Non-Traditional Transfer Help (Comp Sci)

Parent Cafe
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I’m an older (mid-forties) URM female pursuing a second bachelors degree in computer science. I attend a small LAC which also is an HBCU. I just finished my first year in the CS program and achieved a 3.4 GPA despite active systemic lupus and complications.

I know it’s late in the application “season”, but I need to transfer. I was going to stay at this school out of loyalty, but I can’t do it - I want to be competitive when I graduate. The academic rigor here is not where I think it should be, the majority of the students are lazy, and there is a campus-wide culture of lack of discipline. On top of all that, there are no research or meaningful internship opportunities for CS majors here, no specialized CS courses, no hands-on CS courses, no CS organizations (lack of interest), and I could go on. I didn’t know before getting here. The website, catalog, and student handbook were misleading.

I’m free to travel, but my body (the lupus) doesn’t handle harsh, wet winters well. Cold and wet/humid, high barometric pressure = no. Cold and dry/low humidity, low barometric pressure = manageable. Money is a factor. I’m limited to $12,500 in Direct Loans and $5,500 in Perkins Loans (if the school has funds available). I’m a veteran but used my GI Bill benefits back in the 90s. I know some states, like Florida, give vets in-state tuition without requiring 12 months of residency first.

My EFC is $4K, but I’m willing to pay more if I live on campus, which I prefer due to my disability. I do also have somewhere to go if I end up in a traditional residence hall (private room) and must leave during breaks, so that’s not an issue. Of course, I have my own transportation.

I can’t get into my home state’s two best publics as a direct admit because the CS programs are limited entry and I don’t meet the transfer requirements like already having Calc I & II (had to drop Calc I b/c of a flare, so couldn’t take Calc II). I missed the deadline at the third best. The rest of my state’s publics aren’t worth mentioning.

Can anyone recommend some good schools for me to transfer to? Again, in a nutshell:

CS major
3.4 GPA
Veteran
URM female

Please don’t recommend any HBCUs. I’m also looking for more than the basic CS course offerings. I’d like a variety of regularly offered electives to choose from, opportunities for undergraduate research and internship experiences, CS clubs and organizations, great computing facilities and things like that. Thanks in advance.

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Some other HB schools are more technically oriented than many LACs, so you may not want to rule them out.

Another option is to complete the rest of your frosh soph CS and math at a low cost community college, then transfer. But check course articulation with your target four year schools.

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Can you apply for spring for your state’s publics? Take Calc 1 over the summer, Calc 2 in the fall?

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Thanks, @ucbalumnus. I’m only missing Calculus 1 & 2. Yes, I’m ruling other HBCUs out.

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@“Cardinal Fang” yes, I could do that but I don’t want to disrupt my momentum. :slight_smile:

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I don’t know whether it would work out for you, but look into Eckerd College, in St. Petersburg, FL. They have an excellent record and reputation for working with non-traditional, older students. My husband’s lifelong best friend obtained his BA from Eckerd when he was around fifty.

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Thank you, @woogzmama!

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If you’ve missed a deadline or requirement at your in-state public schools, go ahead and give them a call. See if they’ll accept a late application or consider you outside of the requirements. Some are really strict about sticking to their policies, but that’s not always the case. You have nothing to lose by asking.

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Update. My GPA is 3.6, not 3.4. Cumulative and in the CS major. :slight_smile:

@Hanna, thank you for that suggestion. I’d thought about doing that, however was reluctant. But, you’re right in that I have nothing to lose by asking.

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@ucbalumnus I thought some more about your suggestions to consider the more technical HBCUs and I’ll give them a serious look. But, as far as I know none of them are included in the group of “top” HBCUs, and those are the only ones I think I’d even care to consider. But, who knows. So, I’ll take a good, honest look at them and be fair.

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Lacking that Calc 1 is tough going for a transfer for CS. That is like a prereq. Look at AZ Unis

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Since this is a second bachelor’s degree, it definitely is worth the call to the state U’s. You need to know if they even take second bachelor’s students. And, you also need to get details about on-campus housing for older students. Some places will let older undergrads live in grad student housing.

I know that right now you want an on-campus experience, but if you would complete your degree through a distance ed programs like https://www.umuc.edu/it/index.cfm or http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/degrees-and-certificates/information-sciences-and-technology-bachelors/overview you could live wherever you felt like. Both of those institutions have extensive experience with active military and veterans. In the past, UMUC offered in-state tuition rates to veterans, so check that too.

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Well, I applied to my state’s flagship anyway. The application asked if I had Calculus I and when I ticked the “no” button it asked me if I planned on taking it before enrolling. I ticked yes. While my CGPA is higher than required for admission to the university, for entry into the CS program it’ll depend on whether they put more weight on my current CGPA or the CGPA for my entire academic record.

I got my first degree 15 years ago and my oldest courses are 24 years old. My entire academic record before the 2014-2015 school year was done before I was diagnosed with lupus and completely untreated, but still sick from it, so I hope they put more weight on recent performance. I’m calling them next week to speak with an admissions rep and hopefully get that notated in my file somewhere.

@BrownParent I will check the AZ CCs to see if any are that are offering Calculus I online during a summer session. As a veteran I’ll pay in-state tuition. Actually, I’m in the process of checking the CCs in states that give vets in-state tuition, I just haven’t gotten to AZ yet. Thanks for replying.

@happymomof1 I’m not trying to get the college experience. I already had it, LOL. I prefer to live on campus because of the convenience of being near everything, especially on my not-so-good days (I have lupus), and yes I look at graduate/family housing first. Barring that, I’m heavily leaning towards renting off campus (but close) after my experience in undergraduate housing this past year. I also prefer not to do CS online. There are too many opportunities to miss out on, so I will be hiney in seat. :slight_smile: Thanks for replying.

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@codeninja, you have a bachelor’s degree already. Why are you not going for a CS masters?

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@“Cardinal Fang”, I would think that by now I’ve missed the fall application deadlines for funded campus-based masters programs and I also need to take the GRE, which I can’t do for another 2 weeks at the least. If you have some program suggestions, please do let me know! :slight_smile:

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Be very careful transferring as a CS major. One school’s CS 101 may be very different from another’s. You could end up drowning and having trouble catching up if you transfer to a school that has much more rigorous basic CS classes, especially if they give you credit for the lower level classes and allow you go straight to Sophomore level classes. I would avoid the flagships which tend to be very competitive and rigorous in STEM. Go to the State, e.g. instead of UFL go to FL State, or even better, a regional campus like Central FL.

The Univ. of WA has a special program to help women and URMs by giving them a lot of extra help during sophomore year to help them get into the highly competitive CS program junior year. Unfortunately the weather in Seattle is cold and wet practically year round.

Alternatively, you could look into a coding school. Many coding schools now offer 6 month coding classes in popular languages such as JavaScript or Ruby, and graduates go on to make $70,000 a year. DeVry also offers a 1 year certificate program. I know of many people who’ve launched their career in IT by simply doing one of these certificate programs in lieu of a CS degree. There are probably also programming classes you can take at your local CC. As a non-trad student in your 40s, you might feel a bit out of place at a traditional 4 year college, especially in the field of CS where you will be competing against kids half your age who suck down Mountain Dews and code for 36 hours straight at hackathons, it can be intimidating. Going to a CC will avoid that kind of pitfall, besides being much cheaper.

Checkout some of these coding schools and websites:
https://generalassemb.ly/
http://devbootcamp.com/
http://www.hackreactor.com/
http://flatironschool.com/
http://www.appacademy.io/#p-home
http://www.blackgirlscode.com/
http://www.codecademy.com/
https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/technology/techhire

And read this articles, you are not alone:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-07/coding-classes-attract-college-grads-who-want-better-jobs

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@cmsjmt Thanks for replying. I won’t drown, I can handle any increased rigor, I don’t feel out of place at a traditional college, and I’m not the kind to get intimidated. I’ll be fine. :slight_smile: I am applying to UCF because I get in-state tuition in FL as a veteran and Orlando’s climate is comfortable from what I remember being stationed there way back when.

Coding bootcamps are very expensive and financial aid isn’t available for them. The CCs in my hometown and surrounding areas are very tied into the multinational corporations who have made their North American HQs there, and as such everything is geared around Microsoft to the exclusion of other programming languages - they might throw a Java class in the curriculum or as an elective (last time I checked). So, I didn’t go the CC route. Besides, all the job descriptions I’ve looked at and have been interested in have explicitly wanted a CS bachelors degree.

Also, coding is just one subfield of CS, and it’s not what I got into CS to do, though I do have to know how to code well to do what I want to do. So, by no means am I opposed to coding because I do like it. It’s just not why I decided to pursue a CS degree, despite my username, LOL. If I just wanted to learn to code, there were much easier and cheaper routes to take, as you said.

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@codeninja I like your attitude and admire your fortitude. Be prepared to work hard and you will do well wherever you end up. :slight_smile:

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Because you already have a bachelor’s degree, be sure to check each college about its policies regarding second bachelor’s degree students, including whether second bachelor’s degree students are admitted at all, and whether course work from the first bachelor’s degree may fulfill general education and other requirements, allowing you to complete the second bachelor’s degree more quickly.

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@ucbalumnus Definitely! It’s the first thing I check. It’s pretty much only a few elite schools that won’t allow second degree seekers to apply and attend.