<p>so, after my first year of college, i now have to look for somewhere new to transfer for fall. i did very mediocre, and will most likely lose my scholarship at my school this fall if i go back, unless by some miracle i get a 3.7 gpa that semester. even though its slightly possible i can achieve this feat, my parents are incredibly apprehensive about spending another 15k and then having me not make that gpa. i really want them to trust me to be able to do this, but i understand why they dont believe it</p>
<p>so now i need to figure out options for the fall. my parents want me to try and transfer to a state school about 40 minutes from home, and then have me commute. i really dont want to do this, for 2 reasons (1-i would be at home, and i just cannot deal with that. im on summer break now and i already hate being at home; 2-i dont drive long distances yet (especially on highways), so my parents would have to drive me to school :( )....and im not even sure i would get in that school with my gpa i have now. my hs record was good, but my college one so far is so-so.</p>
<p>or transfer to another college (and live on campus) and after my 2nd year (1st year there), try and get into some sort of combined b.s/m.s. degree program. i dont want to just get my bachelors in some major such as psych, because that wont really do anything for me in the future. so now im scrambling to find colleges that have bs/ms programs, yet let in people with below 2.5 gpas....im such an idiot i got a 2.35...:(</p>
<p>so i really dont know what to do now...my parents want me to give them options of what i can do by tonight, or tomorrow, so we can start working on them for fall</p>
<p>i dont really WANT to transfer, its just that i cant afford to stay in my school if i lose my scholarship, and i've resigned myself to the fact that after the fall semester, i will be losing it. so id rather transfer for the fall semester to a cheaper school, rather than pay another 15k fall semester, and then still have to transfer for spring.</p>
<p>Transfer to a public (U Mass Boston?) or to a community college. Use the counseling center so you can concentrate on getting good grades instead of concentrating on your family problems, which you have described in another thread.</p>
<p>If you end up transferring to a community college make sure you take the coursework that will allow you to go on to a 4-year college so you can get a 4-year degree.</p>
<p>It would be a very good idea to take advantage of Northeastern's counseling center now so as to get help making your decisions.</p>
<p>Stop calling yourself an idiot. You may have some weak study habits. You may have had difficulty concentrating due to your concerns about your family. However, you are not an idiot.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the two threads don't stand alone. You've been very concerned about some major problems in your family. You also appear to have been scapegoated, viewed as somehow the bad kid while another kid is the golden kid.</p>
<p>Your calling yourself an "idiot" in this thread is an example of how you seem to be adapting your family's perspective about you.</p>
<p>Instead of trying to solve your problems by seeking the help here of well meaning strangers, you'd be far better off seeking advice from your university's counseling center. You could be open and honest with them, including about various financial and other considerations. They also can give you some advice based on your actual situation and the options that are available.</p>
<p>If you are not able to access your university's counseling center now, I do suggest that you do whatever you can to get help from a professional therapist or counselor. If your parents have insurance, you can use that. I would imagine that since you've indicated that your parents are concerned about your grades, if you tell your parents you want counseling to address your grade problems, your parents would be likely to support your doing this.</p>
<p>Why is it that you feel the need for a combined BS/MS program? It seems to me that you have enough challenges right now without limiting yourself to some rare programs. Since you don't want to live at home (understandable), why don't you transfer to a college that works with your current GPA? Make it a college that might work for you for the full BS. Worry about the MS later.</p>
<p>Then, ask yourself what contributed to your 2.35 GPA and what it would take for you to reach the 3.0 level (higher if you feel that is possible). Was it the distractions of first-year college freedom? Needing different study skills for college from what worked in high school? Courses which didn't interest you? .... As NSM suggested, take advantage of the Academic Center (or whatever it's called on your new campus) to help you develop the patterns, habits and skills which will create a successful academic term. One term at a time.</p>
<p>My recommendation - if you like your school - in tandem with jmmom's recommendation - would be to stay where you are, and to work very, very hard fall semester. Make sure also to choose your classes strategically - don't load up heavily in the sciences, or in classes that all require intensive reading. Take coursework that is easy to balance and that gives you some flexibility. </p>
<p>I think transferring will simply result in another adjustment period, time wasted, etc.</p>
<p>My main desire is to go back to school next semester, and really bust my ass and get that gpa. i just don't know how to convince my parents that i can do this, when i havent met their expectations this year. They dont want to waste another 15k, and then i still dont make that gpa, and still have to transfer.the tough schedule im taking in the fall (if i stay there) is not necessarily by choice. that's the same schedule (orgo, anatomy & physiology, calculus, and a physics concepts course) everyone in my major takes in their third semester. the only class that was my choice was calculus, because i want to get a better grade than i did last semester when i took it.</p>
<p>If you were my child, the way you could hope to convince me would be to:</p>
<p>ask to set aside the time when you and your parents can sit down to talk over your college plans for the coming term</p>
<p>outline to them - have some things in writing, if necessary - what you think contributed to your poor GPA this past year</p>
<p>speak to them about how it is important to YOU, just as you know it is important to them, to bring that GPA up</p>
<p>tell them that you realize that it is hard for them to trust that you can and will bring it up</p>
<p>tell them - just as you have told us - that you have been struggling to figure out how you can reassure them that you can and will do this</p>
<p>tell them that you have planned the following steps to an improved GPA (fill in your ideas here - # study hrs, use of academic support resources at the school, elimination of distractions (whether it's parties or whatever)</p>
<p>ask them what steps they suggest you add</p>
<p>outline a "progress report" system between you and your parents: sharing quiz, paper, test scores with parents as they come in; sharing mid-term grades</p>
<p>If you did this with me, and your plans were realistic and your diagnosis of how you ended up with the extremely disappointing GPA was honest and realistic, I might agree to your plan</p>
<p>I could be wrong, but I remember somebody saying on another college board that Northeastern will give you up to two semesters (i.e. a probationary period) to bring up your GPA before they take away your scholarship. You may want to contact your advisor to confirm this. Don't panic yet.</p>
<p>they offer one semester's probation (at least for my scholarship), but my parents dont have the faith that i will get a 3.7gpa next semester (which i HAVE to get in order to keep it). so theyre basically trying to cut their losses and switch schools now (to a cheaper, closer school), so that they dont waste another 15k, with me still ending up having to transfer for spring.</p>
<p>so right now i just dont know how to convince them that i can do it</p>
<p>I would definitely speak with an advisor, and not panic. Get all of the information about how to save your scholarship. If you do need a 3.7, frankly if you were my son, I would want to do what your parents are suggesting. Transferring may be the way to proceed, and there is nothing wrong with that.</p>
<p>One argument for staying at Northeastern for the fall is that many schools, outside of community colleges, require at least a 2.5 for transfer admissions. UMass Boston, for example, states that requirement on their web site. You can try to raise your GPA by getting that 3.7, and failing that, you will have at least raised it enough to transfer to a 4 year school. Further, my guess is if you have been getting a 2.35 and manage a 3.5 for a semester, you will be able to make an appeal to have your scholarship continued. A jump like that would not go unnoticed. But, do you really think that is possible? The recommendation to see school counselors is a good one.</p>
<p>There is always a community college where you could raise your gpa high enough to transfer to another 4 year college, and this would cost your family less money. Before making any decisions, see a counselor at Northeastern to find out if you have a chance of keeping your scholarship if you fall short of a 3.7, which is a tall order.</p>