Thinking about changing to the College of Engineering?

The College provides workshops each semester--staffed by a college adviser-- to answer questions from students considering an application for a Change of College to Engineering. If after reading over the material on this website carefully and completely you have question we  encourage you to attend a workshop.   Students who are not in the College of Engineering may not make appointments to meet individually with a college adviser, so students with questions regarding change of college into Engineering need to attend one of these workshops. Check the Website for the workshop schedule for Spring 2013. 

ADMISSION TO THE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING THROUGH THE CHANGE OF COLLEGE PROCESS IS LIMITED AND VERY COMPETITIVE.

Admission depends not just on completion of required courses, and  a very strong GPA and personal statement, but also on space availability in the major you are applying to in our College. Since we are a professional college, our students are admitted as freshmen and transfers cohorts and we have only a very limited number of spots available each year to students who didn't apply directly to the College of Engineering. Most programs in the College of Engineering are very impacted and as a result seats in many Engineering courses are reserved for students accepted to our College as freshman or transfer applicants. It is difficult for students not in the College of Engineering to get a seat in our courses which makes an application for change of college challenging. To be admitted as a change of college applicant, a student must have completed (at a minimum) the prescribed freshman engineering curriculum and be enrolled in the sophomore curriculum courses. Since availability in these courses for non-Engineering students is very limited, it may not be possible to meet the minimum requirements for consideration.  Though there is a process for applying to change colleges,  given the highly impacted status of majors in the College of Engineering,  there  is no guarantee of the possibility that a student could enroll in the courses required to be considered. 

For all majors other than BIOE and EECS,  a technical gap of 3.00 or higher at time of application is required to be considered for admission. The minimum GPA at time of application for consideration for BIOE and  EECS is 3.4. Please note that these are the  minimums for consideration; it is likely that the GPA required for admission will be higher. Students who do not meet the minimum GPA requirement are not eligible to apply.  NOTE: Students admitted through Change of College are not eligible to change majors after admission.  

Change of College Criteria

The College of Engineering will evaluate Change of College applicants based on the following criteria:

• Completion of a minimum of two semesters of coursework at UC Berkeley.
  
• For all majors other than BIOE and EECS, a grade point average in technical courses (math, science, engineering) of 3.00 or higher.  The minimum GPA for consideration for BIOE and  EECS is 3.4. Please note that these are the  minimums for consideration; it is likely that the GPA required for admission will be higher. Students with a technical GPA that does not meet the minimum are not eligible to apply. You must have the minimum GPA at the time you submit your application
  
• Satisfactory academic progress towards completion of requirements for selected major. For all majors other than EECS, this includes completion of Math 1A and 1B, Chem 1A and 1AL (or 4A), Physics 7A, and a minimum of three (3)* additional letter graded technical courses required for the selected major.  Students applying in their third semester would need to complete all courses listed above plus the requisite number of additional courses to be on track for that major as indicated in the College Announcement. Applicants who have met some of the freshman year curriculum above with AP or IB exams should complete technical courses at Cal beyond the minimum to be a competitive candidate; we want to see your performance in technical courses at UC Berkeley. 
• *CE and MSE applicants need to complete a minimum of two (not three) additional letter graded technical courses required for the selected major
• EECS applicants must have completed a minimum of six technical courses required of the major including: Math 1A and 1B;  Physics 7A;  two courses from: CS 61A, CS 61B,
  CS 61C, EE20N, EE 40; and one additional technical course required of the major.   Students applying in their third semester must have completed all the above plus have in progress a minimum of Physics 7B, Math 53 and one additional course from: CS 61A, CS 61B, CS 61C, EE 20N, EE 40. Students applying in their fourth semester need all of the above plus Math 54 and one more from CS 61A-EE40 list.  Note: Engineering 7 may NOT be used as a substitution for CS 61A. Students interested in applying to the EECS major must complete CS 61A. 
  
  EECS applicants MUST have a minimum technical GPA of 3.4 to apply. Students with less than a 3.4 GPA in technical courses are not eligible. The actual GPA required for admissions may be much greater than 3.4; 3.4 is the minimum required for application.
  
• IEOR applicants must complete 2 letter-graded math courses at UCB to be eligible to apply.  This two course requirement cannot be met with AP, IB or Standard Level exam scores.  
• Whenever possible, for all majors that require Engineering 7, this course should be completed before application.  Eng 7 is restricted in Spring semesters to students in Engineering; applicants need to enroll in this class in a Fall or Summer term. We do not make exceptions on the enrollment restrictions listed above. Please do NOT contact the professor or department and ask to be allowed to enroll.
  
• Ability to complete the degree in 4 years (8 total semesters).
• You must apply by no later than your fourth semester of college enrollment.  Fifth semester or later applications are not accepted. 
  
• Personal statement explaining your motivation and preparation for pursuing a degree in Engineering and why you are selecting this major.
• A complete  application (described below).  Incomplete applications will be denied.
• Transfer students are not eligible to apply for a change of college into Engineering.

 

Application Components

Bearfacts Transcript    Unofficial copy
Major Application Worksheet
Degree Worksheet
Program Planning Form (Semester by Semester Plan from current semester to graduation date)
Change of Major Form

 

Personal Statement, one to two pages, explaining your motivation and preparation for pursuing a degree in Engineering.  Topics you might cover:

·        How did you get interested in engineering?
·        Why are you interested in this major?  What excites you about studying this major?  Is there an option in the major you plan to follow?
·        What experiences influenced your decision?  (Job experiences, discussions with faculty, professional engineers or engineering students, related projects, courses, etc.)
·        What other experiences, such as co-curricular activities, have you had that you can relate to engineering?  You should also include activities that may not relate to engineering.  What skills did you learn from these activities that will help you in engineering?
·        What are your goals or aspirations with a degree in Engineering? 

 

Additional Planning Information

To assist you with the planning process, please review the following websites and forms. There are several ways to review information for each major. You do not need to bring all the forms to the workshop but they are helpful to view the requirements for each major.

• College of Engineering 2012-2013 Announcement

     You can also find more information on your major in the College of Engineering 2012-2013 Announcement. Do not print out the whole booklet, but look for the pages that relate to your major showing the Sample Program. Footnotes will further explain major requirements.  Each Engineering major will have similar information regarding their requirements on their webpage.  The Announcement information for your major determines the degree worksheet and your DARS report.

• Degree Audit Report

     Run a Degree Audit Report (DARS) for your intended major in Engineering. The DARS link is on bearfacts. It will show you which requirements you have completed for the specific engineering major. This report is an advising tool and is not official. 

• Semester by Semester Enrollment Plan

     A semester by semester enrollment plan will help you organize how to complete the major requirements and the time it will take to graduate. A similar plan will be part of your change of college packet.

• Humanities and Social Science Requirements for Engineering

     A handout is also available in 230 Bechtel.

• College Policy Handbook

     The College Policy Handbook indicates how AP Credit can be used to satisfy Engineering requirements.

• Self Evaluation Test for E7

    Review the Self Evaluation Test for E7 if this is one for your requirements.

--- Examples of completed Worksheets, Applications and Planning Form

• Application Examples

 If after reading over all information on our website about change of college you have a quick question, email changeofcollege@coe.berkeley.edu.    Note that this email is intended  for simple clarification questions only; if you have in-depth or multiple questions, you need to attend a workshop or meet with a peer adviser.