In-state CC transfer chances? Low GPA...

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Washington
1

<p>Hey, Washington resident, Bellevue College student here looking to transfer to UW-Seattle in Fall or Summer.</p>

<p>Info:
I didn't do so well in high school because of laziness and a few obstacles I had to overcome. As soon as I turned 18, my parents forced me to pay rent while living at home on top of my own insurance plan, gas, phone bill, car repairs, etc.. Long story short, I didn't have a lot of money, so I was only able to take two classes per quarter for my first year at BC. I chose an electrical engineering direct transfer agreement, and loved it. I applied to Ohio State University, was admitted, but did not enroll because of the hefty $40,000/year price tag. Only thing is, I'm a little (actually a lot) worried about my gpa and whether or not I will get in...</p>

<p>Courses/grades:
Fall
-Precalculus, C
-Computer Science, B</p>

<p>Winter
-Calculus I, B-
-Advanced Computer Science, C+</p>

<p>Spring
-Calculus II, B
-English 101, B-</p>

<p>Summer
-Calculus III, B-</p>

<p>Fall (finally able to go to school full time)
-Calculus IV, B+
-Physics with calculus I, B
-French I (nothing else fit my schedule and I figured I could knock out an elective credit), C+ </p>

<p>I'm currently taking
-Calculus V (equivalent to Math 324 at UW)
-Linear Algebra
-Differential Equations</p>

<p>Work Experience:
Worked at a grocery store full time from June 2010 to present.</p>

<p>So far I'm doing well in these classes, I plan on finishing with good grades; however, my current GPA is a 2.68....which is abysmal. If all goes well and I get A's in each class, my GPA will be a 2.98...Still pretty bad. In my personal statement, I didn't hold anything back or try to sugar coat anything. I figured that talking to them like a realistic person would be the smartest option. By no means was I pessimistic, but I did write a lot about my experiences with working full time while going to school, taking on responsibilities that not all 18 year old kids had to, and having to work my butt off to make sure that I stayed in school. I wrote a lot about my personal financial hardships, personal reasons of why I had to miss classes (three deaths in the family in the same year), not giving up when outcomes looked grim, etc.</p>

<p>So, any help is appreciated.</p>

<p>Also, kind of a related question:
Since I was planning on attending OSU, but was ultimately unable to because of financial troubles, I was pressed for time with my application to UW. I completed the application, wrote the personal statement, and paid the fee on friday (two days ago)...and the deadline for all of the required materials is February 15th, this wednesday. I'm not sure about my transcripts though. My college transcripts from BC can be sent electronically, so I'm not worried about those, but I'm more worried about my high school transcripts. I don't know how long it will take to get those from my high school. If I do get them before the 15th, am I able to drive to the university and drop them off in person at the admissions office? If I don't get them before the 15th, am I completely screwed?</p>

<p>If I am screwed, I think I'd just transfer in the winter (EE majors can transfer even though public admission isn't open), but I'd like to know if I would be able to get that document in after the deadline.</p>

<p>Again, any help is GREATLY appreciated.</p>

2

<p>Honestly, things aren’t looking good. I’m not sure if any other factors can overcome a GPA that low. (Besides the fact that UW doesn’t like transfers from other colleges/universities… <em>community colleges are a different matter</em></p>

<p>Yes, you can drop off transcripts in person. Schmitz hall. There is pay parking on the side of the street out front</p>

3

<p>Yeah, that’s what I was worried about. Bellevue College used to be Bellevue Community College, but they started offering a 4-year degree in interior design and radiology, so they call themselves a “college” now.</p>

<p>Okay, and if I don’t get them in by the 15th…what happens? No chance? Paid the $60 fee for nothing?</p>

4

<p>I should add that I also listed Astronomy as my secondary major. I don’t know if I’d be more or less likely to get in for that.</p>

5

<p>Hi there! I understand that you are a Computer Science major? If so, it might be a bit hard to get into this department because it’s one of the most competitive in UW. However, admissions usually look at different things and your transcript isn’t everything.
Here: <a href=“http://admit.washington.edu/files/PDFs/CSCI.pdf[/url]”>http://admit.washington.edu/files/PDFs/CSCI.pdf&lt;/a&gt; you can see that in 2010 there were 3 people who got in with GPAs lower than 3.0 (and they were transfers). </p>

<p>Now, don’t worry about your transcripts, especially from your high school. I believe that what they look at is the post stamp - it should be before the deadline. Getting your transcript from high school is super easy - just go there one day and ask them for one. They should give you one for free in 10 minutes or so (at least that how it was at my school in Seattle). Then you can drop off your transcript at the admissions office or mail it via Priority mail (5 bucks).
Have you already made a request for a transcript from your college? If not, you better hurrrrry up! Right now they are busier than hell and it might take a while for them to process your request.
If something happens and UW doesn’t get your transcripts (they get lost or something), they should contact you and request what they need.
If you won’t get into Computer Science, you might be able to get into Astronomy, yes. Generally, if you get rejected from your major during transfer, you aren’t accepted to UW. But since you have listed a second-choice major, it should be fine. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

6

<p>Hi! First of all, thank you so much for replying! I am actually an Electrical Engineering major, so I don’t know how competitive that department is. I’ve heard from friends that it’s pretty competitive, but I’ve also heard that there were kids with 2.8 GPA’s in high school that have gotten in. My friend who’s enrolled in UW in their school of engineering has a 2.72 GPA, so that kind of brought my hopes up. I don’t have the required credits completed to be directly admitted into the major, so I’d be put under “pre-major” status. In other words, I’d still be a sophomore.</p>

<p>So If I have my application in, they will contact me after the 15th and tell me what I need, even though it is past the deadline? I will be calling them tomorrow to iron out all of the details about getting transcripts past the deadline. I ordered my college transcripts earlier today. With any hope, they should be out by tomorrow and at UW by tuesday. I will call them and make sure they know that I have ordered my transcripts.</p>

<p>If I am not able to get into the Electrical Engineering major, but I do get into Astronomy, am I able to change majors after a while? Or…gulp…double major? Are most physics majors alike when it comes to general requirements?</p>

<p>Again, if all else fails and they simply can’t take my transcripts after the 15th, I will continue at Bellevue until I can apply for the winter quarter at UW when they are not so busy.</p>

7

<p>bump!!!</p>

8

<p>Apply to UWT and UWB as well. Enjoy Tacoma. The Campus is beautiful.</p>

9

<p>I don’t really have money to apply to the regional campuses… UWT doesn’t offer an Electrical Engineering program, and UWB’s EE program is not yet accredited…</p>

10

<p>Wait, there’s some sort of secondary accreditation for EE that doesn’t apply to the UWB campus? I know the education, counseling and business programs at the B and T campuses have obtained secondary accreditation.</p>

11

<p>Yeah it’s not accredited by ABET yet. The program is modeled after programs that are accredited, but it’s not official.</p>

12

<p>Shoot. Well from what I just read (5-10 min of reading) it looks like if you trust the UW you should trust that UWB will get it. With such a low GPA, I’d reckon it would be worth the shot.</p>

13

<p>I really don’t know what to do. I go from feeling confident to completely overwhelmed with worry. I have been told it’s really a crapshoot with UW admissions (I mean…I know a person in high school that got in with a 2.8 GPA…), but if a 3.3 is considered a low GPA…then I don’t know if UW want’s anything to do with me. Sure my essay may be heartfelt, persuasive, and honest, but it doesn’t redeem that 2.68.</p>

<p>I don’t have enough completed prerequisites to directly enroll into the College of Engineering, so I don’t have to worry about getting into that just yet. If I did get in I would be put into the College of Arts and Sciences as a “Pre-Engineering” status to complete my required prerequisites. But every time I build up hope, I lose it when I start thinking that maybe I’m just not good enough to be an engineer, or for university. I know that if circumstances were different, and I didn’t have to work a full time job while going to school or if I didn’t have to constantly worry about paying bills, then I would be pulling better grades…but I just look at that number that I’ve “earned” and it just beats me up. I can’t say that I’m not proud of what I’ve accomplished so far, but I can say that it’s not the best academic performance that anyone has ever seen (and I even stated this in my personal statement).</p>

<p>I don’t have any more money to continue on with Bellevue for another quarter past spring. The application to UW sucked every last penny I had, then my registration for spring quarter put me over $500 in debt. If I had money, I would apply to UWB, but I don’t, and I’m still unsure that I would be accepted.</p>

14

<p>If you don’t have money, tell them that when you file the application and they will waive the fee and let you apply for free.</p>

<p>Go to UWB. Just know that if you can’t cut it you’ll find out quick.</p>

15

<p>So I pretty much have zero chance at UW-Seattle, huh? Not even for pre-engineering or a physics pre-major (even if physics is non-competitive)?</p>

<p>If I was to transfer to UW-Bothell, and did a couple quarters there to complete my prerequisites for the College of Engineering, would I be able to transfer to the UW-Seattle campus? Would my GPA be “reset” once I enter UW-Bothell?</p>

16

<p>“So I pretty much have zero chance at UW-Seattle, huh? Not even for pre-engineering or a physics pre-major (even if physics is non-competitive)?”</p>

<p>No, there is never “zero” chances. Don’t forget that the people working in Admissions are supposed to consider different circumstances, they are supposed to do a “comprehensive review”.</p>

17

<p>I guess that’s true. I just hope that they see past the GPA just a bit… Coming down with mono a couple weeks before finals isn’t helping either.</p>

<p>Since I don’t have enough prereq’s to transfer into the College of Engineering (yet), will they automatically put me under “pre-engineering” status when reviewing my application? I know this was the case with Ohio State University.</p>

<p>Also, when will decisions for summer 2012 transfers be mailed out?</p>

18

<p>I would ask that question of the people at UWB.</p>

<p>Also, the thing is that UW does a different admissions every quarter, so you might not be accepted one quarter and you might be accepted the next.</p>