OK guys. I’m a Junior in HS trying to make a college list.
Preview of Me (Number wise and stuff like that):
GPA: 3.69
New SAT and ACT: TBD
SAT 2: Biology - 680 (Plan to retake in October), Math 2 - Plan to take
Grades: A’s and B’s with one C
Courses: 3 years of Art, AP Language and Comp., 3 yrs Spanish, 4 yrs Science, AP Psychology, 3 yrs History
State: New Jersey
Extra C’s: 5 years in same club, NHS
Volunteer: 2 years tutoring, 1 year assistant teaching, 1 year Red Cross, 1 year Hospital, a lotta things in between
I’m extremely interested in going into medicine, mainly research but I’d also like to practice. I’m pretty passionate about neuroscience and ways to help the general population using neuroscience. I want to work for a non-profit too maybe. I also love kids.
I want to get a Ph.D at some point. I prefer DO over MD.
I used to live in Cali and would like to go back there.
I need the location to be safe.
Based on this li’l summary of me, do you guys have any suggestions as to where I should go or what more I should do?
Anything anywhere is great. Don’t hold back 
Plan my life as if it were yours please.
Oh ya. I’m an Indian Muslim girl, if that helps in any way.
Thanks sooo much!!! You guys are a BIG help
Oooh. Here’s my current list (Not in any special order):
- McGill University
- UC Davis
- UC Irvine
- California Northstate University
- St. George’s University
- Rutgers University - New Brunswick
- Mills College
- Cornell University
- Brown University
- Farleigh Dickinson University
- Santa Clara University
No one can say much without tests scores. What is your financial situation?
I’m depending on scholarships. My financial situation is a little complicated so FAFSA won’t help too much. If I get accepted to a state school out of state I plan to do community college one year to establish residency.
My PSAT was 1430 if that helps.
I got a 2000 on the old SAT
UC Davis and Irvine do not offer financial aid for OOS students and unless you are in the top 1% of applicants, offer little merit aid. GPA looks a bit low for these schools. I would not waste an application fee if these schools are unaffordable at $55K/year. UC’s are very GPA focused so unless you have a UC GPA of 4.0+, they will be slight reach to reaches.
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
OP: You cannot establish state residency for UC tuition purposes in California while attending community college here. I mention that only because you noted that you would like to return.
McGill gives no need based aid to internationals and your GPA and SAT are too low for merit aid. Being in a state to attend college does NOT give you in state residency in any state.
So you plan on getting a Ph.D AND a medical degree?
As noted by @AboutTheSame stated that if you come to CA for education purposes such as attending a CCC, you will not be able to establish residency. Also, UC’s accept Junior level transfers (60 semester/90 quarter units) so you are looking at around 2 years of CCC to transfer.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/transfer/preparing-admission/minimum-requirements/index.html
http://ucop.edu/residency/establishing-residency.html
Every school has a net price calculator on their website. Run that, and you will see that much of your list may be unaffordable. You can’t just establish residency by going to CC in another state, especially California. Plus, you can’t go to CC after an acceptance and then just accept your previous admission. They expect you to attend after accepting their offer, not go off to another school (including CC).
You need to learn more about admissions and financial aid. If you cannot qualify for need based aid, you need to figure out affordable options. Those are either through scholarships (usually at schools where your stats are really on the high end) or in-state schools for your state of residency. You should look at the guaranteed merit thread (but none are in California).
http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/
Just to clear up, I will be permanently moving to California for senior year or afterwards. Not for educational purposes but because of a family situation.
If you and family move, you are in a totally different situation. But if you move and start community college the same year (even if family moves), I think it would still be very up in the air. The UC regulations are very detailed and very confusing, Heck, I’m a lawyer, and I can’t figure out the answer half the time.
Go here: http://www.ucop.edu/residency/
You really need to read up on the residency requirements posted above. It doesn’t matter that you were a previous resident. The term “educational purposes” is described in the residency requirements noted by @Gumbymom and @AboutTheSame. You really need to read those requirements. The reason for your move doesn’t matter to the California public schools. If you move before senior year, there is a specified requirement.
Any time a student comes to California with an OOS HS transcript, the California colleges assume OOS tuition. Especially if your parents haven’t been paying California taxes. If you go directly to a college after moving to California, the colleges note “educational purposes” as the primary reason for your attendance.
The State of California is very savvy in the rules for residency because every OOS student tries to get in-state residency. Going to a CC for community college for 1 year won’t work because the UCs and Cal States won’t accept sophomore transfers, and with an OOS transcript, these public schools will require that you pay OOS fees.