Fall Counselor Newsletter

A Word from Gary Clark

Here we are… the start of another academic year. I hope, as always, that each of you had an enjoyable and restful summer and that you took some time to reflect, practice some self-care, and are eager for the year ahead. Every year has its own unique set of challenges and this past one was certainly no exception. But we made it through, learned, and grew along the way, and are eager to reengage with all of you and your students.

Before we get too far into the fall, I wanted to offer a handful of reflections on this past cycle and some of our hopes and plans for the year ahead:

• Applications for both our first-year and transfer students increased this past year. We were especially pleased to see growth among transfer applicants following back-to-back years of declines. Seeing enrollment figures bounce back at many of our California Community Colleges has been encouraging. We hope to see many of these students applying to UCLA and UC this fall!
   
• Our admission process was, once again, extremely competitive with a 9% admit rate for first-year applicants and 22% for our transfers. I share these statistics not as bragging points, but as real reflections of how competitive our process has become. Selectivity is not a goal for us but rather a by-product of high yield and overwhelming application volume. We are as selective as we have to be and much more selective than we would prefer to be. The students we admit and enroll are amazing, but in an applicant pool that is so self-selective, we find ourselves saying the same thing about the students we turn away.
   
• We could not be happier to report that our incoming class will, once again, be one of the most racially/ethnically diverse classes in our history. We’re thankful for the partnerships with our staff, faculty, and students that helped to make this possible.

I also wanted to take a moment to thank our financial aid team both on our campus and throughout higher education…what an unbelievably challenging year! Thanks to the hard work of our dedicated financial aid staff (and the support of you all in the counseling community), we were able to navigate the many twists and turns around all of the FAFSA changes this year. We know this process was difficult, especially for some of our most vulnerable student communities, but we were ultimately able to get aid into the hands of our students in as timely a fashion as possible.

We are always grateful for your partnership and support both for us and your students and as we move forward with what we hope will be a healing and restorative fall for our campus, we will build towards a better UCLA for current and future Bruins.

Take care of yourself, be safe, be well, and, of course… Go Bruins!

Best,

Gary Clark
Associate Vice Chancellor
UCLA Enrollment Management

Application Update

GPAs for first-year students are calculated based on the A-G (academic preparation) courses completed in grades 10-11.

• The unweighted GPA does not include any extra grade points for honors, AP, IB, or transferable college courses. The maximum value possible is 4.00.
• The weighted GPA includes an extra grade point for all UC-approved honors, AP, IB, and transferable college courses completed with a grade of C or higher.

Admitted transfer student statistics such as GPA and admit rate vary by major, for detailed information please visit Admitted Transfer Student Profile.

Reminder: The application filing period for this year is October 1 - December 2.

Meet a Bruin

Q: What courses have you found particularly engaging?

I have particularly enjoyed taking Thai language classes here at UCLA. I am part Thai but have been the only one in my family who didn’t speak it fluently. I began taking the Thai language series in Fall of 2023 and I am now on my third level of the class. I plan to continue the series until I graduate next spring. My professor is kind and fosters a safe learning environment. I have learned not only vocabulary and grammar, but also important history and cultural context that will be useful when visiting Thailand. I’m so glad I have taken this course and had the opportunity to get closer to my family and my culture through language.

Q: What type of involvement has allowed you to find community?

Two organizations have really made me feel like I have found community here: NSU Modern and Hui O ‘Imiloa. NSU Modern is a student-run, competitive dance team focusing on open-style dance, especially hip-hop. I have danced competitively for 13 years and am so grateful to have found a space to continue pursuing one of my passions here on campus. My teammates have become family and have helped me find support and friendship in and outside of dance. Hui O ‘Imiloa is UCLA’s Hawai’i Club and hosts general meetings, socials, and an annual Lū’au. This club and its people have helped truly me find a home away from home. It has allowed me to connect with and celebrate the culture that I was immersed in growing up. This has been incredibly comforting being so far from home.
 

Q: What are your long-term career aspirations and how has UCLA supported those goals?

I hope to become a physician. I have considered many different specialties and have struggled to decide for years. At UCLA I have had the chance to explore many opportunities and do a lot of self-discovery to determine what brings me joy and purpose. My time in the Bruin Ambassador Program and as a director for other organizations has helped me realize how much I love education, organization, and human connection. This has led to my current decision to pursue Family Medicine with an emphasis in community outreach work.  

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. When is the UC application deadline?

A. The deadline to submit the UC application for Fall 2025 is December 2. The typical deadline is November 30, but this fall the date changed because the traditional deadline fell on a Saturday.

Q. Do students who submit their UC application early have an advantage?

A. No, there is no advantage to submitting an application early and students who submit their application later in the submission period are not at a disadvantage. All applications are reviewed thoroughly before admission decisions are determined.

Q. Does UCLA consider alternate majors?

A. First-year applicants cannot list an alternate major. Please note that we do not review applications by major for first-year students applying to the College of Letters and Science (including undeclared options) – the choice of major will neither help nor hurt students' prospects for admission.

For transfer students, in general, applicants are not considered for admission to an alternate major. However, transfer students who participate in the Transfer Alliance Program (TAP) and are not selected for admission to their first-choice major will be reviewed for their alternate major if:

1. They selected an alternate major on the UC application at the time of submission

2. They are not admitted to their first-choice major

3. They have not listed an alternate major that is restricted in the College (Biology, Business Economics, Communication, Economics, Education and Social Transformation, Global Studies, Human Biology and Society, International Development Studies, Mathematics/Economics, Mathematics Financial Actuarial, Political Science, Psychology, Public Health (B.A./B.S.) Sociology, Statistics)

TAP priority consideration does not apply to primary or alternate majors in the following specialty schools: School of Arts and Architecture, School of Engineering, School of Music, School of Nursing and School of Theater, Film and Television.

Q. Which majors require supplemental applications?

A. First-year and transfer students applying to majors in the following schools are required to submit supplemental applications:

• Herb Alpert School of Music
• School of Arts and Architecture
• School of Nursing
• School of Theater, Film and Television

The first step is to submit the UC application and the second step is to submit a supplemental application. Supplemental application deadlines vary by major – some deadlines are as early as December 5. Learn more about supplemental application procedures. 

Q. Do first-year students need to include courses they enrolled in at community college or another college/university in the academic history section of the UC application?

A. Yes, it is critical that students accurately report all courses they completed in both high school and college. First-year students should list all transferable college-level courses they completed, the grades earned in these courses will be included in the GPA calculation and add to the overall rigor of the student’s academic program.

Additionally, if the student does not enroll in courses listed as in progress or planned they should notify the Admission Office immediately upon being admitted to the university.

Additional Resources

UCLA Admission Representative
Connect with your UCLA admissions representative.

Assist (CA colleges only)
The official course transfer and articulation system for California's public colleges and universities.

UC Quick References for Counselors
View information, resources, and support for you to help your students get to UC.

UCLA First-Year International and Transfer Guides
Downloadable guides for first-year, international, and transfer applicants.

University of California A-G Course List (CA high schools only)
Find a specific institution's A-G course list. View associated schools within a school district or network. List of online schools with A-G course lists.

Supplemental Application Procedures
Information and deadlines for all of the supplemental applications available at UCLA.

UC Application Support
Contact information for the University of California application support team.

Upcoming Events

• Fall Open House – Saturday, October 19
• Virtual, monthly first-year admission presentations
• Virtual, monthly transfer admission presentations
• Campus Tour Reservations
• Campus Tour Group Reservations
   

For more information on our events, visit UCLA Admission Events.