SummerUCSD

@econteacher Thank you for your input! For me, Stanford is really the dream school, so if I get in, I am lucky enough that my family will help me pay the costs if necessary. It's encouraging to see you say that I can probably get into some master's program, so here is to hoping for the best!

Hi, I am going to be a fourth year undergraduate student at UCSD and I want to apply to teacher credential/masters programs this upcoming cycle (so I can get right into it after graduation). I was a Human Biology major for the first three years, since I used to be pre-med, but discovered through the med school application process I did NOT want to be a doctor. I remembered I always liked the idea of teaching. My mom is an elementary school teacher, so I have at least some idea of what the lifestyle is like. My (ultimate) goal is Stanford, but I also want to apply to UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, and UCI. My goal is to teach Math at the Secondary level. Here are some more facts and stats about myself: Major: Mathematics/Applied Science GPA (overall): 3.55 GPA (math): 3.81 (does my math GPA get taken into consideration?) GRE (practice tests): 159V 165Q Experience: I volunteered every summer at an LAUSD elementary school to help immigrant elementary students learn English under the supervision of a teacher (but not through the school, I just knew the teacher) (This volunteering experience was done for fun throughout undergrad, but only during summers since I go to UCSD.) Also, after realizing I wanted to be a high school math teacher, I immediately started volunteering in SD for a program that takes middle and high school students from highly disadvantaged backgrounds and tutors and guides them in their path to be a first generation college student. (Planned) Letters of Rec: I know it is rushed to ask for a letter before December 1, but that's when the first of the applications are due. I plan on asking the teacher at the elementary school, the volunteer coordinator at the SD volunteering org, and a physics professor I've gotten to know a little better last year. (I have had two lunches with this professor, but does it matter that he is a physics professor and not math? I do not know any of my math professors, and getting to know them before December through OH is rushed, since school starts mid/late September for UCSD.) Here are some stats for the schools I want from a kind user here on gradcafe Anyhow, I was hoping to get some insight from people who got into these programs, mostly Stanford tbh, its my dream school. Plus, I love that their program is accelerated into 1 year for the credential and masters. Maybe one tidbit of info that my physics professor can add is that in order to avoid paying for online HW, I finished the quarter's worth of physics HW in the two weeks of the online HW trial period (my answers to the HW were 100% correct). This can possibly speak to my ability in accelerated programs? LOL. I should also mention that the physics class was a lower division class. I am sorry for the disorganized way I presented this info, I am just pouring all my thoughts as they come to me. Also, what else can I do to bolster my application? Any advice? Please help!! Thank you!