Albert Fang- UC San Diego                                 Major: Economics & Mathematics

After graduating from College of San Mateo, I will be attending UC San Diego to further my studies in economics and mathematics. Transfer Services here at College of San Mateo really helped me with the UC and CSU applications. The workshops that Transfer Services offer like the UC Application workshop, Personal Statement workshop and How to Transfer to 4-year University workshop really helped me with my personal statement and the process of applying to a four-year university. I would encourage every one of you to take advantage of the Transfer Services. When I came to College of San Mateo in Fall 2006, I volunteered with the Transfer Services, Adapted Physical Education and CSM Connects. Also, I joined the Associates Students of College of San Mateo as a Student Senator. Being a student senator, I am involved with various different committees to help improve the school environment for the students and organize various fun events on campus like Spring Fling, Oktoberfest, Welcome Week and Club Day.

Danielle Schraner – UC Berkeley          Major: Mass Communications & International Studies

After graduating from Oceana High School I assumed that I would be going to a four year university, but because I didn’t know what I really wanted to do my parents suggested that I go to CSM for my GE’s as they had done themselves.  At first I felt a little ashamed of going to a community college, but on the first day, which was sunny and warm, I walked past the library and caught a whiff of my favorite scent, honey suckle.  And from that moment I knew that I would do great here and make the best of everything as I generally do.  I loved every class I took and loved meeting all of the people that I did. I made some of my best friends in my two short years here.  The transfer and counseling services are amazing.  I was lucky enough to find a counselor that fit my personality and determination.  She guided me through the somewhat difficult first steps and then gave me the tools to finish strong.  The “Transfer Day” allowed me to talk first hand with the colleges that I was thinking of attending.  The transfer website had everything I needed to make sure that I would stay on track to transfer in two years with all my general education requirements completed.  With all the support from the professors, counselors and my parents I am proud to be leaving CSM to attend UC Berkeley next fall.  I will be studying Mass Communications and International Studies.

Patrick Burns– UC Berkeley                                            Major: Latin American Studies

My name is Patrick Burns and I am a proud alumnus of the College of San Mateo.  I came to CSM with the goal of transferring to the University of California, Berkeley to complete my bachelor’s degree.  I had struggled in high school, and I knew that if I worked hard at CSM, I would have a second chance to apply to Berkeley.  Little did I know that I was about to embark on a journey that would change my life.  I held up my end of the bargain, achieving high grades and pursuing extracurricular activities at CSM.  Along the way, I overcame a learning disability, formed amazing relationships with faculty members, lived independently from my parents, and worked full time.  After what seemed like an eternity, it was time to apply to transfer.  The UC admissions process was a confusing and intimidating maze of paperwork, prerequisites, and statistics.  Thankfully, Mike Mitchell and his staff at the Transfer Center offered all the help I needed.  They organized workshops to assist students with the UC application personal statements, as well as question and answer sessions with representatives from every university that I was thinking of applying to.  Eventually, the admissions process seemed much less daunting.  I realized that I was fully qualified and competitive for any UC, and I knew that even if things didn’t work out exactly how I hoped they would, everything would be okay.  After a seemingly endless wait, the decisions came.  I was admitted to UC Davis, UCLA, and my first choice, UC Berkeley.  I selected Berkeley and will be pursuing my Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin American Studies there.  As I move on from CSM, I know that I will always be deeply grateful for the opportunities and encouragement that I got throughout every step of my journey.  Wherever I go in life, I will always be proud to say that my journey began at the College of San Mateo.

Monica Chan – UC Berkeley                      Major: Psychology

It was my dream to get into Berkeley to pursue my major in Psychology.  So, with the support, guidance and services provided by CSM Transfer Services and also the Transfer Club, my dream has finally come true.  By attending the various application workshops and the “Transfer Day”/”College Fair,” I was better informed of the admission requirements and how to write a better application essay and was also provided with lots of help and support from Transfer Services and the CSM Counseling Center.  I would also like to express my sincere thanks to Mike Mitchell, Linda Scholer and Michelle Horan who had been very dedicated in helping me through with the application process.  I would also like to give my special thanks to Ms. Sandra Comerford, Ms. Linda Hand, Ms. Heidi Eggert, Mr. Mike Galisatus and Mr. Frank Damon who are always very generous in giving their students their best support.  Please forgive me if I missed mentioning some other great professors and counselors who have helped me along the way.  I am very proud of having attended CSM which really gave me some tremendous support in achieving my personal enrichment and academic goals.  Also, to CSM students: Don’t hesitate to join the Transfer Club!

Jia Feng – UC Berkeley                                            Major: Physics

After graduating from high school in China, I came to the United States in 2002.  I had first worked as a sorter for the Goodwill Industry for about a month.  In order to further my education, I left Goodwill and went to the San Jose Job Corps and received my high school and GED diplomas.  I earned not only an Auto Brakes and Alignment Certificate, but also a total of 6.5 equivalent college course units.  I then attended College of San Mateo to take lower division courses to prepare to transfer to a UC.  At CSM I was awarded the Morris Family Scholarship, Orozco & Yoshimura Scholarship and Sterling Redman Trust Scholarship in 2007, G.W. Williams Foundation and Joe Drummond Nelson Memorial Scholarship in 2005.  I have been named on the National Dean’s List for 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 academic years. I’m also a member of the Phi Theta Kappa-International Honor Society of the Two Year Colleges.  Since very young I was very interested in Math and Science.  That interest helped me to win third place at CSM’s Math League Exam in 2007.  Since my major was in Physics, I followed my CSM Physics professor’s advice and attended Physical Reality and Measurement Honor’s Colloquium in 2007.  Upon completing my general education and lower division major prep course at CSM, with the help of CSM Transfer Services, I applied to the   University of California and was admitted to all four campuses. I feel excited and lucky to have this
opportunity and decided to study at UC Berkeley. I learned that UC Berkeley has 20 Nobel Prize winners, including eight in physics (my major).  Among them are Stephen Chu (1997 winner) who is also Chinese and George Smoot (2006 winner) who is currently teaching physics classes at UC Berkeley.  Therefore I think UC Berkeley is the best option for my education.  I appreciated the help I got from CSM, especially CSM Transfer Services! 

Lindsay Orosco – UC Berkeley                                Major: Art History

When I first started classes at CSM in 2003, I didn’t really have any academic aspirations.  I knew I wanted to transfer eventually, but I didn’t know where to or even when that day would come.  For about two years I slowly worked my way towards transferable courses.  I wasn’t very academically motivated until I took advantage of CSM’s amazing semester abroad program.  After I returned from Florence, Italy I realized that I wanted to relive some of those same European experiences at a four-year college.  It was then that I met with a CSM Transfer Services Counselor and worked on an educational plan. By working with her and my academic advisor I learned how to strengthen my course load in order to transfer sooner.  CSM’s counseling services showed me not only what classes were required for transferring, but how to choose ones that related to my major.   When the time came to submit applications in the Fall, the Transfer Services office really helped me choose which colleges would be best for my major and me.  I was able to attend lectures (workshops) and hear people from California’s surrounding universities talk about what programs were available to transfer students.  Through the Transfer Services Office and Mike Mitchell I was able to get a guaranteed admission to UC Davis with the TAA program.  Along with many of the Transfer Services Workshops I was also able to learn how to compose an impressive UC Application and Personal Statement.  I really don’t know if I would have been able to transfer without the help of my academic advisor and all the help in the Counseling/Transfer Center. Thanks to CSM I have been admitted to all the colleges I applied to and I am so thrilled to be transferring to UC Berkeley in the Fall. I really have to thank CSM and all of their services for spring boarding me into my future.