Community College to Good Private School

Applying to College
1

Hi all!

I’m a totally non traditional student. I went to elementary/high schools that didn’t teach English or math. I taught myself math in 4 months then went to community college in the north NJ area. I am almost finished and have a 3.9 GPA. Im a comp sci major so took all the hardest classes they offered (calc, physics, etc.).

I spoke to my transfer counselor and told her that I want to apply to Rutgers, NJIT and CUNY (maybe city college). She said that since I have a very high GPA I should apply to other places (such as private schools, which may offer scholarships), and to come back with a list for her. The thing is that neither my parents nor anyone in my family ever went to college. I don’t know which colleges I should apply to. I’d like to go to one that is in the NJ/NY area. Any suggestions?

Thank you for reading this and I appreciate any help.

2

try the ivy league schools, penn state etc…

3

Are you of non-traditional age for college? Have you taken a year or more gap in your education? If yes to one or both of those, that might open up some special admission programs to you (e.g. Columbia SGS, Penn LPS).

Also, if you are Phi Theta Kappa, many schools have scholarships earmarked for PTK students.

Haverford and Swarthmore are smaller private liberal arts colleges with solid CompSci programs. And consider Drexel for a larger university. Carnegie Mellon as well if you are willing to go as far as Pittsburgh.