High School: I did three years at my high school then attended community college for a year and applied to four year schools. I did not get into the schools I wanted to so I had to attend a safety school. I will be attending a top 50 school this year and want to transfer for the fall of 2016.
ACT: I have a 34 ACT, and 800 math SAT 2.
GPA: I had a 3.1 in high school and a 4.0 in community college. I plan to get a 4,0 my first year at my current four year school. (Please judge my application assuming I get a 4.0 my first semester)
WORK: For the Past three summers I worked at a national tech company and worked my way from a warehouse position to programming position. (40hs a week)
VOLUNTEER: I tutor disadvantaged children math through a charity.(2 hour a week)
I am going to be a math major at my current school but want to study economics when I transfer. I really would love to go to a school like Penn, but would like to know where I should apply.
Side Note: I recently found out I have 40 percent african american from a dna test. Does this mean I can put ‘black’ on college forms?
“Side Note: I recently found out I have 40 percent african american from a dna test. Does this mean I can put ‘black’ on college forms?”
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Was that year at CC a dual enrollment so you were classified as a freshman applicant, or did you graduate from high school early? The advice is different for the two situations.
- If it was dual enrollment, then you do have the option of taking a gap year and applying again to some of the same places, or to a set of new ones. Your best chances of good financial aid are if you can apply as a freshman.
2( If you graduated early and have transferred from a CC to the “Top 50”, then think carefully about staying at your community college for another year so that you can finish up an Associates Degree, and apply for transfer to a better list of colleges/universities for fall 2016. You might have better options with that plan.
As for the recent DNA results, do you have any family history that backs up these results? You need to sit down with someone who can fully interpret the results and explain what they could possibly mean for you.
It is not clear to me either from what you wrote (" I did not get into the schools I wanted to so I had to attend a safety school. I will be attending a top 50 school this year and want to transfer for the fall of 2016") if the CC was the safety school, or if the safety school is the “Top 50” you will be attending.
Does this “top 50” school not offer Economics? Is it not possible to change your major there? Why did you choose to apply there in the first place? How can you be sure you want to transfer, as you haven’t even started there yet? Were the credits earned at your CC only dual HS credits? I’m not sure what to suggest without knowing the answers to those questions.
If you end up transferring as a Junior, then your high school and ACT scores will be irrelevant. They will look at your academic record in college and CC. Realize though that transferring to these highly selective schools is never a sure thing. be prepared to stay where you are or transfer to a less selective school if you really must transfer.
It is not clear to me either from what you wrote (" I did not get into the schools I wanted to so I had to attend a safety school. I will be attending a top 50 school this year and want to transfer for the fall of 2016") if the CC was the safety school, or if the safety school is the “Top 50” you will be attending.
To clear I went to comunity college for a year and that year’s credits applied to highschool.
This Fall I will be attending the 50 top saftey school.
Why did you choose to apply there in the first place?
I originally thought I wanted to do engineering or computer science, I now realise I really love economics.
The school I will be attending in the fall is not really a fit for me now.
Were the credits earned at your CC only dual HS credits?
Some of the credits appied to high school some I am transfering into the school I will be attending in the Fall.
But WHY is this “top 50” not a good fit for YOU? I cannot understand how you would be willing to attend the school, but know you want to transfer out after the year, without you actually having spent any time on campus! I assume you applied to these “top” schools and did not gain admittance. So, of course you are sad at that. But, many people end up at their safeties, and some by choice. Some transfer, many do not. But, know a “top 50” school is a very nice place to be! And, they accepted YOU for a reason. It might just be the perfect school for you if you go in with an open mind and give it a chance. And, many kids would be thrilled to be there in your shoes!
That said, there’s a few things to consider when transferring. First just know that generally speaking, there is less in the way of Financial Aid available to transfer students. If money is an issue for you, you need to have a chat now with whoever is paying the bills to see if finances will impact your decision on what to do next. Second, gaining admission into top schools as a transfer can sometimes be MORE difficult than entering as a freshman. Obviously, IF you can pull a 4.0 at your “top50”, you would be a viable candidate at any school. However, that you WILL actually achieve a 4.0 has yet to be seen. Academics at a “top 50” will be more difficult than at a CC. But even with a 4.0, when you are talking about the extremely selective schools, which I think you are since you mentioned one of them, they will STILL be reaches, as they will be for anyone. Transfer acceptance rates at some of these schools are in the single digits, and there will be many applicants with similar credentials competing for very few open spots.
But let’s assume this “top 50” really is not right for you (for some reason other than it just isn’t as high on the rankings as you think you deserve), and you know that now. Your best shot at getting into another top school, in your case, may be not to go to your “top 50” at all, but to instead enroll at your CC as a degree candidate. Possibly you live in a state that has a good flagship with good matriculation/guaranteed acceptance type agreements with the cc’s, and you can take advantage of that. You can still apply to the top schools you desire while you are there and leave at any time, but if things don’t pan out the way you hope, you still have a very nice fall back plan.
@justlookingnow Thanks for the adivse, I will look into cc with matriculation agreements.
Bump, looking forward to see what people think my chances are.
I’m in a similar situation
Bump, looking forward to see what people think my chances are.
Since you don’t identify the schools you are planning to apply to, it is hard to gauge your chances. Frankly, however, if your choices are the usual suspects, then your chances are probably just like all transfer applicants, significnatly less than 10% for all of the.
@xraymancs Thanks for posting.
The schools I will be appling to are Penn, Columbia, Chicago, Cornell, Gtown, Duke, NYU.
Bump, would like to know what more people thing.
Bump, would like to know what more people thing.