Help me out here, please. I want to know my options.

killmyentourage
Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:40:11 +0000

There’s no point asking for chances yet if you plan on taking additional courses. Come back next year and ask that when you’re actually ready to submit your application. Tons of students claim that they’re “only going to get A’s from here on out” but that is rarely the reality. Additionally, CS classes are probably going to more difficult than the liberal arts courses you’re used to. You are also probably going to need more than just the 4 courses you listed.

The unit cap won’t apply to you.

Believe it or not, a 2.6 isn’t really THAT bad. I had to work myself slowly from a 2.0 to about a 3.6 to get to where I am today. It took many years (I’m almost 26) but we’re talking about a career that you’re presumably going to have for 30+ years. Another year of preparatory coursework is so minor in the long run.

My suggestions:

1. Retake the courses you received a D or F in. It doesn’t matter if you no longer need them for your major, this is something you need to do. Check with your CC for their policy on repeating courses/replacing grades.

2. Make an Excel sheet with the schools you’re interested in Vs. the assist.org required (and recommended courses) for CS. This should take a while. See what additional required CS courses you can complete that may be semi-ubiquitously transferable.

3. Begin taking Calc 1 next Spring! Try to see if there are still open courses at your CC. Even if they allow you to transfer with only 1 year of Calc (the rest to be completed when you transfer), a lot of the upper division CS courses will require additional math. You don’t want to get stuck at your CSU/UC for 3 years because you only completed minimal pre-reqs.

4. Be open to taking courses at other CCs within your area. Sometimes with CS, it’s hard to find certain classes. Start looking at Fall '11 current schedules to get an idea of what may be offered nearby next Fall.

5. Make a plan for the next 3 semesters. Try to take courses over the Summer also. Since admissions won’t see your Spring '13 grades, you would technically only have 2 semesters to “improve” your GPA. Personally, I like to make actual schedules that include the likely times my classes will be offered since these don’t change much from year to year. Also decide which semesters you will be taking and retaking which courses. Stick to this.

This is your future. Start taking it seriously. Good luck.