From community college to a top 50 with bad high school stats?

Transfer Students
1

Hello all,

I have browsed the transfer forums for the past few months and have become extremely discouraged at my chances of transferring to what I consider a “good” 4 year uni. As many other CC students, I elected to go to junior college due to horrid high school performance. However, when I say horrid, I really mean it, I graduated HS with a 2.3 GPA as a result of debilitating depression, drug abuse issues and a simple lack of motivation. Of course, at my CC, as a sophomore, I now have a 3.8 GPA (should have a 4.0, was still getting my act together my first semester) and a multitude of what I think are reasonably solid ECs.

To make this easier, here are my HS & College Stats:

HS GPA: 2.3 at a reasonably competitive, well-funded public
HS ECs/Miscellaneous:
-Jv soccer player through sophomore year, Varsity junior year

  • Extremely competitive club soccer team (Top 10 in state, top 100 nationally) through junior year
    -Volunteer at local animal shelter all four years
    -Employee at local coffee shop, 30+ hours a week sophomore through senior year
    -Poor SATs: 1570 (never studied, taken at the apex of my depression/drug abuse issue)

CC GPA: 3.8 at one of the top 5 in state, top 25 in country (?)
CC ECs/Miscellaneous:
-Full-time supervisor (40+ hours a week) at chain retail location freshman year
-Valet employee at hotel (30 hours a week) presently
-Member of school’s environmental activism club
-Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
-Dean’s list all semesters thus far
-Intern at county Democratic Committee (15 hours a week)
-3 letters of rec, 2 are excellent 1 should be average
-Minority merit-based scholarship recipient (I am a 1st gen American of hispanic descent)
-Political science department merit-based scholarship recipient

Im predicting my CC GPA will remain at 3.8 after the completion of this semester (fall), although it may rise up to the 3.85 region, its hard to judge (school just installed new +/- grading system). And yes, I know my HS career is quite the mess.

I am looking to transfer as a political science major with a second program choice as sociology (ideally, I would like to major in poli sci and minor in soc)

As for the schools I am considering:
-Columbia University (1st choice, HUGE reach, I know, but I have 3 cousins with BAs from Columbia, probably irrelevant)
-Cornell University
-Georgetown University (good school, but turned off by religious ties being personally unaffiliated)
-University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
-Rutgers-New Brunswick (am from NJ, good school, but feel I could do better)
-University of Pennsylvania (probably even more of a reach)
-Northwestern University
-University of Wisconsin-Madison
-New York University (meh, very expensive)

Furthermore, although I may just be discouraged even more, I would appreciate it if you guys could rate my chances at these different unis. Also to be considered, I am looking (currently) to continue onto law school after my BA, so although getting into a prestigious undergraduate program wont be disastrous (law school prestige more worthwhile), I would like to!
If any of you are personally ex CC students who managed to successfully transfer to a top tier school, please share your story as well. Lastly, regarding the essays/personal statements, I am an extremely confident writer and I am sure I should perform (at least) better than average in those areas.

One last thing! Any ideas regarding whether I should explain my HS academic ineptitude in my personal statement?

Thanks so much everyone.

2

What is your financial situation? Transfer students don’t usually get very good need based aid. I am going to be honest, your chances are by far the best to get into Rutgers, and it is going to be the most affordable. Rutgers is a very respectable school, although people from NJ always seem to want to get away. Your URN status might help you a little, but I don’t see you having much luck with this list.

3

My financial situation is average, I have personally saved 15k for college, my parents plan to contribute 10k, the rest will be payed for in loans. If I were to go to Rutgers, I would be able to graduate without any debt as my GPA makes me eligible for 8k a year in scholarship, so obviously Rutgers would be the most fiscally responsible option. However, I think i have a good chance at NYU, they have a rather high acceptance rate but a competitive poli sci program. Of course, at NYU I would be taking out a significant amount of money in loans, certainly not ideal since I plan to continue to law school. It really comes down to how much my HS performance will be considered for the other schools, I would like to add in a few more significsnt ECs before sending in any apps, but I am already operating on a time constraint working plus 40 hrs between my internship and paid employement. Also, I have been in contact with a few admissions officers from a few of these schools and they all seem to value employment as a strong EC, so my work history may also strengthen my chances.

4

Also, Im not familiar with URN status? Could you clarify?

5

Sorry, typo. URM is what it should be. Under-represented minority. As you are Hispanic, you are a URM at many schools.

Honestly, law school is hugely expensive, and being a lawyer isn’t the ticket to prosperity that it used to be. You absolute need to minimize your debt. You can get into the same law schools from Rutgers as from NYU, so don’t take on the debt. UW-Madison should probably come off your list; you will have to pay OOS tuition, and likely won’t get any need based aid.

I think the rest of your schools are out of reach, but apply if you want to.