Community College Success Stories

Transfer Students
82

<p>Lauren229 is incorrect about this; “As an FYI – If you are willing to take the hit of not having grades from your year at a 4-year institution, you do not have to list it or send in your transcripts. Even though applications ask for all of your higher-ed transcripts, you do not have to send them in if you do not want them to count for any sort of credit transfer.”</p>

<p>Whenever you apply to a degree program at an accredited college or university in the US you are obliged to provide official copies of your transcripts from all of the post-secondary institutions that you have ever attended. One credit or 120 credits, last year or 30 years ago, they are part of your personal academic record. Leaving them out is almost as bad as forging new ones. This has very little to do with you, but it has everything to do with the colleges and universities playing nice with each other. When the time comes for their re-accreditation, the visiting committee will randomly pull student files. If one transcript is missing from one file, the accreditation could be delayed or even refused. It is that serious to them. Why do I know this? Because I asked after I was nearly thrown out of a graduate-level program because of a missing 30 year old transcript for six credits from a summer program that had nothing to do with my qualifications to be enrolled in that grad program. Once they had it, everything was fine. </p>

<p>You do need to send all of your transcripts. What the receiving institution does with that information is up to them. They are the ones who get to decide if and how to use the courses for credit/placement/determination of admissibility. In my personal case, all they did was stuff one more sheet of paper into a file folder.</p>

83

<p>I haven’t applied anywhere yet as I have one more semester to go before I apply anywhere. Let me say this first: I was not a student in high school. I did not take my work seriously or understand how essential education is for a lifelong career is whatever passion somebody has. A series of fortiuitous events have changed my life for the better. A great summer and winter job and the dedication to succeed have really propelled me to what I hope is a bright future. </p>

<p>High School Grades
GPA - 2.0 (UW) and 2.2 (W)
SAT’s - 1530, however, I decided to take them again this past May.
Extra cc’s - some film stuff and track sophmore year.</p>

<p>CC Stats
GPA - 3.9
Extra cc’s - VP of Fundraising for Phi Theta Kappa with a ton of service attached to that. Treasurer of our business association, math honors society, community service.
Employment - starting working at an insurance company in lower NYC last summer, worked there in the winter and will be there this summer.</p>

<p>Honestly, I really feel as if my high school days were a lifetime ago. I’m a different person, different morals, ambitions, and I’m not sure if I could be in this position if I had not gone to community college. My schools that I’m looking at are Cornell, Rutgers, Boston Univ, SUNY Binghamton, Georgetown, and possibly others.</p>

<p>Great thread.</p>

84

<p>This is a really helpful thread. Does anyone have suggestions on how I could confirm — before admissions — whether my credits will transfer? college will count when I get to my next school? I’ve looked at [url=&lt;a href=“http://www.kambeo.com%5DKambeo%5B/url”&gt;http://www.kambeo.com]Kambeo[/url</a>] and a few other sites for this information, but it’s hard to find.</p>

85

<p>In high school, I was a bad kid. I wasn’t bad in the sense that I would bring drugs, alcohol or weapons to school but I got into a lot of fights and I very much “disrespected” school teachers and administrators. My grades were not HORRIBLE, but they were much too low for any decent university to take me seriously. So when you added up my constant disciplinary issues along with my mediocre grades, you’d realize that I wouldn’t be able to go too far in the college search. Nevertheless I decided to try anyway.
I applied to one college in my senior year – an art school that did not care about grades or test scores (which I lacked, btw). This art school is one of the most prestigious in the country, and my video teacher was an alumni. After getting him to previously agree to writing me a horrible letter of recommendation in which he did nothing but bash me and my “attitude” while saying nothing of my work or contributions towards his program, I thought that surely my portfolio would carry me into this school. I ended up getting in trouble again with a suspension only a few days later. I was then told by my video teacher that he would call the school I applied to, tell them to pull his letter of recommendation as well as rant about me to the school. There was no way I was getting in now. Turns out, I didn’t. Shocker, right? I immediately came up with a backup plan: community college. Both my parents went to community college and never got anything higher than a two year degree. They were doing very well for themselves. Even if I didn’t transfer, I could do the same.
The next six months were spent watching everyone in my suburban dump of a town wearing college sweatshirts and bragging about where they were going to school. When teachers would ask me where I was going, I would tell them that I would attend the local community college. The looks on their faces were priceless. I don’t know what everyone in suburban America has against community colleges, but I heard every excuse in the book. “You’ll never leave” “Most that intend to transfer never do” “You’ll never get a graduate degree” “You’ll never blah blah blah”. Most of them pressured me into applying to the local state school down the freeway, but that was not what I wanted to do. Plus, that school was not the best in what I wanted to do with my life. It was out of the question. It just blew me away that people around me thought that going to a so-so university was better than attempting to transfer to an excellent university though community college.
So I went to my local community college and turned my life around. I stopped getting into fights, I stopped butting-heads with teachers, I found a mentor and ultimately found out what I actually wanted to do with my life. I brought home nearly all A’s, semester after semester. I didn’t take any breaks in winter or summer.
So once again, I applied to one school. This time, I applied to the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. The program I applied for (screenwriting), was said to be harder to get into than Harvard law. I obviously didn’t care.
I am pleased to say that I am now going to be going to USC in August, and I cannot be happier. I always thought that if/when this day came I’d come back and rub it into the faces of everyone who said “You’ll never”, but I’ve been surprisingly humble about it. Not only did community college give me a second chance at getting to a good school, but it also matured me. Imagine that!</p>

86

<p>what a gold mine… thank you for the inspiring story guys</p>

87

<p>When I first started high school, I was in the IB program, which definitely isn’t easy, but I was doing great. I got the top grades on tests, enjoyed my classes, was beloved by teachers – I was the kid who was on track to be the valedictorian and go to Harvard. (Well, maybe not Harvard, but somewhere prestigious.)</p>

<p>Of course, things never work out perfectly, and in the middle of ninth grade, I developed a chronic illness that made it really, really hard to get to school. I switched into doing independent study classes through my county, which were, for the most part, a joke. (I finished a semester of math and a semester of history in a week.) I’m sure independent study works for a lot of people, but I detested my classes and the people who worked at the independent study office. Plus, since I hated the classes so much, I wasn’t doing well in them, and basically lost my love of learning. I was sick of all this, so, in junior year, I took the test to get my GED. </p>

<p>I started taking classes at my local community college, and fell.in.love. Loved the IB program, but I love the community college even more. I know that they get a bad rep, and I’ve definitely rolled my eyes a few times at how unmotivated some of my classmates are, but I’ve had amazing teachers and taken fantastic classes. (It’s very, very cool to be 17 and taking classes about international relations and women’s history when your peers are slogging through boring government and european history classes.) </p>

<p>This year would have been my senior year, and since I wanted to still feel a little bit normal, I decided to apply to schools on the east coast (so that I would be able to go off to college at the normal time). Nobody in my family, including me, really expected me to get in to that many places, since a GED is, well, a GED. But, so far, I’ve gotten into six out of the eight places I applied to, and was only rejected from one: Barnard. I still haven’t heard from George Washington, but I think I have a fairly good shot of getting in there. Even if I don’t get into GW, I’ve definitely gotten into places that make me (and my parents) proud: Brandeis, Fordham, American, etc.</p>

<p>I’m so grateful to my community college for these successes. Without them, I don’t know what I would have done – probably gotten my GED and done fairly low-paying work for awhile. My cc has renewed my love of learning, and my love of certain subjects (like politics). It’s been a long journey to where I am now (full of people who said that I wouldn’t be able to go to a good college after doing independent study or getting my GED), but I am so proud to be where I am today, and I have my community college to thank.</p>

<p>(Oh, and sydneyral has it right on the money – I’ve gotten the dirtiest looks when I say I go to a community college. My church’s youth priest even bashed the cc in front of me, even though priests are supposed to be, you know, supportive. But I got what I needed out of cc – a love of learning and proof that I can succeed in an academic environment, so I’m happy.)</p>

<p>Edited to add: Just got into GW, which was my top pick, pretty much. So even more gratitude towards my cc!</p>

88

<p>Didn’t graduate from high school, got GED, went to community college (SMC), transfered to UC Berkeley, graduated with 3.9 and high honors in Engineering. Got job offers from Google, Apple, HP. </p>

<p>Community College = Best decision I’ve made in my life.</p>

89

<p>Thats great thomas.</p>

90

<p>Went to Dallas County Community College at 34 yrs old. I have a 3.86 after always being a terrible student and just got into George Washington University in D.C. I am so grateful to community college !!! Thank you!!</p>

91

<p>California community college –> University of Idaho, where I founded and managed a reported sports blog for the Student Media Board and covered more than 100 Vandals games in two years.</p>

<p>Took an internship with the USDA Forest Service in Alaska last September, and they apparently liked me. Hired me as a park ranger through SCEP, and I start a funded master’s program at Indiana University this fall.</p>

92

<p>I was homeschooled my junior and started Quinsigamond Community College my senior year— Three potential schools I want to transfer to are WPI(Accepted with $10,000 PTK Scholarship), BU, UMD, or Georgia Tech. I graduated with 3.93, Phi Theta Kappa, president of the engineering club and math center tutor. I want to major in Aerospace Engineering and hope to go for a masters and PhD program.</p>

93

<p>Went to a community college in Michigan for two years and will be going to UMich this fall.</p>

94

<p>to habala55:</p>

<p>at ann harbor?
What was your cc gpa?</p>

95

<p>yes at Ann Arbor. I had a 3.6, but with almost 60 credits, LOR from profs, good essays, and I’m not originally from U.S., so that makes me diverse i guess</p>

96

<p>@sydneyral: seriously one of the BEST community college success stories I’ve heard. Thank you for that.</p>

97

<p>I just wanted to say how inspired I am by all of these stories! I currently attend a community college in Arizona. I was in the top 5% of my high school class and I wanted so badly to go to university straight away, but going to CC has been the best decision I have made by far. Also, I am a political science major considering double-majoring in communications.</p>

<p>I have been on the President’s Scholarship (full-ride) for the past two years at my school. I have maintained a 4.0 GPA and worked part-time throughout the two years. The first year I had no extracurricular experience. This year I joined Phi Theta Kappa and was involved in the Student Public Policy Forum. I attended a conference in Washington, D.C. with the American Student Association of Community Colleges to advocate for Pell Grants with the staffs of Congressmen Pastor and Flake and Senator Kyl. Aside from school I have also become a member of the Arizona Latino Arts Center and Arizona Town Hall.</p>

<p>Unfortunately, I have a third year at CC because I have been taking 12 instead of 15 credits each semester, and while I could transfer in the spring semester, I felt that more aid would be available for fall transfers and I received the Chancellor’s Scholarship (another full-ride) that only one student at the campus receives. Plus, I felt I could further add to my resume which I’ll be doing by getting more involved with PTK, helping with the honors program by becoming an Honors Ambassador for my campus, and participating in a volunteer program through AmeriCorps’ Project Help. </p>

<p>I was just planning on going to Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University, but after reading so many wonderful stories I definitely plan on applying to the universities I’ve dreamed of going but never thought I could like the Universities of California at Berkeley, LA, and San Diego, the University of Southern California, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, American University, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, and Amherst.</p>

<p>Thank you all for showing me not to sell myself short!!</p>

98

<p>1999-Didn’t take HS seriously, was at the bottom of my class, but I got a 1220 on my SATs and was accepted to one school.
2000-Dropped out after 3 semesters with a 1.9 gpa.
2001-Started at a CC, did one semester before getting a DWI and dropping out, gpa was a 2.2 cum.
2004-Got license back and went back to CC for one semester before engine on car seized, gpa is now 2.3 cum.
2005-Joined Marine Corps
2008-Began classes while on deployment in Iraq, took 8 classes and had a 3.8 gpa, bringing me up to about a 2.54 cum.
2009-Got out of Marines and thought I could just transfer to San Diego State, almost got laughed out of the admissions office (deservedly) and was pointed to Mesa Community College.
2011-Graduated from Mesa with a AA In Business Studies, and was accepted to UCR and SDSU. I will be attending SDSU for Business Information Studies beginning this fall. I had to take 20 credits/ 6 classes this past semester to make me more viable for acceptance and I will never do that again but it was worth it at the time.</p>

<p>It was a very long trip though 3 different two year schools but I am glad I stuck with it, I was nervous about getting in anywhere because even though I did well at the end I still only had a 3.0 gpa. Luckily I was in SDSU service area, and a Veteran. When I got my acceptance email I nearly squeezed my girlfriend to death. She graduated from Colorado State with a 3.8 and her RN so she helps motivate me to do well.</p>

99

<p>4.0 beginning of high school—>
screwed up/graduated with Ds---->
2 years of community college----> </p>

<p>going to UC Berkeley in six weeks. </p>

<p>Anything is possible.</p>

100

<p>I did not graduate High School. I got a GED. I enrolled in a community college in Mississippi and transfered with a GPA of 3.6 at the cc and 3.5 to the university I am transfering to. I am enrolled at Mississippi State and will start classes in mid August.</p>

<p>Yeah, anything is possible. I was kicked out of high school for fighting bullies all the time. I went to cc with doubts and came out excited to see what a university offers. My next goal or goals: Graduate with a B.S., get accepted into internship and the Master’s program.</p>

101

<p>Age: 19
High school: 3.2 GPA graduated in 2009; I didn’t understand how something like GPA worked until the end of sophomore year, so I had a huge “screw it” attitude…trying too hard to be popular by playing dumb, I guess.
ACT: 23/26 (I can’t take tests in silence. It’s painfully difficult to focus – then and now)
CC GPA 4.0 when I applied to transfer. Difficult courseload with work, plus family issues brought be down to a 3.63</p>

<p>BUT! I still got accepted to Miami University which was my dream school in high school but I didn’t apply to. Not only that, but I got the max amount of transfer scholarships that are renewable throughout my time there as long as I maintain a 3.5 GPA.</p>

<p>I’ll be starting there in the fall with a research internship and an on-campus job already lined up. Ready and rearing to go!</p>