Hey, I’m just recently getting back into school and trying to figure everything out. I’ve chosen to pursue a degree in Finance, and I would like to get into a competitive school to further my chances of success. I thought I had all the tools available to get my GPA back on track, but after talking to my counselor, my ignorance has been exposed. I was under the impression that I would be able to retake classes that I had passing grades in "B’'s "C"s and the new/improved grade would be recognized, but it just doesn’t work like that. Also, Academic Renewal, a process in CA that removes sub-par grades, apparently is only really recognized within CA and not really recognized outside of it. So, I’ll just go over myself in the past and current situation and hope that someone might have any relevant advice. I’m really putting in a lot of effort and I keep getting negative feedback on my situation the more I research, and it’s becoming a little discouraging. So I’m just hoping for more information to better define my situation and come up with a new game plan going forward.
In the past: I went to CC right after highschool because it was either that or get a job, and I took, what I viewed to be, the easier route. I eventually stopped going after 2 semesters because I wasn’t really motivated and just started working. I got back into school a year later after solidifying what I wanted to do and was really motivated, doing well in my classes. However, after a semester, I found out my girlfriend was pregnant. I tried sticking with it, but had to keep dropping out randomly through the semester because I just didn’t have my financial situation stabilized and was just learning how to incorporate being a father into my life.
Currently: Just got back into school, I’m taking 19 units of course-specific prereqs while working full time and being a father. My GPA, after Academic Renewal, is at 3.5. I used a GPA calculator to calculate that my GPA would be at a 3.77 if I continued to get A’s for the next 3 semesters/60 units, I plan to take a class during Summer/Winter every term. It will be difficult, I’m mainly worried about my math courses up until Calc II, but I’m keeping on top of everything. I just passed my first round of exams and have A’s in all my classes. I’ve never put this much into school and feel like I have what it takes to continue to get good grades. I had planned to retake classes and get my GPA up to a 4.0, but that’s not possible. I had delusional hopes of transferring into a top undergrad business program (Wharton, Stern, Stanford), but my path is a bit more narrow now. I’m specifically looking at UCLA Bus/Econ Program and UC Berkeley Econ.
So, like I said, I would really appreciate any relevant advice/criticism that you could just add on top of the questions that I have.
My questions:
- Does anyone know how much admissions takes into account upward grade trends?
- Does me having to work full time and not develop any extra EC's (joining a finance club, starting a business, volunteering) worsen my position? I can maybe scale back when I get financial aid next semester, but my situation doesn't allow for it right now.
- Are there any other competitive programs that I might have a realistic shot of getting into?
- Is there something I haven't touched upon that I should take into consideration/start focusing on?
- Does anyone have any experience with Academic Renewal outside of CA? If so, could you tell me a bit about your experience?
- How do you view my situation as it stands right now? Is there a chance, or should I focus on more realistic pursuits?
So, that’s basically it. Sorry for the wall of text, but I wanted to try and give as much information as possible in the pursuit of being accurate.Thank you for taking the time to read all of this.