City College students are finding out that transferring to a 4-year-college may not be as easy as they originally thought.

Students ready and wanting to transfer to a University of California or Cal State University this coming winter or spring are feeling a lot of frustration, and for good reason.

Last year, UCSB and several other UC campuses did not accept winter applicants, a change from previous years. This new trend has continued to apply to the 2009-2010 school year as well.

“I really wanted to start this spring,” said Frank Arredondo, a Native American Studies major.

“There are a lot of disappointed students that found out they couldn’t transfer this winter,” said academic counselor Eric Flores.

“State schools are sending us notifications that they won’t be accepting students for winter or spring,” said Flores. “It’s those who are really planning on transferring soon or midyear that are experiencing the most disappointment.”

For students sticking around City College for longer than anticipated, new plans must be made.

“I’m going to have a free semester, where I’m going to take nothing but electives, and they’re not even going to transfer,” Arredondo said. He also expressed concern over whether receiving a low grade in a class that will not even transfer could affect his G.P.A.

Because the UCSB winter quarter and Cal State Channel Islands spring semester are closed to admission, the competition for fall will increase, making the once acceptable, admission-worthy G.P.A. of 2.5 a thing of the past.

“I recommend that students shoot for a 3.0 to get into UCSB,” said Flores. “We’re informing the students that it is going to be more competitive for fall.”

Some students welcomed the idea of increased competition.

“I’m a little worried, but people will achieve more when there are higher standards,” said 20-year-old, Emily Bordelon, an Environmental Science major.

Another component that can come into play is financial aid. If a student has 70 units or more, they are not eligible for financial aid and have to go through an appeal process with the college.

If the appeal is granted, the students financial aid package won’t be affected, said financial aid counselor Wendy Macgregor. However, there is no guarantee that the appeal will be approved by the college, leaving students with a semester of un-funded classes.

With City College classes overflowing this fall, we can expect to see an even more crowded campus this spring.

“This is an issue that affects everyone on campus,” said Alan Dowdall, an Environmental Science major.