<p>I'm at a CC in California and I have strong ambitions of transferring to CalTech. Unfortunately, I recently got a B in trig, but only because I was undergoing some mental health problems and it was literally impossible to put my best foot forward...how do I handle this? Should I just forget about CalTech and shoot for something else?</p>
<p>EventHorizon,
No I don’t think it wil ruin your chances. However, you must understand that in general it is very difficult to transfer from some other university/CC to Caltech - but if you are really ambitious, you should work very hard to achieve your ambition.
Here is one way of doing it: Of course, you must study very hard to pass the transfer exam. On the top of that, the admission committee is looking for students with passion in science and/or mathematics. Is there any way that you can start some research problems with a professor in your CC or at some other close-by university? If you can write a small paper, and/or present at a local or national conference, it will boost your application for sure. Good luck with your quest, but getting a “B” alone does not ruin your chances. Still, try not to get too many B’s or C’s while at CC.</p>
<p>More concern than the B is the course level. What was the last math course you took in high school? Generally I would say that most freshman applicants have had AP Calculus or beyond.</p>
<p>Hi everyone, thank you so much for your responses! </p>
<p>I graduated high school in 2008 but at that time science was not the educational path I was after, so this is like a second chance type thing. I had algebra 1 and then in CC i continued that.</p>