<p>Hi Everyone,</p>
<p>I've been enrolled at NOVA Community College for the last past 4 semesters. I want to transfer to UVA's School of Engineering and pursue a degree in Systems Engineering. I was planning on accomplishing that through NOVA's guaranteed admission agreement with UVA. However, I received a "C" in PHY231 University Physics (calculus based physics class), and this disqualifies me from the guaranteed admission.</p>
<p>Any help would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>I wonder if UVA is the best fit for you… UVA guarantees admission to the engineering school, but not to the specific systems major (which many current undergrads are locked out of because of major caps, not sure how it works for transfers). In addition, we have a small non-traditionally-aged population. Finally, the coursework at UVA is rigorous. You are clearly a competent engineer, but getting a C in a community college physics course does not bode well for the increased rigor of the courses you would be taking at UVA. UVA is more theoretical/liberal arts oriented, and I wonder if this is truly the kind of program you are looking for already having work experience. Maybe you could elaborate more on why you want to attend UVA in particular as opposed to any other guaranteed admissions programs that might waive your C.</p>
<p>Thank you for the thoughtful response. </p>
<p>Firstly, I want to go to UVA because it is a great school that has an engineering program that I’ve heard many good things about. The engineering schools small class sizes allows for increased exposure to professors. Also, when it comes to employers of engineers, a lot of them have lists of schools that they prefer to hire from. I would prefer to go to a school that makes me stand out more to perspective companies.</p>
<p>Secondly, my age isn’t going to stop me. Any school I go to I’m going to be on the higher end when it comes to age brackets. I seriously doubt UVA discriminates against future students due to age.</p>
<p>Thirdly, I might be an engineer in title, but I’m just a glorified technician. I was hired based on my military experience, which little of makes me an actual engineer.</p>
<p>Lastly, have you ever attended a community college or taken a calculus based physics course? I’m going to say probably not. I wont comment on perceived difficulty of community college compared to a university because I only have one side of the picture. However, being that I’m older, I have the advantage of talking to people who did attend state universities and community colleges. Hands down most of them say that their times in community college were more demanding, but then again I don’t think you can do a generalized comparisons of CC’s and Universities. Also, the physics class I took was actually taught by a former UVA professor and is regarded as a very tough class at any school. For example, the VA Tech equivalent “Foundations in Physics” is listed as one of the schools top five hardest classes.</p>
<p>30 year old military vet/accepted transfer student checking in … </p>
<p>It’s too bad you missed out on the GAA. With that in mind, most accepted transfers do not meet the GAA: [Transfer</a> Students Frequently Asked Questions | Office of Undergraduate Admission](<a href=“http://www.admission.virginia.edu/transfer/faq#GAA]Transfer”>http://www.admission.virginia.edu/transfer/faq#GAA)</p>
<p>How many classes are you taking in the Spring? Some mid-term report A’s will bolster your app. (Probably wanna take PHYS 232 if you can, show an A/B) Also, I don’t have a link/source for this but according to my research/following the transfer blog, etc. a 3.7 from CC is slightly low. You can still bump that up a little. </p>
<p>Considering you were going for the GAA I am sure your course diversity is strong. I also worked full time during my time at CC and I can only assume that is looked on pretty favorably. I’m not sure what else to add, but if you had specific questions ask. I basically had the same background as you and got in. </p>
<p>Finally, UVA is X times more difficulty than anything I did at CC … and yeah, I took up through Calc II at CC and had a 4.0.</p>
<p>I have one son who attended NoVa and a current second year student at UVa in Mechanical Engineering. My son who attended NoVa did not take the exact class that you did, sitting in the same classroom, with the same professor, so I will not speak to that specific class. Overall the difference in the education is night and day. There is no comparing the two. The mission of the schools are quite different. As most educational settings you are teaching towards a perceived level of knowledge. That level is simply higher at UVa where the entrance criteria is tough. The first year physics class in engineering at UVa is populated with students who took AP Physics C in high school, got straight A’s, a 5 on the exam, and are taking it again to get a solid foundation from a university professor. By midterms they have blown past everything they had learned in high school and are on to completely new material. Had they taken the AP credit and moved on the Physics 2 they would have been lost. </p>
<p>The expectation of knowledge and achievement of the students here is very high. That is why the articulation agreement is so stringent. That is why a C in a Physics class raises a red flag and nullifies the guaranteed aspect, sending the student through an application process.</p>
<p>There are plenty of students who go through NoVa, knock out some excellent grades and through the articulation agreement transfer to UVa and go on to have successful third & forth years. However do not get offended when someone suggests that a lower grade in a basic first year engineering class may create a problem when one wants to go on to a major that is capped.</p>
<p>MyHonor “I want to go to UVA because it is a great school that has an engineering program that I’ve heard many good things about. I would prefer to go to a school that makes me stand out more to perspective companies.”</p>
<p>UVA has many fine qualities but I’m not sure you’ve really given due consideration to your other options. If you are interesting in staying in government contracting then any of the following universities will be on the lists of potential employers: UVA, Virginia Tech, UMD College Park, and George Mason. If you are ex-military, with a security clearance and get your Systems Engineering degree no one at these companies is going to sneer at George Mason. They only care whether you can do the job. UMD has an excellent engineering program as well as Virginia Tech (Industrial and Systems Engineering ranked 7 undergrad and 3 graduate - if you care about those things). </p>
<p>Unfortunately, your “C” disqualifies you from guaranteed admission at Virginia Tech as well. But, if you show improvement in PHYS232 and are B or better in all other Math and Science courses then I think you could be a good transfer applicant. Same comment for GMU. For UMD you would have to check how many of your credits would transfer. It’s easier to stay in-state. Good luck.</p>
<p>I thought the guaranteed admissions program depended upon one’s overall GPA??</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.vccs.edu/Portals/0/ContentAreas/Transfer/uva.pdf[/url]”>http://www.vccs.edu/Portals/0/ContentAreas/Transfer/uva.pdf</a></p>
<p>Here’s the agreement</p>
<p>The agreements have requirements for specific courses and grades. UVa’s are quite specific (there’s one for the College of Arts & Sciences and a different one for Engineering). </p>
<p>You can see them all here:
[Virginia</a> Community College System Guaranteed Admission Agreements](<a href=“http://www.vccs.edu/Students/TransferList.aspx]Virginia”>http://www.vccs.edu/Students/TransferList.aspx)</p>
<p>It looks like I might still have a chance under the guaranteed admission agreement. I can take a class more than once, but the grades for both attempts are calculated in my overall GPA. </p>
<p>So if I take it again and get a B, plus get a B in every course I have left, I can still fall under the GAA since my GPA will not fall below the required 3.4.</p>
<p>Once you get a grade that isn’t permitted by the agreement, the GAA is off the table. You can still be competitive for admission if you use the GAA as your guide, though.</p>