George Mason CS Transfer - AS Gen Studies or AS CompSci?

Colleges and Universities A-Z George Mason University
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Hi everyone! I can’t seem to get a straight (enough) answer for this question. I have even emailed GMU admissions directly, but they said I should visit the campus or wait until “Transfer Day” at my campus. Any help would be very greatly appreciated. So anyway, here’s the deal.

I am an (upcoming) Sophomore at Northern Virginia Community College looking to transfer to GMU - specifically into the BS Computer Science program in the school of engineering. I am a “non-traditional” student (27) and have a high number of dual-enrollment credits from high school (college chem, few math classes) as well as some previous credits from one year of community college somewhere else. My GPA from CC #1/Dual Enrollment is a 3.6. My GPA at NVCC is a 4.0 so far.

The reason I am considering an AS General Studies, is because of the way the prerequisites line up for my classes, I would be in CC for an extra semester past 2 years (didn’t decide on CS until after completing Gen Ed electives). I still have to take CSC 202 (Intro to CS II) and CS 205 (Assembly Language/Computer Organization) in the Spring, with CSC 202 being a prereq for 205. With an AS General Studies, I wouldn’t have to take CS 205 to graduate in the Spring and transfer normally in the Fall. This is a big concern to me because of financial aid (not as much offered in the spring, as well as less slots open for admission, I understand).

Other than the CS 205, I will have taken almost every class on GMU’s VCCS transfer guide for the BS CS route, with the exception of CS 205 and CS 206 (another Assembly language course) - both CS 205 and 206 are CS electives at GMU and do not matter as much. I could even graduate right now with an AS General Studies, but I need at least MTH 173 (Calc I) and CSC 201 (Intro to CS I) to be considered for the major (it’s said to be competitive) which I will have after this semester (but again, don’t want to transfer after the fall semester due to financial aid, and I can take a few more classes which will help satisfy more credits at GMU).

If you’ve read this far, thank you.

TL;DR - My question is: from an admissions standpoint in the Volgenau School of Engineering, which is said to be competitive - but only requires MTH 173 (Calc I) and CSC 201 (Intro CS I) - would an AS General Studies in which I have taken these classes and most others on the transfer guide (with a 3.6 at CC #1 and a 4.0 so far at CC #2) be as competitive as an AS Computer Science? Should I be worried about it?

I guess I am thinking also, what if down the line I decide for some reason I can’t or don’t want to finish the BS. Then, I would just have the AS General Studies which wouldn’t be as “marketable” as an AS Computer Science. Any thoughts are greatly appreciated, especially those specific to Mason.

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It looks like NVCC CSC 205 and 206 only count as CS electives when transferring to GMU, according to http://admissions.gmu.edu/transfer/transferCreditSearch.asp?state=VA&school=USVCCS&course=CSC-205 and http://admissions.gmu.edu/transfer/transferCreditSearch.asp?state=VA&school=USVCCS&course=CSC-206 . A GMU course on similar topics, CS 262, is a prerequisite to some other courses at GMU, so you would have to take it after transfer. So it does not make sense to delay transfer to GMU to take NVCC CSC 205 and 206.

Consider this plan: aim for transfer in fall 2016, completing the AS in general studies in spring 2015 with all of the needed courses including NVCC CSC 201 and 202 (equivalent to GMU CS 112 and 211). Note that GMU requires Math 113, 114, and 213 (calculus 1, 2, and 3) and 125 (discrete math) to graduate in the CS major; you can take NVCC MTH (173 or 273), (174 or 274), (275 or 277), and 286 to cover these (125 / 286 is probably the most important one). After transfer, you need to take GMU CS 101, 105, 262, and 310, since equivalents are not available at NVCC.

https://cs.gmu.edu/programs/undergraduate/cs/BSCSBrochure15-16.pdf

If, for some reason, you do not get admitted as a transfer to GMU or choose some other direction besides transferring to GMU, you can go back to NVCC and take CSC 205 and 206 and complete the AS in CS as well if desired.

You may also want to check other four year schools as transfer targets for the CS major.

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Thanks for that response, it was very helpful. I will be taking MTH 174 and CSC 202, at least, next semester before transferring. That sounds like a good plan, I was just worried they may look at the AS General Studies as being “less-than” for some reason, since it is typically, well, “general”.

You seem very knowledgeable about GMU @ucbalumnus, did you just do the research or did you or someone you know go there? Is there a reason you suggested to check other schools for a transfer target for the CS major? Just curious. I was choosing GMU primarily based on CS ranking and tuition cost. I think the only one really close to that is UVA.

I’m curious also about the EGR 265 (Digital Electronics and Logic Design). It’s on the transfer guide (https://admissions.gmu.edu/TransferGuide/?program=cs_bs) as ECE L301, but only when combined with CS 206. By itself on the GMU transfer credit search engine, it’s just listed as “ECE —” elective.

I know that ECE 301 is part of the 3rd semester classes at GMU, but will it transfer by itself? It adds $700 plus 250 for the book/access code, and I’m not sure it’s worth it if it’s only an ECE elective, leaving me to just take that class again at GMU, ya know?

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Hey Jadamb,

I am a Computer Science student that just graduated from NVCC and will be going to George Mason in a couple months (Spring 2016). So, I know what I am talking about. I have been dealing with this transfer crap for two years now. I will give you some advice to help you get your AS from NVCC. I would like to know which classes will you need to take next semester in order to complete your degree. What I would suggest if you haven’t taken MTH 285, 286 (take Chouinard) and 277, I would remain at NVCC if needed and take them because not only will it be two-three times more expensive at Mason, but the professors at Mason are much harsher with their grades (if that matters to you). In addition, you should also take an extra science if you can. NVCC requires only 2 science classes for its degree while George Mason requires three (Two in a row BIO 101 + 102, and an extra science CHM 111 for example). However, if you do not want to stay the extra semester, you could take CSC 202 and 205 in the same semester and get out. I know NVCC says CSC 202 is a prerequisite to 205, however it is a bunch of crap. CSC 202 is a programming class while CSC 205 is just a general knowledge class about the inner working of the computer (what a CPU is, function of RAM, binary to hexadecimal conversion, discrete math, using logic gates, etc), which requires no prior knowledge. Half of my peers actually took CSC 202 at the same time as CSC 205. I asked them how and they said they talked to Daniel Fransell, who was (might still be) the department head of Computer Science at the Annadale campus. Just talk to him and ask him to get permission to take 202 + 205 at the same time so you can get your degree on time. I would also suggest you get your CS degree from NVCC first so you can go though George Mason’s GAA (Guaranteed Admission Agreement). If you do not go though the GAA, a good amount of your credits will not be transferred over.