<p>Hello!</p>
<p>I'm planning on becoming a future computer hardware engineer and I had a few questions as I'm getting closer to transfer out.</p>
<p>Currently I'm at a local community college and I'm very confused on where I should put my focus in applications... So here come the questions:</p>
<p>1) I will have around a 3.0+ GPA when transferring, so I don't expect to get into anything like UCLA, Cal Poly, etc... I plan on shooting for CSU's. I'm having trouble narrowing it down! Long Beach, Northridge, Fresno!? Which school will give me the best opportunities to find a job out the door? </p>
<p>2) Granted that I go to a CSU, what will my chances be (if any) that a more renown company like Microsoft, Nvidia, Google, etc... Will even bother looking at my resume? If I go to a CSU am I bound to work for the smaller companies? </p>
<p>3) In the case that I apply for UC's and luckily get accepted, is it worth going to if I'm just looking for the same degree, but bigger offers from bigger companies? For example, if I were to go to UC Irvine, am I going to have a chance/better chance at making it in Microsoft?</p>
<p>I have this idea in my mind that the bigger the company (in the engineering world), the more money you'll be making. Am I correct? I wouldn't mind working for a small company, its just the idea that I might be looking out the window at a bigger opportunity I missed out on because of the university I graduated from/GPA.</p>
<p>Any help would be awesome, thank you in advance!</p>
<p>It won’t matter that much. Just do a good job in your classes at university. Also when you start off as a transfer, your school gpa is a 4.0. It’s up to you how much you wanna keep. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>With the budget crunch and competitive app process apply broadly if you don’t mind living there for a few years. CSU’s give more weight to local candidates and it’s harder to get accepted into the other ones. </p></li>
<li><p>It’s not just your gpa. It’s about your ability. Lets say you apply to a company and you get accepted into an interview. Now you have to pass technical tests on coding and technical questions. </p></li>
<li><p>It depends. Bigger and better schools have better recruiting on campus. But its not the end of the world. That just means you have to work harder and do more work to apply to companies that you are interested in if they do not come to your career fair. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>It’s not the size of the company, it’s what they do that you should be interested in. Best thing to do would be to get an internship with an established company that will give you a lot of good technical exposure in an area you are interested in. Small companies do great things and all big companies were once small ones. Continue to get good grades and you can work anywhere. </p>
<p>Then consider grad school either after your BS or after a few years of work experience. A MS from a good school will open even more doors. Just concentrate on transferring and getting good grades. Jobs are out there even if it isn’t Apple, Facebook, or Google. And yes they hire Cal State grads too.</p>
<p>Goto Long Beach…</p>
<p>“what will my chances be (if any) that a more renown company like Microsoft, Nvidia, Google, etc”</p>
<p>Of course, the college you attended won’t hold you back from anything, only you can hold yourself back</p>
<p>When does this conversation pop up in an interview: ?</p>
<p>Interviewer: I see you graduated from Cal State but we have another applicant who graduated from Irvine. Even though he has lower GPA and close to none research and internship experiences than you, we will have to give the job to him because he went to UC.</p>
<p>I think your GPA is more of an issue than what school you went to. Wherever you transfer, just focus on doing your best to improve your resume. With a GPA of “3.0+” after your first 2 years, you’ll want to step it up several notches for those companies. </p>
<p>But in any case, try not to narrow your focus so much. You will discover that there are plenty of other companies at which you can have a fulfilling career. And remember that your first job will mostly likely not be your last.</p>
<p>By the way, I attended my local univ - not well thought of here on CC - but was hired by a major aerospace company 2 states over. I had a “4.0-” GPA and excellent co-ops. </p>
<p>Now, I’d like to get back to the <em>Louisville</em> game <hint, hint="">.</hint,></p>
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<p>If your Amex/Visa card swipes approved with a salary like any other engineer for their experience years then YOUR SCHOOL IS WELL THOUGHT OF.</p>
<p>By the way…that team is loaded.</p>
<p>Thank you all so much for the replies… I will definately stop worrying about the school and start focusing on my GPA.</p>
<p>Time to quit my job, perhaps…</p>