Prospective Transfer Students Learn About Pathways to UC San Diego at Series of Outreach Events

Local community college students were invited to campus on Oct. 11 for a special presentation about the pathways available for transferring to UC San Diego. Photos by Erika Johnson/University Communications

Hillary Fitzmaurice, currently a student at Fullerton College in Orange County, hopes to study linguistics at UC San Diego. “I plan on applying for next fall and am very excited about the opportunities available for research,” she said. Fitzmaurice was one of the 160 prospective transfer students who attended the campus’s “Transfer Friday” event Oct. 11. The event was the first of three scheduled for the 2013-2014 academic school year.

The series of half-day events, which continue on Friday, Oct. 25 and Friday, Nov. 8, invite students from California community colleges to campus to learn about the various pathways to transferring to UC San Diego. They are designed to assist transfer students who may be considering transferring to UC San Diego by providing them with valuable information on admissions, on-campus housing, academic departments, financial aid, research opportunities, career services and more.

At the Oct. 11 event, prospective students had the opportunity to meet with campus leadership, including Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla and interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Alan Houston. Khosla greeted the students by congratulating them on attending the event.

“Higher education is important for you and your career; it is the road to upward social mobility,” Khosla said. “Education also contributes to the prosperity of our country and our leadership in the world,” Khosla said.

Workshops for prospective transfer students were offered, ranging from admission requirements to campus housing and financial aid.

Khosla added that UC San Diego has a commitment to enrolling and graduating transfer students. “Community colleges play a very significant role in higher education. It’s a great avenue to UC San Diego, and our transfer students bring a unique perspective that adds to the vitality, strength and diversity of our student body,” he said.

According to Houston, UC San Diego is committed to admitting well-prepared transfer students with a wide range of economic and cultural backgrounds from across California. The campus has one of the largest transfer student populations in the UC system. This year, UC San Diego admitted 7,923 transfer students, the second highest amount of transfer admits in the UC system, up from 6,869 transfer admits last year.

Houston also highlighted the value these transfer students bring to the campus community.

“Students like you bring qualities, characteristics and life experiences that are absolutely essential to making this a vibrant university…For example, one quarter of all student veterans in the University of California attend UC San Diego, and the vast majority of these are transfers from California community colleges,” he said. “These students bring extraordinary qualities and capacities to our student body, and that’s part of what makes this an exceptional institution.”

Following the presentations, students were offered exclusive tours showcasing UC San Diego’s award-winning transfer housing community, the Village at Torrey Pines. The Village consists of 13 buildings, two of which are 15-story high rises with ocean views.

Admission and parking for Transfer Fridays are free. Register online here.