WHY TAKE A FRESHMAN CLUSTER?
Receive 18 units toward your degree
Receive 4 GE Credit
Receive 3 quarters of Honors credit with grades of B or better
Receive Writing II credit
Students that take a Cluster on average graduate with a higher GPA
A key component to the Clusters, is that they prepare students for the rest of their time at UCLA. After Clusters, students are equipped to excel at the college level having acquired key skills in research, writing, and information literacy.
Study with distinguished faculty
Students have the opportunity to learn from senior faculty who are pioneers in their approaches to learning and research. By learning from faculty across disciplines including UCLA’s professional schools, Cluster students are given a unique one-year opportunity to learn from as well as network with Ladder Faculty early in their college career.
Join a vital learning community
With almost 30,000 undergraduate students on campus, it can be hard to transition from high school to college. Our Cluster courses take a large campus like UCLA, and makes it smaller. Students are part of a year-long community of 200 freshmen, 4 faculty, 5 graduate students, 1 librarian, 1 writing specialist and residential life support.
Writing II Credit
The Writing II work for the Cluster is spread throughout the year. All the Clusters have partnerships with Writing Programs and the Library to help with your writing, including Inquiry Specialists (former Cluster students who did well on their writing)!
Priority Enrollment in English Composition 3
The entering freshman class is large, and there are certain classes that the many first-year students are required to take, such as English Composition 3. All Cluster students are given priority enrollment for this course in the fall, winter and spring of their freshman year. This allows for students to compete get a head start in their major/minor classes. Note: Cluster students must satisfy Writing I by the end of Spring quarter of their first year, and complete the Cluster in Fall and Winter quarters with a grade of D- or higher, and Spring quarter with a grade of C or higher, in order to receive Writing II credit
Log onto MyUCLA and check the Degree Audit System to confirm that you are eligible to take English Comp 3 (Writing I), and follow the steps on this chart below if you have not yet satisfied the Writing I requirement.
Students must maintain at least a D- grade in each quarter of the course, and upon completion of each the Cluster program, students satisfy 4 GEs requirements. Download the complete list of the Foundation Area GE Credit.