<p>Hey,</p>
<p>To begin, I am 23. I just started classes at a local bay area CC this fall, and am now thinking about transfer options for next year. I would like to stay in state and go to a public college to save money. I want to major in applied math or math&econ.</p>
<p>Across the board my grades are decent. I have a 3.73 GPA with A/A-/A+ in everything except discrete math. I got a B- since I had full-on chlamydia symptoms on the day of the midterm. My GPA is set to increase since my classes are getting easier and I'm now in full swing with balancing work and school.</p>
<p>Here's the complicated part. The reason I am as behind as I am is due to poor decisions I made as an 18 year old. I was in college in Europe for one year before reaching a breaking point with childhood trauma/sexual identity issues. I ended up dropping out because I either flunked or didn't show up for exams. After coming back to the US for a few years, addiction and low end jobs became less interesting and I decided to pull myself together and get back on the straight and narrow. I am 100% independent with two jobs at around 20-30 hours a week and a good standing at school.</p>
<p>Anyway, the nagging question so far has been mostly related to this. How much will the past f-ups weigh against the solid present? Can you effectively make the case that although five years ago you were a screwed up hormone addled idiot, people do change and transform? I know it is true since I feel it in myself, but how to convey that?</p>
<p>For ECs, I volunteer time at my church for an environmental project and I tutor math to kids in bad neighborhoods. I'd like to do more things but time constraints make it impossible.</p>
<p>I really do want to turn my major into my life's work. I feel that with the kind of certainty that firmly sits in your belly, know what I mean?</p>
<p>Anyway, I don't think I'll be able to traipse all over California looking at campuses, though I'll be able to check out at least a few. Is there anyone with a similar experience, major, or any transfer experience who could help with general pointers? What would be a good school for me? Care to give me odds on a few places?</p>
<p>Thanks so much to anyone who took the time to read and answer this.</p>
<p>umm you have a 3.73. You can go anywhere you want. It’s that simple.</p>
<p>Don’t forget that your Grades for the classes you took abroad also count towards your GPA if they are considered transferable.</p>
<p>As far as I know they are not. They do not use the credit system over there and the curriculum was like two years ahead of ours right out of the gate. Do you think I can explain that in my personal statement or is there another section where you can explain unusual circumstances?</p>
<p>To be honest with you it depends on the college you are applying. I have seen a guy here on this forum apply to both UCLA and UCB and be accepted to Berkeley because they decided that his units wouldn’t be considered transferable, and be denied from UCLA because his units were considered transferable.
In my case I thought that not in a million years my units would transfer, because the classes I took in Brazil were not GE and way more advanced than the classes that are offered here, but to my surprise, they considered almost everything transferable. Which put me at a senior status and allowed me to graduate in 1 year after transferring.
In any case even if you think they won’t transfer, it is your job to list them all on your application. If you don’t list it, it is considered academic dishonesty. And trust me, I was not happy to list 52 units of Fs!!!</p>
<p>how did you get chlamydia?</p>
<p>Wow. Just… wow.</p>
<p>Not sure if tactless… or actually mentally handicapped.</p>
<p>Or just trolling!?</p>
<p>Really, I can’t tell anymore. I blame you, CC.</p>
<p>The guys these days are sticking their dick into everything and anything. At least give your dick the decency by covering it up before sticking it in–something.</p>
<p>I was just trying to be funny! I mean who posts information like that on the internet… they could have just said an “illness” or something. they didnt have to be THAT specific. gosh.</p>
<p>“The guys these days are sticking their dick into everything and anything. At least give your dick the decency by covering it up before sticking it in–something.”</p>
<p>Hey, I think that every decent looking guy on earth has had some off the cuff oral sex before. Its not that big of a deal… Chlamydia is a bacterial infection and there’s no need to be a puritanical wanker.</p>
<p>And tillyzinha, how did you convince them to let you in with 52 transferable Fs? And given that how did you graduate in a year? Maybe our circumstances were similar? I also had no GEs and classes that were UD and graduate level here. I don’t have as many grades, but still, it sounds close enough.</p>
<p>and I don’t know whyasphyxiac is always so rude… like she said I was poor and **** on that other thread. damn, some girls have major jealousy issues.</p>
<p>If you get chlamydia from a bj then the person has a disgusting oral hygiene.</p>
<p>@nervous
Besides the Fs, I had many many, many, many units of As to balance it out. Some of the Fs also did not transfer (they were internship classes). And even if all the Fs transferred out, my GPA would still be above 3.1. What they will ask you to do is to have your university in Europe send the syllabus for every class you took, so they can match with what they offer, to determine if eventually it will transfer. Because I had so many units completed (some of which at another 4 year institution in Brazil), a bunch of the classes were considered upper division, and so I needed only a few classes in order to graduate.
Hope that helps</p>
<p>@uchappytrain</p>
<p>Relaaaax. Why on earth would I be jealous of you? Don’t be silly, we’ve never even met. That is the weirdest assumption to make about a random forum poster. I know nothing about you. You could be amazingly hot with a rockin’ bod! You could be morbidly obese! You could be a genius! You could be an idiot! I have no idea!</p>
<p>Also, when did I say you were poor? What are you even talking about? The only thread you could be referencing is the one where Lemaitre1 said you shouldn’t be spending fin aid money on clothes? And you said your family didn’t offer you any financial support and your mom was disabled and stuff? And then I defended CC pell grant recipients and told Lemaitre1 that he shouldn’t be so judgmental just b/c people spend their money in ways he doesn’t approve of?</p>
<p>But seriously, I was just poking fun at your frankness (which I found entertaining). It was just a joke.</p>
<p>Sorry if I offended you!</p>
<p>@nervous</p>
<p>I don’t think you have much to worry about with respect to admissions - even with your shaky past, your stats (GPA and ECs) are pretty good, and I’d reckon that you would get accepted to the majority of schools.</p>
<p>However, I’m not certain that they would all be a good fit. From what I’ve heard, some of the UCs are more socially open than others. Because I’m a very open-minded/fairly liberal individual, I’ve found UCLA and Cal to be the most appealing. They’re located in close proximity to large cities, and they have as much diversity as a UC school can be expected to have. My only quarrel with UCLA is that I grew up/have lived very close by (went to a private school in Santa Monica, worked in Brentwood/Westwood, and currently live in Hollywood) for the majority of my life, so I want to expand my horizons a bit. </p>
<p>If you want to get away from the big city feel, both UCSC and UCSB might suit you, but you’ll have to visit and see. UCSC is basically located in a giant redwood forest - it’s very gorgeous and scenic. UCSB is right on the beach, north of Ventura/Oxnard. Also super gorgeous and scenic. Neither schools have a reputation for being particularly rigorous (at least, relative to Cal or LA), but they’re both excellent institutions.</p>
<p>Anyway, don’t let the past haunt you too much. We’ve all made mistakes, and plenty of people have failed/repeated a few classes and still gotten into top schools. At the very least, when you apply, you’ll have a lot to write about in your essay.</p>
<p>Is the European college tied back to the US in any way (eg. Is it tied back to your social security number or US based financial aid)? Did you tell the CC when you applied for admission that you went to college in Europe? Did you pass any of the classes and want to transfer them despite the low GPA? I think you can see where I’m going with this. It’s academic dishonesty and all that, but I think you’re a very different person today and I would forgive you if I were <insert deity="" of="" choice="">.</insert></p>
![http://s2.guyism.com/up/picard-facepalm.jpg[/url]](http://s2.guyism.com/up/picard-facepalm.jpg%5B/url%5D){kind=link}
