<p>This is my very first post on CC. Thanks for welcoming :)</p>
<p>My school doesn't officially rank, but I figured that right now, grade-wise, I am somewhere in the bottom third ...in my Freshman year I got a low 3.07 GPA.</p>
<p>This year I am motivated to do better in school. </p>
<p>My goal, by the time I apply to colleges, is to become a competitive applicant for the top ENG schools that (preferably) have Petroleum Engineering major. I'd like to get accepted to ENG programs at schools like University of Texas, Texas A&M, .., and my state UIUC. </p>
<p>I have a general idea to work on EC's in the area of intended study, to take AP classes, and to study for SAT/ACT. (My practice SAT score on dry was 1500 in 10th grade, Math portion 640) </p>
<p>Now, however, I learned that my GPA must be 4.0, and "class rank" - TOP 2-10%... but even if I make 4.0 my Sophomore and Junior years, the cumulative GPA would still be ~3.7. I researched that the top school's ENG programs want GPA 4.0, or 3.9 the worst. </p>
<p>So my question to CC, what else should I do now - I still have two years ahead of me! - to strengthen my chances of reaching my goal? Is it possible <em>at all</em> to get accepted to my dream schools with such a low GPA (3.7)?</p>
<p>Seems like as a sophomore you should still have plenty of time, especially with a >B average in your freshman but I haven’t gone through any sort of application/admission process, so I can’t help.</p>
<p>I will say that if you don’t get into a university right out of HS, which again I suspect won’t be a big deal if you really want to, the community college transfer route is always an option. It’s what I’m doing anyway.</p>
<p>Also, and maybe I’m projecting, but don’t get too locked into the idea of a major so early. Especially since most people interested in Pet seem to be drawn mostly to the starting salary (and a lot of people speculate that it won’t necessarily be there by the time we graduate). There are a lot of interesting options out there that can satisfy a lot of interests and desired lifestyles, in and out of engineering, and if you are anything like a lot of people, you might spend the next 6 years kaleidoscopicing through them.</p>
<p>But I am barely a freshman at community college, so I don’t know much.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>I know a kid, now a ChemE, who was fairly average in HS but buckled down at a community college, got a 4.0, then transferred to Cornell where he also got a 4.0. Your fair to middling results frosh year do not make it too late to graduate from a great school.</p>
<p>You have to be a little flexible with the path you take. Do your best this year and next, study for the SAT, and get back to us the beginning of senior year. A lot will change between now and then.</p>