Hello, all. I completed my BA in History at a SUNY several years ago. I realize now that I forced myself through at a time when I probably wasn’t ready for college. I had a number of personal issues I hadn’t even realized I had until some time after I completed my Bachelor’s. I had grown up in a broken home and it affected me more deeply than I realized. I mostly attended school to stay away from home. I hadn’t internalized many foundations of basic academic subjects such as math because I didn’t have a safe or quiet space to study at home. I didn’t study for the SAT because I was so depressed I didn’t see the point of it. I was sleepwalking.
I want to start over. I’m not happy with my outcome. My GPA and alma mater were fine, but I don’t believe they’re reflective of me putting my best foot forward. I think they reflect the really dire state I was in at the time and it bothers me deeply.
I’ve been tutoring high school students in SAT/ACT math and verbal in the past year, and I think I’m a better student than I gave myself credit for in high school. That said, I don’t know where to start over, because most selective schools’ undergrad programs I’ve looked at (all of the Ivies plus the UC system) flatly reject any applicant who already have completed a Bachelor’s. I’m losing my mind because it seems unfair and I actually think I’d have done better to withdraw from college and take a deep breath, but I didn’t feel safe doing so. Please help me find my first steps because I know the stakes now. I want to perform well, I want to at least have the opportunity to apply to more competitive schools, and to have access to more programs and a more robust alumni network.
I’ve been told to look at “graduate work” such as Masters programs, but I don’t know if that’s the solution, or if those programs will provide me the opportunities I’d have had if I could just start undergraduate over again.
SUNY is a great school, so the fact that you were accepted out of HS and did well in college suggests to me that you are a strong student. Even more impressive is that you did this while going through some hard times. That isn’t easy.
You can’t go back. You can only go forward. Focus on the road ahead of you. Is there a subject you’ve developed a passion for that you want to study in an academic setting? Then consider grad school.
Is it just that you feel like you underachieved based on your real potential? Well, goodness, there are so many ways to challenge and prove yourself and to excel. What is your profession/career goal? Are there any relevant professional credentials you could study for? Or training for a higher level of your profession? What do you want to? There are always ways to be the best version of yourself no matter your past. But I don’t think you achieve that by going backwards - which is what you are suggesting.
Many colleges offer career planning and job search services to alumni. Maybe start there.
It sounds like you may be stuck on needing to “decide what you want to be when you grow up.” Remember many people change careers a few times in their lifetime. Your undergrad degree does not define you or limit you. There are professional, less selective masters degrees that offer better options than programs that allow for a 2nd BA/BS. You can also take a college class once in a while just out of interest not working towards a degree.
There is a huge demand for teachers right now and lots of pathways with free courses and supports in different school districts and states. Some even offer free masters degree courses. It sounds like you may have some interest in that area and may find it fulfilling to try to motivate our young people to make good choices.
You can also help yourself by volunteering or doing an internship (though some are for college students). Is your current tutoring paid? Do you have a paid job right now? Are you interested in working with a historical organization?
In the end I don’t think your college is going to make that much difference. I understand completely how you feel but you finished, did “fine” and that is all you need.
A lot of grads go through a transitional period (sometimes working for Starbucks or Whole Foods or waiting on tables) and it is difficult but keep going!
You have a BA in history. College is OVER. You cannot go back and re-do college at a highly selective school, for whatever your reasons. It is just not going to happen, nor should it.
Consider your career goals. You’re tutoring math and verbal for the SAT/ACT. Maybe you should become a teacher? You could get a master’s degree in education, and have a career, help some kids, earn an ok living, have a pension, have summers off to travel.
You’re an adult, a college grad. Your desire to go back to re-do college at a more selective school is a bit akin to the people who want to go back to high school in order to be popular cheerleaders or athletes. Look forward, toward work and career - and if that involves a master’s or professional graduate degree, sure, but let go of this idea to go back to undergrad. It is not possible.
What are your interests? My advice is to do some volunteering, decide what you would like to do, and go back to school for a masters. Do you have an interest in teaching?
Just curious about the various posts to explore new interests via a masters. How would that work if the masters degree is in a field where the bachelor’s didn’t provide the necessary pre-requisites?
OP hasn’t shared a plan, but one could get masters degrees in many subjects with a bachelors in history- education, law, MBA, etc… If prerequisites are required, classes could easily be taken through extension classes.
Well the problem is that you have been searching for undergrad programs that aren’t applicable to your situation. You are not an entering freshman. You’ve “been there and done that”.
You’ve already received your degree. Redoing your Bachelors’ degree isn’t going to help you. It doesn’t restart again since you are a different person and so are the undergrad new students.
Trying to get into the elites now, as an undergrad, for a redo, will be difficult.
I know that the UC’s are subsidized by the state’s residents and their purpose is to fund students for their first degrees. The UCs are mandated to get the state’s residents into the universities, and then to get them out of the universities in a timely and efficient manner.
Go check out the university career center and ask about furthering your education as a graduate student. Or, do the “open university” at your local state U. You don’t have to be a registered student and you can take classes until you find one area that suits you.
As for doing a repeat, you need to have an idea, in mind, for what you hope to build with your current degree.
In what way did you mess up? You earned a degree in history. That’s a great achievement! SUNY is a fine school, and they didn’t just hand you a diploma for no reason.
I agree with @parentologist totally. Please adjust your thinking and move forward by pursuing a Master’s degree.
If you want to start over with a new BA program, you can do so, but not at especially selective schools. But you can. I teach at a university that allows a fast-track second BA for students who want to shift gears or, like you, were not satisfied with what/how they did the first time around. We offer these students a second BA with an exemption from all General Studies coursework – essentially, you get a second BA with just major and minor course work, so it takes about two years or less. I haven’t checked, but I’m positive that students have to pick a new major and minor (they can’t repeat earlier degree programs). I’m sure other schools do this, but I don’t know which ones. My university (Metropolitan State University of Denver) is not one you hear about on CC, but we do have a strong regional reputation, and we have a history of finding ways to help non-traditional students reach their goals at a low cost. You need to find a school that embraces a similar mission.
One of the best students I’ve ever had in decades of teaching took this track. He had gotten a BA in a field that no longer interested him, and his first college experience was lackluster. But in the years following graduation, he discovered a discipline he loved, taught himself a lot about disciplinary methods, applied to our program, got a second BA, and ended up in a selective and highly ranked Ph.D. program in his new discipline. So it is possible. But I recommend looking for universities with special programs for expedited second BAs if you’re going to do this. And if you can get admitted to a graduate program in a discipline of your choice with your original degree, I’d pick that option.
Also – if you are interested in teaching, you can find post-Bac programs that just focus on helping you earn your teaching credentials, assuming your undergraduate program covered the content requirements for a teaching degree in your desired subject area. You could do this in an MA program, but it’s cheaper and faster to find a post-Bac teaching certification program (and then you can get the MA later). And if you need to take more classes in required content areas, you can do so within these programs.
Just chiming in to agree with the others in recommending that you look for graduate programs in your area of interest that fit your academic profile and move forward in a positive direction.
True, though it depends upon the state. Teacher ed programs are a mixed bag, to be sure, but one advantage is that they build in a lot of opportunities for field experience/observation/student teaching, whereas alternative pathways tend to offer less practice time because they are fast-tracked.
When did you graduate? Why do you want to go back to undergrad? As others said, it will be a different experience for an older student, and with a solid degree under your belt there are other directions you can take. Perhaps consider getting some career counseling that includes completing interest inventories to help direct you. Good luck.
Both accept students of nontraditional backgrounds with programs towards a bachelors degree. I know that Columbia GS allows prior bachelors degrees. Not sure about Penn.