Here's the scoop on "Bridge" program

Colleges and Universities A-Z Clemson University
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<p>Ok so we sat through the Bridge and Clemson tours and now I know what the program is about. Well as much as you can know from taking a tough look at the program from the perspective of a parent (AKA investor)!<br>
First thoughts:
The program briefing was good with both a Clemson coordinator and TCTC spokesperson explaining the program in detail. They answered question for as long as they were asked during and after the brief. Statistics were provided to show that about 75% of bridge students are making (or on track) to graduate from Clemson. Interestingly 90% of student who do bridge over to Clemson will (again or are on track) graduate, this is about the same rate as regular Clemson students. Include in this the fact that several students transferred to school other than Clemson or decided to stay at TCTC for a second year.</p>

<p>Good tour of TCTC nice campus that seems typical of most two year colleges I have been too, and let me say that would be in excess of 30 due to a job I once held. It was not awesome nor was it hideous. The staff seemed friendly and the overall layout and classrooms looked to be in good shape, some remodeling was going but general condition of building was nice with most seeming to be fairly new (less than 10-20 years old).</p>

<p>Highpointe Apts were nothing short of AWESOME, my son and his friend’s exact word. The Clubhouse was nothing less than what you would expect at a high end Apt complex. The amenities were exceptional and the topper was the fact that there were two tanning beds, OMG! The 24 hour security at the gate would seem to be an added bonus but then again I would guess there is very little crime in the Clemson area to begin with. Apts themselves were nice with large rooms and baths for each student. Washer and dryer in your Apt were nice too, as well as the fact the whole place was wireless and each room has Cat5 connection. All in all a quite impressive living arrangement! In fact we found out that you can in fact stay there after you finish Bridge and transfer to Clemson. Rate stays the same you just have to move another building </p>

<p>Tour of Clemson: No need to go into detail here on this as most have likely done one or can read about it in other threads. Will point out that our group of mostly Bridge students (15ish of the 20 or so kids) all giggled at the one dorm room we saw. It would be hard to live like that after seeing Highpointe. In fact my son, having now seen several different colleges dorm tours, no longer want to ever live in a dorm. One other thing I found interesting was the fact that the tour guide was moving off campus next year (her junior year), she seem to really love the school but also seemed very excited at moving out on her own.
Conclusions: If you are lucky enough to get into the “Bridge” program then you are basically a Clemson student with access to almost all things Clemson from health care to tutoring services. Your chances of graduating Clemson are no different than incoming freshmen once you complete your 1st year. The program is still very exclusive, only 550 spots for the 2000 offers made from the 16,000 plus apps to Clemson. Our tour group had a kid who was accepted to VA Tech for Engineering and Bridge (Engineering) at Clemson. The students all have majors that they can transfer into Clemson with no extra work or consideration but they also have the chance to change major just like any other Clemson student.
All in all if you are lucky enough to get the offer it seem like a very good program that will save you a lot of money your first year of school.</p>

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<p>Good to hear UpstatersDad.</p>

<p>There is a facebook group for the Clemson Bridge program where current Bridge Program students are answering questions if you have any: [url=<a href=“http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=315410817129&topic=11791]Questions”>http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=315410817129&topic=11791]Questions</a> about the Bridge Program | Facebook<a href=“question/answer%20thread”>/url</a></p>

<p>[url=<a href=“Facebook Public Group | Facebook”>Facebook Public Group | Facebook]Clemson</a> University Bridge Program: Class of 2014 | Facebook<a href=“main%20group%20page”>/url</a></p>

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<p>Found your discussion about the program very interesting as my son just received his offer and accepted. He has attended Clemson games since he was little so its his dream to go to Clemson. I think the program will keep him focused on his studies. And Highpointe looks like heaven. I did a rough estimate of the program costs and it seemed to me that it was cost about $13M excluding food, books and gas. Does that seem right to you? I would imagine that the Info Session will address but just wanted to get your opinion.</p>

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<p>Highpointe is expensive though, but it’s a great place to live!</p>

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<p>A friend of mine who attends Clemson told me today that future bridge program students after the completion of their freshman year have to spend the remainder of their time, once at Clemson in the dorm. I was wondering if students who in fact do “cross the bridge” have to live on campus for sophomore, junior, and senior years?</p>

6

<p>not that I’m aware of? Clemson students (and that’s what bridge students will become after they cross the bridge) are only required to live on campus their freshman year so if you do have to live on campus it would probably only be your sophomore year (if at all, I doubt you would have to live on campus but I’m not a bridge student)</p>

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<p>It seems that this website is the only one where I could review the Bridge to Clemson program. I just want to repel students away from the program the best I can. I would invite users of the site to email me with any questions. I am currently in the Bridge program in my second semester and I wish I had known plenty of things before commiting. I promise I am not biased in any way. I currently have a 4.0 at TCTC and have no reason to have angst towards the program. However, I deeply regret my decision and would have taken a much different path. </p>

<p>Before joining the program, prospective students are misled about how their Bridge experience will be. The biggest mistake is thinking that students in the program actually visit Clemson. They don’t. Highpointe is not very far from Clemson distance-wise but unless you want to drive (have fun finding a parking spot at any time of day), the bus is very inconvenient. The bus only goes to and from Clemson once per hour. So if you go to Clemson for anything, plan on spending the full hour there because if you go there to eat, you will most likely be waiting for 30 minutes. They will tell you that you are no different than a Clemson student but that is very far from the truth. Bridge students have many, many restrictions. From entering buildings that only current Clemson student ID’s get into, to joining clubs that Bridge students are not allowed in (there are many of these, sport clubs and intramurals as well), I promise you will not feel equal. From my observations, most Bridge kids do not go to Clemson’s campus for any reason ever. It is a complete waste to purchase a meal plan because it is simply way too inconvenient to use it. You just don’t feel like wasting an hour and 10 minutes to go eat when you can just make something at home. </p>

<p>One of the reasons that I thought Bridge was appealing was because of price. I was very wrong. If you are considering Bridge, look at the fees. I promise you will not pay very much more to go to another state school you are already accepted to. Tri-County has extremely high demand so they are able to charge prices that people will pay for their classes. More than many tech schools I have ever seen. The fees to live at Highpointe are just insane. You sign a lease that is not even a year long (8 months, because you are literally kicked out during the full Christmas break as well as summer). It is roughly $6000 for the 8 months you receive for the 2012-2013 year. By my calculations, this breaks down to $750 a month! This is just unheard of for even the best apartments in the area. I could go to any other apartment in the area and rent two rooms for the price of that for the entire year without all of the ridiculous restrictions that Highpointe puts on you. At University Village, a popular apartment complex in the area, rent is $385 with everything included. Please, whatever you do, do not be fooled when you take the tour of Highpointe. Highpointe does have visually appealing apartments but they are very cheaply made. I have had to call maintenance for at least 5 different things during the duration of my stay. The water is absolutely filthy, disgusting, I don’t even know what to call it. The water in the kitchen is pure white, and the water in the bathrooms will turn your shower straight black within a week of cleaning it. The water situation is one of the worst parts. The absolute worst part though is the ceilings. If the neighbor above you opens a cabiniet, you hear it, if they walk or talk, you hear it. I am waiting for the moment when our vertical neighbors fall through the ceiling into our room. </p>

<p>For privacy reasons I will not go into detail about this incident but I had a friend accidentally break a part of something that I could have gone to Lowes and easily fixed for $10. Leaving details out, they said if certain things happened, they were going to charge me $800 to fix it! If it had come to that I would have had no options but to take them to court over it. The actual maintenance staff is very cool and helpful though.</p>

<p>I haven’t had much experience with the clubhouse at all but I know many people use it to visit the gym and study in groups. From what I have heard, it is a nice place to go.</p>

<p>The bridge staff is helpful and will try their best to help you if you have a problem.</p>

<p>Wrapping things up, honestly I believe Bridge would only be right for you if you truly think you will have a very difficult time transferring in otherwise. When Bridge eventually moves onto Clemson’s campus, it will be a different story. Tri-County is not that difficult. My high school was much more difficult and challenging than TCTC. I know that had I not gone to Bridge, I would still have been able to transfer in to TCTC and saved plenty of money along the way. I will be honest and say that the restrictions they place on you relating to “recreational activities” are challenging. I know because I do my fair share of those. However, the Bridge kids are completely wild and I cannot support the restrictions more. Cars have been stolen, there has been vandalism, and people have even been kicked out for growing marijuana in their bedrooms. However, other restrictions such as not having candles, because of fire dangers are unheard of anywhere else. They will look through EVERYTHING when you are away and can do so at any time. This to me is simply unconstitutional whether you sign a lease or not. Even 4-year college dorms do not do that. I will say that prospective students should look at their SAT/GPA and seriously consider whether they can handle Bridge and/or Clemson. I know plenty of students who were let into the Bridge engineering/computer science programs only to find out they cannot even handle TCTC’s classes let alone Clemson’s. Needless to say, I highly advise against the Bridge Program, feel free to email if you have any questions.</p>

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<p>I think jones102 makes some good points - overall I feel that the Bridge program is the route to go only if you are absolutely sure that you want to go to Clemson (and you wouldn’t want to go somewhere else). Definitely feels like it would be a waste of money for someone from out-of-state but that’s just my personal opinion. It is definitely something you have to think about before you decide to commit to the program.</p>

<p>Highpointe is not anywhere close to Clemson and yes it is inconvenient to people who don’t have a car (and parking at Clemson without a parking pass is a hassle) - there is a shuttle from Highpointe but like Jones said, it isn’t exactly convenient either. That being said, you don’t have a lot of interaction with Clemson students as well since you are not taking classes there nor is there a lot of reason to be there. Don’t think I know of any buildings outside of Fike Recreation Center where you have to show your student ID to get in…also you probably can’t join intramural or club sports teams but I don’t see why you can join other student organizations as well (nobody in the ones I’m in ask if you are a bridge student).</p>

<p>Yes, there are some pretty hefty fees involved with the Bridge To Clemson program (probably as Jones mentioned, they can) - it might even be worth attending another state school, getting good grades and transferring back to Clemson than taking classes at a tech/community college. As for Highpointe, there’s got to be some deal there between Clemson and the developer of Highpointe (Tom Winkopp). It is expensive but on the other hand, it isn’t much more expensive than living in an on-campus apartment. I lived in Lightsey Bridge II last year and I think I paid $6,000-7,000/year.</p>

<p>I know some people who have lived at Highpointe for a while. Never heard any complaints about the water, definitely have above noises from people living above them. It seems that they enjoy living there though so that’s all I can comment about that. And yes I have also heard that the Bridge students at Highpointe can be crazy and out of control.</p>

<p>“Wrapping things up, honestly I believe Bridge would only be right for you if you truly think you will have a very difficult time transferring in otherwise.”
Think this statement sums it up nicely. I don’t think everyone should automatically run away from the Bridge program as I know many people who have been successful Bridge students and have now graduated from Clemson but it’s definitely not for everyone and be careful to think about what has been mentioned here and evaluate if that’s what you want for your freshman year experience.</p>

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<p>Hi! I got accepted into the bridge program, and I really want to go to Clemson. However, I have read and heard many different things about the program. My main question is… Would I be able to transfer into Clemson fairly easily if I went to Greenville Tech for a year and met the same credit hour and GPA requirements?</p>

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<p>well the GPA requirement for the Bridge Program is a 2.5 GPA and that’s pretty low - Clemson wants a 3.0 GPA + for transfers. To be honest if you are at Greenville Tech and you can’t make a higher GPA than a 3.0 then you probably shouldn’t be at Clemson. I don’t think it’s too difficult to transfer in otherwise. Just do your best.</p>