So I go to a huge but no name university in the midwest (see if you can guess from my username)
Anyway Ive completed 1.5 years of engineering classes and have a 4.0 with 35 credits earned. I want to apply to a more prestigious university but really have no idea what I should realistically expect. I have excellent teacher recs btw if that matters. I just have no idea how much my disastrous high school record will hold me back. (3.4 GPA)
Im looking for an engineering school, preferably in the Midwest but really anywhere it fine. I just dont really know what to expect in my position, what should my targets be? Illinois-Champaign? Purdue? Notre Dame? UofM?
Oh btw my overall transcript is just really bizarre I have A’s in college physics1 and 2 and differential equations but failed my senior english class in high school lol, so its not exactly "well rounded’,
Be honest though, I really dont have much time or money so I want to get my application prospect list narrowed down pretty soon
A LOT of schools will only consider your college transcript, and may only use your HS transcripts to confirm you have meet the language requirement, etc. Look at the transfer requirements for each of your target schools.
To be honest, prestige is not that big a deal with engineering. If your current school has a large engineering program that’s well recruited it may already met your needs.
Is there something specific you’re looking for in a transfer institution? That may help folks with giving you recommendations.
Id say prestige and industry connections, along with resources for students and good professors.
I already have a very good internship this summer, but I cant imagine in the future if I apply to a competitive job employers will be very impressed by seeing “random directional school #317” on my resume…
Random directional school #317 may in fact have a fine reputation for your major. It was obviously good enough to land you your internship. What else don’t you like about your current school? Where are you in-state?
Im In Michigan. Im sure my school has a fine reputation in my city and surrounding areas but literally nobody has ever heard of it outside of west michigan, If I applied to like tesla or boeing or something im sure my resume would get sent directly to the paper shredder
They won’t ask for your high school transcript at all.
There’s no risk for you (at worst you’ll stay at your university) but, not knowing where you are attending, I’d say…
UMN Twin Cities (likely better than your directional!)
UWisconsin
Your state’s flagship (if it’s not one of these two)
then add
UMichigan
Purdue
Northwestern
Wash U St Louis
Notre Dame
The big issue will be budget - transfers get lousy aid.
Ok. I almost believe that about Tesla (companies with Silicon Valley culture can be pretty narrow minded about who merits their time), but Boeing wouldn’t care. I’m assuming you’ve decided the companies that recruit on campus are not acceptable for you?
What about cost? Can you afford out of state tuition? UMichigan is the top in-state school of course. Minnesota might be a possibility. Kettering has a big co-op emphasis (the names of the companies you intern at will be at least as important as the name of the college,you graduate from.) ASU is often affordable and has aerospace if you’re interested in Boeing.
@privatebanker Agreeing that Tesla may skip a resume from a random directional university is not the same as suggesting only the Ivy League will do. Those schools may not be Ivies, but they are mostly STEM powerhouses. I even suggested #10 on that list as an accessible transfer target school. Most of those schools I would agree are great, but I wouldn’t necessarily suggest to a transfer student due to selectivity and/or out of state tuition costs.
So I started looking into Illinois and Purdue and apparently they both dont allow transfers for mechanical engineers… grrrrrr…
Well Wisconsin does look pretty good anyway ill probably try to apply there more towards the fall. Texas A&M looks amazing too and admissions dont seem to strict
I go to Grand Valley State University by the way (I told you guys nobody has ever heard of it even though theres 25,000 students)
No, it’s not well known but sorta… due to its excellent honors college and top status among directionals. It’s certainly well respected.
UMichigan would be the obvious choice for you.
The best and most obvious choices would be Michigan and Michigan State. I recommend staying in-state so you don’t pile-up debt. That will sabotage your earning potential. If you’re a college transfer, the university is going to rely on your college transcripts, because that’s your true track record. I doubt they’ll even look at high school. Your grades are more than good enough for Michigan. I would say, go for it!
Your college has ABET accredited program in Mechanical Engineering…that is all you need. If where you are is significantly cheaper than the schools you are considering I would stay put.
Well id like to hope I’m good enough for Michigan but I’ve been reading stories of people on this board getting denied with like 4.3 GPA and 35 ACT it’s crazy competitive for a state school
There are many colleges that do not even require you to submit your high school transcript if you have over 24 or 30 college credits. I’m sorry, I’m not very familiar with Midwest colleges, but some prominent ones on the East Coast are George Washington and North Carolina State. Maybe look at some similar ones in the Midwest?