Help for a reformed hellraiser...

Transfer Students
1

<p>Hello all,</p>

<p>I am interested in transfering to Drexel University in Philadelphia. I am currently enrolled at Southern Illinois University college in Carbondale, IL. The school here is terrible and I really dislike the whole area. I miss living in an urban area. I am from Chicago and being out in the middle of nowhere is kind of a culture shock for me. </p>

<p>I am hoping to transfer to a more prestigious school and to an urban area outside of IL. I want to find a school that does not require a car, is in an environment that does not get so hot or humid, and is going to allow me to have fun while I am there. </p>

<p>A little history of myself may be in order. </p>

<p>I am 24 (25 in September), hispanic male. Neither of my parents are college graduates and my mother is a high school dropout. Both of my younger sisters are in college. One is studying art at the local community college and the other is a grad student in engineering at Purdue university. I am the black sheep of the family (or was). </p>

<p>I have a 3.098 GPA at my current school. This is a big improvement over my highschool GPA which was somewhere along the lines of one point something or other. IT was low and I was a hellraiser in high school. I had been thrown out of high school 9 times. I went to emotionally disturbed schools, learning disabled schools, and behavior disorder schools. Eventually I went to a state run military school and I got kicked out of that. I maybe able to get a few letters of recomendation from some of the teachers who liked me (hard to believe there were any) both in college and high school. </p>

<p>As I stated earlier I have a 3.098 GPA. I am a sociology major and can probably finangle a letter of recoomendation from a teacher I had. The problem was that she was a grad student and I am worried that this will affect how seriously other schools take her. </p>

<p>I also have another teacher who has a few contacts at the school I am most interested in (Drexel). Me and him got into a quite a few heated debates in class and argued over a lot. However I got the impression that he liked me (He also insulted me personally and I have a few supportive witnesses but overall I think he liked that I would argue with him) as I recieved an A in his class.</p>

<p>Both of them were sociology teachers and proffessors. I have passed all of my Sociology classes with As and Bs. I have 48 credits and most of them are general education credits. Math, English, and electives. </p>

<p>I failed one class. It was a Zoology 115 class that I recieved an F in (I simply did not want to get up that early). I retook the class and my school put it on as a Plant BIology Class which I recieved a B in. It was the exact class but the teacher was different. I am going to ask the school if there is any way to take the course I failed out and keep only the one I passed on my transcripts and/or GPA. </p>

<p>The schools I am interested in are:</p>

<p>Drexel in Philadelphia
Temple in Philladelphia
University of Washington at Seattle
University of Nevada at Las Vegas
Illinois State University
University of Texas at Austin
University of Miami
University of Florida</p>

<p>Thanks to all who reply.</p>

2

<p>What about Villanova as well?</p>

3

<p>I think you have a pretty good range of schools there - some reach-y, some not so, which is good.</p>

<p>Re the grad student teacher - if she was a TA in a class where there was also a prof, it is not unusual for the TA and prof to collaborate on the recommendation: the TA knows you better and can write more about you; the prof and TA can both sign.</p>

4

<p>She was the teacher. My mistake if I gave the impression she was anything less. Which schools are a reach?</p>

5

<p>UT-Austin is a bit of a reach</p>

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<p>What would you suggest doing to make it more likely I would get in? I may be able to get my GPA changed to about a 3.2 with them taking the biology class off.</p>

<p>And would Drexel or Temple be a bit of a reach? They are the ones that really top my list.</p>

7

<p>Villanova and University of Miami would be reaches. </p>

<p>For transfer students at University of Miami the average undergraduate gpa was a 3.4 at the time of transfer.</p>

8

<p>Drexel and Temple don't seem like reaches for you, from what I can see, Gatman. Their recent transfer acceptance rates were 65% and 86%, respectively; minimum college GPA's 2.5 and 2.3. I think you've targeted well, in focusing on those two. If you Google Common Data Set and each school's name, you might find more info re transfer stats.</p>

<p>I suggest you spend some time on their websites (if you can't visit, and even if you can). Dig deep into their Sociology Depts to find aspects they're really proud of, profs whose research and teaching interests match yours, etc. Dig around for the kind of things that not everyone knows about the school's atmosphere, ECs, future plans etc. All of these can help you write the best possible essay on "Why Drexel/Temple."</p>

<p>Re the grad student teacher: I'm not seeing that as an issue. I don't think the schools are looking for the credentials or importance of the instructors who write your recs. They're looking for a college level instructor's observations of you as a student. She'll sign the rec (I presume) with her name and teaching title, "Jane Doe, Lecturer", "Jane Doe, Instructor" or whatever.<br>
Good luck.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the information jmmom. I have 2 letters of recommendation from a grad student teaching in the Sociology department and 2 letters of recomendation from a Department head in the Sociology department. </p>

<p>Now the big question is Drexel, Temple, or Villanoa? What about U of Washington?</p>

10

<p>I'm going to agree with the grad-student rec... it would be just fine... I also find that most grad students are a lot more passionate about teaching and really take notice when students apply themselves... this person may write you a great letter. Anyway, as per your past... everyone makes mistakes and Unis know that. I think you're going to have to write a killer essay, but, fortunate for you... you have some excellent material to write about. Let them know you've made mistakes, don't hide any of this, and let them know (as you've done with us) that you are now out to get back on the right track. I think it will make you a very diverse and interesting candidate.</p>

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<p>Thanks.</p>

<p>I contacted both teachers and they agreed to write letters of recomendation for me. I will be applying to Drexel and Temple. If I get them to fix my GPA by taking the class I failed out of the calculation I should bring my GPA up to a 3.2 by my guesstimation. </p>

<p>Do you think that this will help my chances of getting into Villanova? Or U of Washington?</p>

12

<p>Bump. </p>

<p>Anyone able to say whether I have a shot at U of Washington or not?</p>

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<p>Gatman - Villanova has a transfer acceptance rate of 49% - not bad. I couldn't find stats on typical college GPA for transfers. Still, I think it's a reach for you, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't try for it. Most everyone has some reaches on their list. U Washington at Seattle has a 41% transfer acceptance rate (also not bad) and minimum college of GPA of 2.5. I certainly think you have a fair shot there.</p>

<p>I think you have a balanced list and I don't think anyone can really tell you too much about your chances (most of the chances threads throughout cc don't really add up to much real information, anyway). We all desperately want to know our/our kids' chances. But you just have to go for it.</p>

<p>If you can afford the app fees (or get waivers) and do the work/essays for your full list, then go for the full list. If not, narrow it down to your two favorites, a reach or two you would love, and at least one slam-dunk safety. Preferably, the safety should be rolling admissions - get the app in early, get a fairly early response and relax while waiting to hear from the others.</p>

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<p>First off, congrats on changing your direction and making better decisions for your future, that's a noble accomplishment... keep it up.</p>

<p>As for UW, unless you love tons of rain, I wouldn't go to U Washington... my friend had an awesome job in Seattle with Microsoft, but the rain depressed him so bad that he had to quit the job ($60k/year salary) and move to a better climate. Drexel is probably a better climate..</p>

<p>I think you may like UNLV too, and it is a safety for you.</p>

<p>Anyways, U Washington is a 52% acceptance on transfers so you would have a great shot there.</p>

15

<p>Griff - I am always on the lookout for good data on transfer acceptance rates, stats etc. Your # for UW is different from mine - mine was from USN&WR Premium online and is probably a bit out of date. What source did you use? Thanks.</p>

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<p>I used collegeboard.com and looked the school up, then went to the "admissions" tab, scrolled to transfers and divided the accepted number by the number of applications. It could be off.</p>

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<p>I love the rain. I will apply to U of WA again.</p>

18

<p>Nova, Club Miami and UFlorida are reaches. I'd apply to as many as possible since you don't have a clear-cut No. 1. </p>

<p>IMPORTANT:</p>

<p>Make your essays unique for each school noting how that university will help you achieve your academic/career goals. Personal Message me if you neeed any help.</p>

19

<p>Thanks for the advice NDFrea7. </p>

<p>The schools I am most interested in are:</p>

<p>Temple
U of Washington in Seattle (either day or evening programs)
Drexel
U of Nevada at Las Vegas</p>

<p>Not sure which one but Temple or U of WA are the ones I am really looking at. I will apply U of WA once I get the GPA raised by taking the failed class off of it.</p>

20

<p>Bump. Anybody think Temple is out of reach? And how would I increase my chances of getting into Villanova?</p>