<p>What is the transfer success from a community college (with an excellent GPA of 3.9-4.0) to an Ivy League (i.e. Brown, Yale, Penn)?</p>
<p>I don't know whether or not to go to a community college and do excellent there, or go to Rutgers and may not possibly get such a good GPA. Does it matter where the courses are coming from? I have a 4.0 from the past semester, and am sure I can keep it up. Thanks for the help and advice, I really need it and is much appreciated.</p>
<p>There are certainly cc students who go on to ivies, but they are few and far between. If you have an ivy like SAT score or think you can get one prior to applying, take an honors program at your cc and get involved with research or some outstanding ECs and have some professors who will say you're the greatest thing ever to come through there, you'll have a shot.</p>
<p>What is your SAT score? The biggest reason I did not apply to Cornell (and Stanford, even though it's not actually an Ivy) is because of my low SAT score.</p>
<p>Sounds like you are currently a CC student now, yes? Are you asking about possibly transferring to Rutgers and then from there transferring to an Ivy? I think that Zagat gives good advice for maximizing your chances in transferring to an Ivy from a CC but I also agree with him that it's pretty rare for that to occur. Right or wrong I don't think that Ivy adcoms will consider CC grades reflecting success at their Ivy as much as they would at Rutgers. One thing to consider is that if you didn't apply to an Ivy initially because of your SATs but are otherwise a good student (and it sounds like you are given your current success), then it is very likely you would have the same success at Rutgers and a 4.0 there would certainly give you a better shot. Don't sell yourself short! If you are a great student but just don't test well in standardized testing. The adcoms do recognize such people especially if they have EC's that make them stand out.</p>
<p>Thank you all for the feedback I appreciate it. My situation is kind of screwed up, but I'll try to narrow it down. This coming fall I'll be a sophomore. Fall semester I attended Rutgers and got a 3.7. I knew going into Rutgers I would be leaving after my first semester to go to the University of Maryland Honors. I went there but had to withdrew to be home for my mom (legal reasons). I couldn't go back to Rutgers in the Spring so I went to my CC so I wouldn't fall behind. So I did the best I could given my situation and got a 4.0. Now that I have received the financial aid stuff, I don't know if it is worth it to take out a loan and go to Rutgers for a year to just transfer out, or to get a free ride at my CC + books paid and probably get a 4.0. That's my dilemma. </p>
<p>I've heard that CC students have gone to Ivy's so that's the only reason I've posted that. I know I shouldn't sell myself short, but financially I guess. I'm just really confused. I would be in the accelerated classes at the CC and with the small classes as opposed to my classes first semester (200-500 (my Micro class)), my teachers would personally know me and I'm sure write a personal rec as opposed to one in a class of 500 or so. I get involved regardless of where I am. I was the President of my dorm in the fall and that took up a lot of time, and this semester I worked full time, with taking on 15 credits so I'm definitely busy aside from just school. And yes, initially I didn't apply to an Ivy because of my low SAT score, but I do plan on taking them again with my college grades to hopefully boost my chances. Anyways thank you so much for giving me advice, it is truly appreciated.</p>
<p>danman886, that is a complicated situation, but thanks for explaning. I do think that a 3.7 from Rutgers is probably worth more than a 4.0 from your CC. A few thoughts: first I would call and speak with one of the admissions officers at an Ivy that you are interested in going to; see what they say about the comparison. Secondly, you need to think about what you will do if you do not get into an Ivy; realistically even if you have a 4.0 at CC or at RU they are never a sure thing, so you need to plan on that contingency. Seems to me that you would be in a better place to continue your studies (what field, by the way?) if you were at RU. The class size at Rutgers will shrink dramatically as you get more advances courses. On the other hand if you take another year at the CC and then transfer back to RU (assuming you did not get into an Ivy) your degree will still just say RU. There are some social implications to consider but it sounds like thoise are secondary for you. Finacially obviously CC wil be cheaper but RU is relatively inexpensive compared to an Ivy. Are you countiung on financial support for the Ivy? Not sure how that works for a transfer; coud be less support: you should ask at some of the Ivies. Hope these comments are helpful, let me know.</p>
<p>collegedad, thanks again for responding, and I appreciate the words of wisdom. I think what I'm going to do this upcoming week is call them and see what they do in regards of comparison. And yes, you made an excellent point which is also something I need to factor in, what if I don't get in to any of the schools I applied to transfer to? That's why this makes it such an insane decision to make. I'm planning on doing Business, or Econ. Also, as you said, there are some social implications, I met so many people on campus as opposed to the previous semester where I met like 4-5 kids, so kind of a bummer. Yea I'm banking on financial aid for Ivy's also, and I know some of them admit need-aware, meaning they won't admit you if you're not capable of paying or something along the lines of that I believe (which sucks, since I have to pay for everything). Maybe you know about this also, how come some schools require the CSS/Profile (in which you have to pay to send it to schools), and the FAFSA...is obviously free? Anyways, again this means the world to me that you're offering your advice.</p>
<p>First of all, you sound like a very smart, motivated kid, so take a deep breath and relax a little knowing that you can make it no matter where you end up at school. But I appreciate your anxiety, you are in a tough place not of your own making. Something to consider: you could plan on staying at the CC for one more year, get your 4.0, enjoy your friends, then apply to your Ivies as well as RU and other schools (maybe Maryland by then?). Then go to your best school taking into account the finances. Your degree will be from the final school so no one will ever even need to know that you did 2 years of CC. Do well at the new school and then go get a great job or grad school. A negative would be losing your friends that you made at the CC, but I do think that you will have more choices if you have a degree from a major university than from a CC. Alternatively, could you apply now for the Ivies and RU and others and again go to the best place. Or is the deadline passed? The latter suggestion may seem too compressed for you and another year of 4.0 may give you better options although, again, I'm not sure how CC is perceived by the major college adcoms. Anyway, you will have some good choices, I'm sure. Good luck!!</p>
<p>the statistics of cc kids going to ivy's are far and between, but not alot of them take the right precautions. you should definitely speak to someone at the university you're interested in. i know that ivy's usually admit transfers that would not have gotten in as freshman, i.e lower than usual GPA or SAT. also, what is your intended major? that can sometimes be a big admissions factor. just remember, they love to see that you have passion. have you also considered transferring to top schools that aren't ivy? you'd have a great shot at some of those too, i.e. u chicago, duke, georgetown, nyu, rice (to name a few)</p>
<p>Unfortunately, yes, the deadlines have passed and going to have to wait another year, but that's ok, gives me more time to do well. So, before I decide on a course of action I'm going to see what the adcom's have to say about that.</p>
<p>ptmag, my intended major is either Business or Economics, or possibly Poli Sci. I am also thinking of other schools (UVa, UNC, Lehigh, Stanford just to name some I'm looking into). So, we'll see how this pans itself out. I just wish I could fast forward to a year from now and finally know :). Thanks again for the great advice!</p>