A CCC with eyes bigger than his transcripts...

Transfer Students
1

<p>Hello everybody.</p>

<p>I am not asking for chances, although you can feel free if you are especially wise. I am looking for advice on what I can do to improve my chances, and on how I should approach my applications/essays/etc to the following absurd private schools. I'm from California, so I didn't grow up with these schools and their reputations, (except for Stanford, which was where nerds went when they died if they didn't sin too much). I am in ignorance, but I think these schools would serve me better than the UC student factories. Any advice or info is greatly appreciated, even if it's not specific to my situation but just general type stuff. Oh yeah! I would love additional school recommendations.</p>

<p>I am attending City College of San Francisco. I am a Physics major, and I'm applying to transfer in the Fall of '08. I've applied to the usual UC suspects, UCB, UCLA, and a few others. Now that I'm (finally) through with finals, I am ready to attack the private schools. The schools I am considering are...</p>

<p>DEFINITE: Stanford, Amherst, Columbia</p>

<p>PROBABLE: Brown, Cornell, Wesleyan (which I might be misspelling)</p>

<p>POSSIBLE: Yale, Harvard</p>

<p>Here are my bare-bone stats:</p>

<p>GPA 4.0
SAT I 2320
Verbal 800
Math 800
Writing 720 with a 9! on the essay (I refuse to form an obligatory opinion on a stupid topic at 8:00 am on a Saturday, unless it involves hurting the one responsible for my being awake. Die writing section, die!)</p>

<p>I will take the SAT II Physics and Math II tests this January.</p>

<p>I've just about wrapped up the UC's requirements for transfer in my Major. I will post my courses thus far if anyone is interested, but there is nothing too earth shattering to tell. I am pretty sure I got straight A's this semester.</p>

<p>EC's This is tough, because at my age and situation going to school IS an extracurricular activity. I had to scratch and claw in order to make time for schoolwork, and I wasn't desperately seeking additional distractions from my goals. I'm into math, though, and I did publish a paper in the Proceedings on a mathematical proof that allows welfare mothers to find work converting excess atmospheric carbon dioxide into pigment that can be used in art classes for underprivileged but gifted lepers, (as opposed to the lepers of substantial means).</p>

<p>OK, that last sentence was false. It just seems like the people I've read about who are Ivy League hopeful feel that they are expected to WIN at charity or philanthropy. It all just seems a little overwrought to me. The rest is true.</p>

<p>I tutor Chemistry and Physics at my school for EOPS, which serves disadvantaged students...really.</p>

<p>My recommendations should be outstanding. In particular, my honors english teacher was enthused about me and said he would spend the Winter break writing "the best recommendation (he) knew how to write."</p>

<p>I've been lurking on CC for many months, but didn't allow myself to post until after the semester. Thanks in advance.</p>

2

<p>That's CCC "student." The server stalled four times in a row when I tried to post, and I had to retype the title. Oh well.</p>

3

<p>So far I've gotten one response from an active member who seems, by his other posts, to be fair and reasonable. He sent me a private message to the effect of "You have zero chance, and you'd better rewrite your list with 4th tier and non accredited evangelical schools before it's too late." That seemed crazy, especially because I was looking for advice on how to improve my chances, not a dose of hemlock for my ambition. I'm 29, and this person thinks that my age combined with a poor GPA from the early '90s is a death sentence at any of my schools. Can this possibly be true? Can the things they teach at Stanford/Amherst only be truly appreciated/comprehended by the nineteen year old intellect? I've watched the open course Physics lectures from MIT, and I was relieved to find that they learned exactly the same stuff I did. I honestly thought that rebounding from a horrible high school experience with three years of 4.0 study at City College and a near perfect SAT score would be looked upon as "overcoming adversity." Am I crazy?</p>

4

<p>Aneece:</p>

<p>You needn't look that far down, but the thing to remember is that the top private schools accept very, very few transfer applicants. Unlike public universities, they are not geared toward the community college transfer population. Therefore, their transfer acceptance rates are very low - sometimes in the 5-10% range.</p>

<p>But that said, the good news for you is that I can think of few potential transfer applicants who would be better qualified, based on what you're reporting here. I wish I had anything close to your qualifications. Ignore what the other guy said about your GPA. It doesn't matter. You have as good a shot as anyone. Apply for the moon and see what happens. You'd have to be really unlucky, I think, to get rejected at all of those schools.</p>

<p>Just be sure to have public safeties - you should be a shoo-in for any of them - just in case that worst-case scenario happens. If you're looking for a smaller safety than the big UC student factories, check out smaller LAC-type CSUs (Sonoma State/Humboldt State) or the myriad of small out-of-state public unis.</p>

5

<p>Thank you! I am just hoping for a 25% shot at getting into one of these schools to make the effort of application worthwhile.</p>

6

<p>
[quote]
rebounding from a horrible high school experience with three years of 4.0 study at City College

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Yale's admission website:</p>

<p>
[quote]
if by the end of the current academic year you will have completed more than two full years toward the degree, you are not eligible to transfer to Yale, nor may you apply through the freshman admission process. (You may not voluntarily relinquish credits in order to qualify for consideration.)</p>

<p>Who</a> is Eligible to Transfer? | Transfer Students | Office of Undergraduate Admissions</p>

<p>

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Harvard:

[quote]
Students who have completed more than two years of college study with transferable credit, and those who have earned a bachelor's degree, are not eligible to transfer to Harvard College. Students may not choose to relinquish academic credits, or a degree, in order to apply for transfer admission.
Harvard</a> College Admissions Office: Prospective Students

[/quote]

Brown Admissions:</p>

<p>
[quote]
students with more than two years of college credit are discouraged from making transfer application

[/quote]

Brown</a> Admission: Transfer Students</p>

7

<p>donjaun, do a little more research. I am talking about four years at a Junior College. None of those schools discriminate against JC students. I have worked full time and spent almost two years relearning college Mathemetics. As of this week I've just finished Vector Calculus, in which I found three instructor errors on various exams and ended up with a near perfect score. I would be eligible for those schools if I'd been at City for a decade.</p>

8

<p>It doesnt matter if you are from a JC. Call Yale tomorrow and ask. As the website states, you may not relinquish credits, and if you have too many, thats an automatic rejection.</p>

<p>State schools can take as many credits as possible (take for example the University of California, however, even they have limits and cap the amount of credits acceptable to 70 units). Privates, on the other hand, are different. Don't you think that if JC students were exempted, then it would say "except community college students"</p>

9

<p>If you have too many credits, you can't apply to most schools. If you have completed three complete years...you need to look at state schools.</p>

10

<p>Thanks Mlevine, thats what I was trying to say.</p>

<p>Anecee, please read this story of a girl who spent 3 years at a Community College and tried to apply at Smith College (LAC) and Wellesley (LAC).</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/419142-advice-needed-desperately-ineligible-transfer-cc-due-too-many-credits.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/419142-advice-needed-desperately-ineligible-transfer-cc-due-too-many-credits.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>
[quote]

I am a January transfer student from a SUNY community college. I didn't go to high school due to chronic illness. The education I received in the hospitals was fairly useless. It was a joke, really. I am smart and hardworking, though, and excelled at CC. </p>

<p>Due to many reasons, I decided not to transfer right away. First, my lack of education and a personal situation at home made an earlier transfer unfavorable.</p>

<p>Second, I took many credits outside of my diploma path, but was encouraged to finish my associates degree. About a year ago, I read that some schools had a policy about not accepting more than 2 years of credit. I became nervous and called a school I was considering (can't remember which one), but the person I spoke with assured me that it wouldn't be a problem since I'd be coming from a 2 year school. I also spoke with advisors from my school and they again encouraged me to finish my associates. Everything in my life led me to the conclusion that the best option was to stay. </p>

<p>Clearly, some of the people I spoke with were misinformed because this brings me to my horror story.</p>

<p>Friday morning I got a call from Wellesley, my second choice college. I was told that they reviewed my transcript and determined that I am ineligible to transfer because I have too many credits. ** They don't allow applicants to relinquish credits, so I am out. **</p>

<p>Then I called Smith, my first choice. I explained my situation and they also said that it's unlikely that I'd be accepted.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>At this point, it looks like you may be ineligible to transfer because you spent 3 years at a JC. Like i said, private schools are different and they do not care if you come from a community college.</p>

11

<p>Three years of time, two years of credit.</p>

12

<p>Or I guess I should have said that I will have accrued the equivalent of two years worth of credits by the end of next semester. I have no need of relinquishing credits. That's what I mean by working full time while I was at school. There were a couple of semesters where I could only attend one course. It's only recently that I've gone full time. By any measure, public or private, my courses and number of units add up to Junior standing in the Fall of '08.</p>

13

<p>I guess what I don't get about you, donJaun, and to a lesser extent Mlevine, is that you seem to say no chance first and think later, but only in regards to me. DonJaun, your posts in particular seem to be very well thought out and intended to be fair for other people, but not so much for me. In particular, the advice to "look into state schools" from Mlevine is pointless and redundant. I already stated, at the beginning of all this, that I've applied to a small armada of UC's. The privates are my hail marys. If I get rejected by all these schools, then I go to Berkeley or UCLA. If I get rejected by those, then I go to UC Davis and clean toilets for the rich for the rest of my life, or whatever happens to people who go to normal schools. Oh the horror. I just think these other schools fit my academic interests better, and wanted to know what I could do to improve my chances. People from my school go to these schools. I swear. They're even aloud to attend the same classes and talk to the real students.</p>

14

<p>Being that you are a non traditional student, you can apply to schools like Columbia GS - acceptance rate about 45%.</p>

<p>If you want to improve your chances at top ivies coming from community college, you would have to up play your non traditional status and work experience as an asset to your education and to their campus. I do not know where you are employed, but if you have a substantial career under your belt and want to complete your education to further your career you can easily focus on that aspect and be considered an asset for these schools. </p>

<p>Can you get involved in any physics research at your community college? </p>

<p>Your chances to most of those schools (privates) for transfer will be LESS than 10%, no matter what type of applicant you are. Even if you are published and volunteer in the child cancer ward, and play piano and are a canditate for the nobel prize, it doesnt matter, you can be the creme de la crop of applicants and still your chance would be less than 10% simply because that is the chance of admission, transfer admission to those schools. For one unlike publics privates usually have less than 100 spots, sometimes only 20 spots or even less. You can count on at least 500 people applying (most likely much more) most of them would be qualified, you would have to really stand out a lot to get that acceptance letter, that is why i suggest you focus on the fact that you are 29 and you are non traditional.</p>

15

<p>haha. mmm. wow. i am actually a bit scared to do any sort of chances thread now. i came to this thread because i was feeling like my eyes might be a lil too big as well. my eyes probably aren't quite as big as yours, aneece, (only one of the schools you named, wesleyan, is on my list) but my grades and scores aren't quite (even close) as good either.
i also have a somewhat odd transfer background, but THANKGOD i'm only 19 and still young and malleable, and have only gone to school for two years (no more i swear!). i hope sarcasm comes across on the internet.</p>

<p>anyway, i can't give you much advice. good essays! tell them you deserve it in your essays! thats what i'm depending on... good luck!</p>

16

<p>Thanks Malishka. I don't believe I have even a 5% chance at any of these schools, even assuming their most favorable reading of my situation. If I could get myself into that 5% position, then I could at least imagine that I have ~25% chance at getting into one of these schools. That would rule, and that's all I'm hoping for. Then it would be worth the effort, and I could look myself in the eye a few years from now and know that I didn't add any self-imposed barriers to my path. I will definitely focus on my nontraditional status in my essays, and attempt to make my biggest weakness (and I know its a huge weakness) into a strength. I think I can do that if I'm able to hit the right note. As far as research goes, physics research opportunities aren't thick on the ground at my school. It's way more geared to premed and biotech tracks. I've been offered one that was in the life sciences, at UC SF. Even though I think I had zero to offer them, I was tempted to pursue it just to have something. Sad. My goal is to find something before the start of the next term, but it might be too little, too late.</p>

<p>Hey liz, don't be scared. Heck, this wasn't even supposed to be a chances thread. More of an advice thread, since I'm so far away from college prep ins and outs. All of the negative feedback is fine. I think that they are just responding to the absurd list of schools I led with, and trying to give a dose of realism. I have no illusions, I just think the effort is still worthwhile. Don't let yourself be intimidated just because you're at a community college. I think failure is an underrated experience, as are calamitous setbacks. We aren't all lucky enough to have our lives unfold in a perfectly choreographed courtship ritual for these schools. Sometimes life handles us roughly. If you're at a JC, use one of the few advantages junior college offers, underutilized professors. Most people at Community Colleges have limited ambition, and the professors are dying to help you if you're driven. I'll take a look at your situation when I get to NY, and offer more advice I'm unqualified to give.</p>

17

<p>thank you!</p>

<p>although, i'm not actually at a CC. my first year i did this sort of 'alternative learning' program, much of the time spend traveling and volunteering, part of the time doing sort of group therapy sessions at a retreat center in sonoma, california... haha. it was all for college credit though. and now i'm at an art school, which apparently doesn't suit me at all. people just tend to sort of have a questioning look when they hear that i've already been to two colleges and am wanting to transfer again.</p>

18

<p>Well, Aneece, are you hearing anything yet? Good luck!!</p>

19

<p>I just submitted my Stanford application. I want to vomit.</p>

20

<p>was that English professor that wrote your rec Christoph Greger?</p>