How on earth is Pitt the easy way out? I’m not being sarcastic, I’m asking an honest question. You’ve struggled academically; Pitt is a highly regarded four year institution. You’ll need to stretch massively in order to do well there. Wayne Gretzky would also tell you that if you’re standing on a hockey rink, don’t start playing tennis.
Your goal is a four year degree with a solid GPA so you can launch- whether into a finance career or something else. You wanting Brandeis, Conn College, Lehigh- that’s you on a hockey rink playing tennis. This isn’t about taking shots-- this about a reality check.
You don’t want to be in the same place a year from now having applied to a bunch of reaches wondering how the heck you’re going to be able to move out. That’s being stuck.
If you don’t like my tone- feel free to ignore me. I’ve known at least a dozen kids like you. They want a big career in business but have never learned that the first step is actually TAKE the first step. They get offers from regional banks to start in their commercial credit unit, and turn them down because only investment banking at Credit Suisse will do. They get offers from insurance companies to learn risk management and turn them down because they want to be trader’s at Jane Street or Citadel.
You’ve got your chance to launch. Just shoot the darn puck.
Retaking courses you got F’s and W’s in? More tennis on an ice rink. Move ahead, not backwards.
Do not retake classes trying to improve your community college GPA. It is what it is; you won’t make your transcript look better by repeating first year community college classes. You’re not going to get into highly selective schools, either way.
Finish your associate’s at the community college; get the 60 credits and then transfer via the transfer agreement to an in-state 4 yr public school - Temple is an excellent option.
Have you discussed funding with your parents? Are they willing to pay for out of state colleges, and for you to live at college, just to get you out of the house? If you have ongoing medical issues, it is probably a good idea to stay close to home, for help with managing them.
A 3.0 from a community college is unlikely to get you admitted to any school worth paying for, other than a local 4 yr public which has agreed to take anyone applying with a 3.0 from your community college. It sounds like that’s Temple - that’s your best option.
You could continue part time at comm coll, also work a part time job, and then go to Temple part time and continue to work part time. If your parents are keen to have you move out, and are willing to help you with that, you could look for a shared student house to move into, off campus.
If you’re applying as a sophomore transfer and you’re disappointed with the results, then repeat failed classes as needed (ask an advisor!), continue taking classes, improve your GPA, and complete enough coursework to apply as a junior transfer. Then you will be applying based on your college record only, whereas the high school GPA is considered for sophomore transfers.
I would also encourage you to think in terms of skill-sets rather than settings. People work in financial institutions in more than one capacity. What subjects do you enjoy? Do you want to study accounting? There are lots of good jobs for people with those skills. How about more specialized skills like forensic accounting (fraud detection and analysis) or becoming an actuary? There are schools that are well-regarded in these specialties, that aren’t terribly hard to get into. (WVU, for example, is known for forensic accounting, and they’re very solid in other specialty areas too. Morgantown is a small city, but a city, and it’s only 90 minutes from Pittsburgh. Lower cost of living, mountains - might be to your liking. For actuarial science, Lebanon Valley College - half an hour outside of Harrisburg - has a strong program.)
I’m confused as to how you could have “many” F’s and still have a GPA over 3.0 But you have options here. If your priority is to get out of your parents’ house and go away to college, then accept the offer you have. If a destination you like better is more important to you, then spend the next year making yourself a stronger applicant as a junior transfer, and figuring out what your goals are - not in terms of where you’ll work, but in terms of what roles you’ll be qualified for.
Have you ever tried working with an executive function coach? Maybe you’d find a coaching model less exasperating than a diagnosis/treatment-oriented model. Some colleges offer this as an add-on service; for example, here is WVU’s version: https://mindfit.wvu.edu/academic-enhancement/academic-coaching
The question is, have you struggled in classes because they’re actually difficult for you, or because overarching emotional and/or attentional/executive-function issues have made it difficult for you to do your best work?
I just want advice on whether it is worth waiting it out for the extra year and trying my best or if it is best to apply now. I am just confused and concerned with my current direction and everybody is contradicting themselves in this thread. Do I retake classes?
Something else, I am interested in is changing my major to something broad like Liberal Studies, based on conversations with my parents. Is that worth it? Just lots of questions to ask with little guidance. Where are websites for career aptitude tests? Another problem that I face is poor fine motor skills, but does that count as a disability? I had problems with fine motor skills from when I was born, most of them are gone, like my surprisingly decent handwriting, but are there tests that I am able to take to test that? I want to avoid getting a Pitt-Johnstown degree, but may be interested in going there after looking at other options. My problem may be with executive function, and I am looking at executive function coaches. In fact, I am speaking to a director of a company when they respond to me. I am also meeting with my advisor to talk about my major and maybe a change of major. My parents say that my social skills are mediocre and that this may hinder me. The problem is that the majority of my neighbors make handsome salaries, and I am going to accept that I am going to be downgraded in terms of living and that being a teller until I am 75, might be a reality.
You didn’t answer the question of whether you’ve met with an advisor. Nobody can give you a blanket answer as to whether to retake classes - it depends on the classes and the situation. CC policies also differ with regard to your options for replacing or wiping past failing grades. You need guidance from someone who knows your school and situation. Institution-specific advice trumps strangers-on-the-internet advice.
Re: majors, what are your best and worst subjects in school? What do you find rewarding?
I just edited what I just wrote. My appointment with my advisor is at 4 PM EST on Monday. My best subjects are history and English. I really had a difficulty in accounting. My difficulty was with the lining up of the columns but the math part of it made sense to me. I wish I was able to send a redacted unofficial transcript here on College Confidential. In my in person introductory marketing class I got a nice grade and I got an above average grade in both of my introductory economics classes, a slightly better grade in Microeconomics compared to Macroeconomics. The problem is that I am alone and the kids that went to my super-wealthy and affluent high school are in four-year degrees. I had difficulty and hardship in terms of making friends at my CC.
Of these schools, the only ones I think you have even a hope of acceptance are Hofstra, Goucher, Gettysburg, Muhlenberg, Temple, U. of Hartford, and maybe SUNY-Buffalo. I would call all of these reaches for you. The others are such high reaches that I wouldn’t even bother. Would your family even be willing to pay for any of these?
That said, however, it doesn’t seem like you have much direction right now vocationally or academically. I would look into finding a Career/Life coach (even better if they help with executive functioning issues…if not, see a second person about that). There may be multiple assessments and inventories to help you find a direction and to help you figure out where you want to go and how to get there.
The main thing I’m hearing right now is that you want to get out of your family’s house and that you want to earn a good income. Review @MistySteel27’s post (#16). There are well-paying jobs out there that don’t require college. Perhaps in working with a career coach, you might find that there’s one (or more) careers that you could be ready for faster than it would take to get your Bachelor’s and that would allow you to move where you want and to support yourself financially with some nice extras.
You do not have to be hyperactive to have ADHD. There is an inattentive form of ADHD that does not involve hyperactivity.
If you have W;s and F’s, how do your psychiatrist, your parents, and you account for these struggles? You mentioned medication: is that helping? We don’t know enough about what is going on to comment helpfully and I think you have a right to privacy and don’t need to tell us more.
You can finish community college and raise your GPA or at least show an upward trend. You can do this part-time and work, or full-time.
You can transfer this Sept. to any college that accepts you.
You can take a break, and at any time do a degree completion/adult learner program for nontraditional students.
But the main thing is to address whatever is causing you challenges in school. Spending a lot of money on school in the context of W’s and F’s may be unwise but if you get treatment and new strategies, success is very possible.
ps Some of the colleges you listed are very selective.
Do not avoid opportunities to let yourself grow. My advice would be to get a job this semester and just have some fun. You have shared what your parents have stated about their beliefs and some things may just be their understanding or perception, but you get to figure out how you will engage with others in this world.
Will they pay for you to be away at a 4 year school or do they want you to commute from home while finishing a 4 year degree.
It may be worth figuring out where you can get into and figuring out your independence and wellbeing.
I am interested in getting a job, but believe that is unrealistic due to the fact that I am taking three classes this semester. I am retaking a course at another community college that is located nearby and that class starts tomorrow. My parents and I were discussing going to a different CC in the Pittsburgh area that has articulation agreements with Pitt. It is CCAC (Community College of Allegheny County) and we believe that this might be one of the better options. I still get to move out, but avoid Johnstown, which is too rural for me. Another school I was looking at is Columbus State, which has an agreement with Ohio State. Another problem with Johnstown, is a religion-based issue and the fact that I am going to avoid being able to do activities and be stuck in an apartment/dorm in a mediocre town. The only benefit is that is that that it is probably free from distractions. I am still applying and I am going to be sending out applications for other schools during the week.
My advisor avoided really saying anything. I discussed the possibility of changing my major, but the problem is that I am stuck with that major until the summer semester, so that it is best to stick with my major. I wish there was someone that I am able to talk to for advice, like an admissions counselor or a consultant outside of my CC.
I’m sorry you aren’t getting the advice and support you need.
I wonder if you would consider something like the Bridge Experience at Landmark College, which is designed to help students like you to sort out what works for them, in terms of learning environment and goals. Some students who do this program end up transferring to Landmark, and others continue in other settings, with the benefit of what they’ve learned from the individualized coaching and advising they’ve received. https://www.landmark.edu/academics/bridge-semester (There’s a summer version of the bridge program also.)
Another college that might be attainable in terms of transfer admissions, and that provides a great deal of “life skills” coaching that results in excellent employment/career outcomes is High Point U. in NC. But you weren’t specific about the “religion” issue at Johnstown, and HPU might or might not be a fit in this regard.
Your CC-transfer-pathway plan makes sense in terms of academics and desired setting, but I’d worry that it could be even more isolating if there isn’t some kind of student housing and/or cohort program to make you part of a community.
If you’re looking at Ohio CC-to-University pathways in urban settings, you might consider U of Cincinnati. Cincinnati invented the co-op model; and a co-op program might be helpful to you in launching the kind of career you want. It might even be possible to transfer there directly, though I think getting branched is more likely. Branch-wise, their Blue Ash campus might be a good option - it’s suburban, so the city is still accessible (there are hourly shuttles to the downtown campus), and it has housing, and a good range of academic programs.
Most people attending community college full time also hold a part time job. Certainly, people who take 3 classes a semester in community college also usually work part time.
Pitt is not better than Temple! Your best bet is finishing your associate’s degree at your local community college, and then commuting to Temple to finish your degree. Or you could live in a dorm on campus at Temple.
If your parents are willing to pay for it, a supportive program at a college which serves neurodivergent students, like Landmark, sounds like an excellent idea.