requirements (most of them are very similar anyway, even with the TAG program). I know some people do that because they want to get into LA or Berk and use TAG as a backdrop.

Hey are you michinsarang from Kp.com?
Sorry, don't mean to freak you out, just remembered your username and it reminded me of the good ol' days...haha

[GO!zilla]

im facing a serious dilemma right now and need some opinions and advice.

who ever went from a cc to a prestigious uc (la, sd, or ber.)
-was the work hard?
-did the two yr wait seem long?
-if u got accepted to other uc's in HS before but decided to take the cc route to a more reknown uc, was it truly worth it?
-do you regret your decision?

any additional advice is welcome. thanks for replying

my sister transferred from smc to ucla in 3 years as a mathematics major. she wants to be a prof.

im trying to do the same thing. this was my first year and it'll take me additional 2 years cuz i want to be a bio chem major.

transferring requirements are diff with diff majors, so i say u choose wisely.

we saved alot of money by going to a cc... and i know for one that my sister doesnt regret ever going to a cc first. she got accepted to berkely and san diego in her second year but chose to wait out for ucla and attend 1 extra year and it paid off.

hrmm... if someone was to ask me or my sister if they should go to cc first... we would say yea... cuz #1 you save a mess of money and #2 in cc, its hard to get a social life going cuz people just take their classes and leave, so it gets you to study.

i know people that went to a good uc and dropped out after 1 semester.

btw, hit me up since we kinda want to be similar majors... i might know something you need to know and vice versa.

im really hoping i can transfer by my third year ... so now, here i go back to studying