Do I have a chance of transferring into UCLA?

Question

I am originally from southern California, specifically Orange County. I am currently 23 years old and enrolled in a Junior College in Kansas. How I got there is a long story which I will spare you the agony of reading, and give you a much shorter version.

Directly after high school I went to a Community College and studied in an automotive program for approximately 1 semester and did not do very well. About a year ago I decided that the life of turning wrenches was not the life for me. I quit my job and re-enrolled in a local Junior College into a degree seeking program, and have made a 4.0 every semester. I am enrolled in the honors program at my school as well as Phi Theta Kappa. I also won a national literary competition last semester. On top of all this I have also been involved with several different community service projects. I say all of that to ask a few questions:

1a.) Does anyone know if there is a way to remove the grades that I received in my first semester of college over 5 years ago from my institutional GPA, as I did not apply the units from the first college to the ones being obtained from the second?

1b.) If not should I report them when trying to transfer as I am going to be receiving an AA from the college I am currently enrolled in and will not be using any of the credits from the first school I attended?

2.) I know that UCLA has a special relationship with California Community Colleges through which they give seniority to persons attempting to transfer. After completing my degree here would it be wise to transfer to a JC out in CA for a year to establish residency and transfer my classes in an attempt to qualify for this seniority?

3.) Is there anything I can do to help stand out from the crowd or to help me appear a good candidate for a school like UCLA that I am not already doing.

Answer 1

1a) UCs take into consideration that the grades from a long time ago and you can mention you didn't know what you were doing back then.  It sounds like the units are not transferable anyway, so they would not be included in the GPA calculation.

1b) If you didn't tell the current school you have attended another school (i.e. the transcript doesn't mention the first school) then you may omit the fact that you had gone to another school before.  Technically that is considered lying on your application, but it's not like the UCs will do a background investigation of their applicants.

2) You can apply now and see if you get in.  Just remember that you will be paying out-of-state tuition, which is hefty.  It may be a bit tricky to continue classes after you have completed an AA, you will have to contact the CA CC you are interested in attending to find out if there are any restrictions.

3) Transfer admission is focused on grades and demonstrated interest in your field of study.  As long as you have good grades and you are working/participating in clubs/volunteering/interning in your chosen field with some decent experience you can discuss in your personal statement, you will be fine.