Hi I’m a freshman at a Community college in California, and I want to transfer to MIT in Fall 2016.
I understand its a crap shoot, but people have transferred from community colleges to Harvard, so it’s not impossible.
I just took the ACT and scored a 31, now, should i retake the ACT, would it increase my chances as a CC transfer by a substantial margin, that it’s worth retaking?
Or should I just work on being the 1 outta 10000 outside of the classroom.
Have you taken a math and science subject test? I believe those are also required from transfer applicants.
No I haven’t taken those yet, I will be taking them in Dec. Sir, would you retake the ACTs if you were me (bear in mind im not a high school applicant, I’m that crap shoot college transfer applicant)
@expirydate You can retake it, but admission as a transfer student (especially from a CC) is extremely competitive, and a 36 probably won’t cut it.
The OP started the same thread for Harvard, and isn’t accepting the advice he is getting over there.
@intparent I see.
@expirydate I hate to also give you a dash of realism, but if you are worrying about ACT scores not being high enough, then MIT and Harvard are probably impossible as a transfer. I suggest applying there for graduate school/Ph.D. programs, or applying as a transfer to other universities. Unless you are a Putnam fellow or have an achievement of that caliber, it will be nearly impossible for you.
@expirydate:
The probability of getting accepted may be low, but it will be zero if you do not apply.
I got accepted to MIT as a transfer student from a community college. In my case, my academic profile was not perfect, but clearly good enough. Rather, I had accomplishments between high school and the time of my application that were key to adding value.
Aside from raising your ACT score (and I assume you have very good grades), what have you done between high school and now that would make you stand above the rest?
Why are you transferring?
How will MIT help you achieve what you’ve already demonstrated you’re trying to achieve?
What added value will you bring to the student body?
i.e when the MIT adcoms read your application, what in it will make them feel “We want this person.”?
You don’t need to answer the above questions here. But they do need to come through on your application.
This CC site has several great threads with success stories about students transferring from community colleges to top 4-year schools. If you really are serious, I would spend a day reading through them. There are many personal stories shared where you will definitely learn things about yourself and how to better prepare yourself for transferring.
OTOH, if you’re only applying to MIT and Harvard as a crap shoot (easy to apply, nothing lost), then don’t waste your time.