Indulge my nervous breakdown, chance me up.

Olives · March 10, 2008, 11:15am

Kind of weird situation: I graduated high school with a 2.0 rounded up from a 1.98something (KEEP READING). I failed a class in my freshman year, and one more in my junior year. I didn’t take the SATs. I was in the principles office almost bi-weekly. Of course those were only the weeks that I went. I remember going missing once during my junior year for three weeks, though I remember very little about those three weeks. Catch my drift? Needless to say I was oh so very cool.

Flash forward.

I finished my first semester at LCCC (Lehigh Carbon Community College, or as my peers like to call it Last Chance Community College, L tri Harder, etc. etc. ) with a spotless 4.0. I was invited to join Phi Theta Kappa, which I plan on doing. I can think of at least two of my profs that would gladly write me a reccomendation letter complete with flowers and flashing lights. I’m signed up to take the SATs, and I’ve always done marginally well on standarized testing. I’ve also bought one of those nifty litte SAT guides, I’m expecting good things. My class schedule has been fairly strong. As strong as a CC’s class schedule can get, no gussy electives. No gym classes, anyway. I want to be an english major/creative writing minor type deal, and I’ve been told I can write a decent essay. Don’t judge that based on this, I’m nervously pounding on the keyboard in the middle of a meltdown. I’m not one for counting my chickens, but I expect this semester to go the same.

I think it’s fair to say I’ve turned my life around, but I was talking to my best friend (who also attends LCCC) about transfering and she shot me down HARD. My first choice, kind of a reach, was Muhlenberg. A lofty local liberal arts school (I think USA today ranked it 71 in LA schools) with a nice writing program. She told me there was no chance with my high school record, not in a million years, aim lower. So I did. I looked at other second tier liberal arts schools around here. Aim lower. I don’t know if she thinks she’s God’s dean of admissions or what. I gave up on the LA front and thought, maybe a state school will take me. I was thinking Pitt, BU, or Temple (as they seem to be the ones with a good writing programs. Really I’ve just been googling random schools. I’ve never researched colleges before). She tells me to aim lower. What the hell? I don’t even know where I’m aiming anymore. I’m not sure I can be friends with a person so set on killing my dreams (Just kidding, love you forever). Somebody tell me she’s a lying hag, and it’s stupid to take the advice of a 19 year old as gospel, or if it’s not true, tell me I DO need to aim lower, but at least add a nice “it won’t be so bad” tagline at the end for my sanity.

Also, would it help to do another year at my CC and get my associates degree? I’ll feel weird because all of my friends are transfering this year, but I’m willing.

And if the schools I mentioned above really are way out of my reach, can you suggest some within reach that you think would be a nice fit?

For reference, these are the schools (in order of first to last choice. Lol, the ones I have no chance at are up front.) I would like to attend, given the oppurtunity:

Muhlenberg College: (Legacy: My father graduated) [College</a> Search - Muhlenberg College - Berg - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Lafayette:
[College</a> Search - Lafayette College - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Lehigh:
[College</a> Search - Lehigh University - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

University of Pittsburgh: [College</a> Search - University of Pittsburgh - Pitt - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Temple:
[College</a> Search - Temple University - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Boston University: (My sister graduated, I don’t know if that counts as a legacy)
[College</a> Search - Boston University - BU - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Marymount Manhattan College: [College</a> Search - Marymount Manhattan College - MMC - At a Glance](<a href=“College Search - BigFuture | College Board”>College Search - BigFuture | College Board)

Thanks so much in advance, you guys rock.

seren · March 10, 2008, 11:52am

It’s unfortunate that your friend has been so discouraging but you seem to know already that she might not be the most clueful person to count on as far as transfer admission information goes. You are doing great so far. But given your high school record, you will have a better shot at transferring with another year of community college under your belt. An associate’s degree is not necessary though.

That does not mean it’s impossible otherwise, but realistically, it’s a very low GPA and it doesn’t seem to reflect just a blip in your high school record from some extenuating circumstances. MOST schools are going to want to see more from you, to know that this 1 semester is not an anomaly. You haven’t taken the SAT yet and some of the schools you mentioned have deadlines coming up in the next few weeks. However, check to make sure that the schools you are interested in even accept junior transfers.

It also seems that you could use some more time to really dig around and see what schools appeal to you. As far as recommendations go, do you have any geography limitations, campus/campus town feels that you know appeal to you or turn you off more than others? Financial/scholarship considerations?

Edit: Oops forgot to mention: You definitely have a good chance with some of the schools on your list if they accept junior transfers. Others I’m just not sure of, like Muhlenberg I don’t really know anything about their admissions. But I would explore more first. You only get to do this once, you do yourself a disservice by just picking whatever google hit first. :)

Olives · March 10, 2008, 12:28pm

Thanks a lot Seren.

By the end of the this semester I’ll have built up 30 credits so far, and I need 60 credits to get an associates degree in Liberal Arts. The requirements are really sketchy (since it’s liberal arts), and I’ve already fulfilled most of them. So I guess if I stay another year, I’d have to go for the associates degree.

How does one figure out if a school accepts junior transfers? Lol, I feel stupid calling an asking.

Well I know Muhlenberg has an articulation agreement (God only knows what that is) with my community college. I was going to ask an advisor about that. Do you guys know? I’d figure that meant if I did really well, I could go (I’m a look-on-the-brightside kind of guy). Looking at their transfer stats, however, it’s 18/101 admitted. What the hell?

As far as geography goes, I would LIKE to stay local (Lehigh Valley, Philly area) because that’s where my friends and family are, but I’m open to moving. I do want to stay relatively close though (Northeast). My sister lives in Boston and told me I could stay with her until I get settled if I were get accepted to BU.

Financially: Ugh, I’m trying not think about it right now. It’d break my heart if I got all set up and didn’t get into any of my choices. My dad has some money set aside, and I work have a little saved up. Right now I just want somebody to acknowledge my second chance, and I’m sure I can make everything else work.

I do need to research these a lot more. So far it’s been google, and what I heard from some of my more ambitious high school buddies. I wasn’t thinking of applying right now anyway. I was going to finish this semester, take the SATs in June, and visit/apply over the summer, but now I’m kind of leaning towards doing another year at CC. I’m really not ready to apply. I’ve just been getting so much negativity lately. I feel discouraged and need somebody to tell me there’s still hope. Thanks for that.

seren · March 10, 2008, 1:28pm

Honestly the junior transfer thing is probably not an issue with most schools, particularly with the major you are looking at. I don’t know why I even brought it up. Once in a while a school can get nitpicky, particularly over certain majors. It’s not the norm though.

Phi Theta Kappa can be good for scholarships and pointing out some transfer-friendly options you might not have considered otherwise. Many schools on the list are less selective in general but that’s not always the case. You should go to their website and check out the scholarship list – not the generic list that just shows what schools are involved but the escholarship directory. You can log in as a guest and it tells you exactly how much and how many. For example, Boston University has half-tuition scholarships but only 5 ptk apps get them. Also keep in mind that schools that offer transfer scholarships and ptk scholarships that are decent in size often don’t let students stack them.

Olives · March 10, 2008, 4:23pm

Thanks again, I’ll definitely look at that.

I also forgot, I don’t have many ECs, not within the school anyway. I work and volunteer, but my CC doesn’t have anything I’m truly interested in. Would it help a lot if I picked up some anyway?

Indulge my nervous breakdown, chance me up.

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