<p>strat23–you sound like a super-strong candidate to me. But why don’t you like VT? It has abn excellent reputation. (Just wondering. NOT judging!)</p>
<p>McBain Train, no I didn’t apply yet. Did you?</p>
<p>LadyDianeski: In your last three posts, I don’t think you said anything that’s factual. </p>
<p>1) Simply completing two years at a NC community college doesn’t have a damn thing to do with being admitted to “any” four-year unc system school; no such bridge program exists. The only program that I know of is the Wake Tech/NCSU transfer track, however you must complete 2 years at wake tech and graduate with AT LEAST a 3.5 (or some wild GPA that’s just high enough to suck people into their program, but nearly impossible for the average community college student to achieve) I don’t know where you heard about this ‘do two years, walk into the college of your choice’ deal, because it’s far from the truth and you’d be doing your child (as well as the people who read your posts) a tremendous disservice by filling their minds with such an idea.</p>
<p>2) Carolina does have a transfer-related provision that is specific to community college students, but it only exists through a stipulation that their board of directors made stating Chapel Hill must admit a certain number of NC CC students each year. (Much like the 80% in-state enrollment requirement for first year students) I don’t know what the CC transfer enrollment number is but trust me, it’s low. If you’re a community college student looking to transfer to UNC, or any other four-year school for that matter, your grades and EC’s had better be close to flawless. </p>
<p>Life isn’t cupcakes and unicorns. Any upper level institution like Carolina is looking for the best students possible. If you’re grades and extracurricular achievements were only good enough to get you into a community college then you’ve got a lot to prove on your application, else it’s a waste of $70.</p>
<p>Admission is always a crap-shoot with Carolina so do your best, break your ass, and shoot for the top. </p>
<p>Good luck to everyone in the coming months.</p>
<p>“If you’re grades and extracurricular achievements were only good enough to get you into a community college then you’ve got a lot to prove on your application, else it’s a waste of $70.”</p>
<p>Well, I stand corrected. I guess I’ve been misinformed, but, if so, a lot of other people are, too, because I’ve heard this from multiple sources.</p>
<p>I don’t know how strong my younger son is academically – he’s scorng in the 700s on his SAT practice tests, and, like his older brother, he’s taking a super-rigorous home-school curriculum, including Latin, Greek, and college-level math and science. But I can say one thing: He knows the difference between “you’re” (contraction of “you are”) and “your” (possessive form of “you”). ;-)</p>
<p>Alright look- I blew nearly 5 minutes of my life last night posting something that will only help you and your son in the coming months so don’t sit here and grammatically scrutinize the information I provide you, especially when you should know all of this stuff anyway. If you really want to find out about this supposed golden path from a community college to the four-year school of your choice, then bypass all this blog mess and call an admissions officer at UNC. They won’t BS you, I promise. It’s probably not a good idea to blindly trust information that will have such a large influence on your child’s future, simply because ‘a lot of other people said the same thing too.’</p>
<p>I realize there are no “sure things” when it comes to CH. But UNCSOPH what di you think my “chances” are after, Diane said I was a shoo-in? STats are a few posts back here.</p>
<p>Also when you applied did you turn in your “official SAT scores” or not.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.admissions.unc.edu/CSTEP/News-Observer-2.15.2009.pdf[/url]”>http://www.admissions.unc.edu/CSTEP/News-Observer-2.15.2009.pdf</a></p>
<p>Actually, uncsoph, you’re the one who’s wrong here.</p>
<p>uncsoph – I was just gently ribbing you. 
Apologies for any offense given.</p>
<p>Yes, I’m a grammar nazi–mea culpa! Goes with my OCD (which my younger son, alas, inherited). Perfectionism is one side effect, and for me, it takes the form of schoolmarmish obsession with correct grammar, spelling, and syntax. For younger son, it takes the form of laboriously working out his math Practice-SAT problems, even when the correct answer is obvious.</p>
<p>gocanes – that link is fantastic! Thanks so much. The story about the formerly homeless girl was touching and inspiring. Gosh, I wish she had been able to contact me when she was homeless and scrounging for clothes. I work for a giant apparel company, and I get TONS of free / ultra-cheap clothes via sample sales and the employee store. Boxes of freebies are often left out by the elevators on the floor where I work. They may be a season or two out of date, but they’re brand-new/never worn. For years now, my kids and I have been carting boatloads of this stuff to our local Hispanic ministry. Any kids in this dire situation should be informed that NC’s apparel / textile companies have tons of overstocks and seconds available – there should be no need to cut off sleeves from winter clothes to make summer clothes. If y’all know anyone in this sort of desperate situation, please PM me. Thanks! (Sorry for digression–and for excessively long paragraph–but this particular news item got to me.)</p>
<p>OK, back on topic: I will have to find out whether Forysyth Tech (our local CC) has a “direct pipeline” into a strong four-year UNC-system university. Older son took a course at Forsyth Tech and enjoyed it very much. (His teacher was an absolute doll and gave him great recommendations.) He’s taking another course there for spring semester. So far, we’ve had a very positive experience at Forsyth Tech, and ISTM that it would be the perfect way to help our shy, socially awkward younger son to transition into the college experience. (Older son is more than ready–in fact, he can’t wait to get out of the house, LOL.)</p>
<p>Anyhoo…thanks to both you and UNCsoph. The CC-to-college process is obviously a little more complicated than I had thought, so I will have to look into it more.</p>
<p>Thanks!!</p>
<p>I’m glad my link could help you.</p>
<p>Haha wow, did y’all even read the article? Don’t confuse “you may be eligible” with “direct pipeline.”</p>
<p>Historyman- you’ve got a shot, as does everyone. But I will say that Carolina seems to have one of the most unpredictable admissions departments in the world. After all that I have read about them what seems to be most emphasized is GPA (coupled with your course selection) and the strength of your essays.</p>
<p>Really it is more class ranking, then 1st semester college gpa and essays with essays being very important for sophomores.</p>
<p>College GPA and essays for junior transfers… And an upward trend is very helpful.</p>
<p>LD,</p>
<p>For the artistically inclined, UNC-A is a phenomenal school. It’s a small, reserved school, with a plethora of art festivals, small class sizes, and a very accepting mentality prevalent throughout the student community.</p>
<p>However, the school differs directly with my own personality. A very unique personality is necessary to attend UNC-A. The idea of sports in somewhat foreign to most students, and the campus is a bit too small for my own taste. Furthermore, since I have never been associated with the artsy crowd, although easily accepted by students at UNC-A, I have found myself suffering from a lack of common interests with most students. Whilst saying this, UNC-A is a great school, simultaneously not only depicting school spirit, but also boasting a very accepting nature, but as a student, you need to be aware that you will be entering a school similar to a liberal arts environment, rather than the typical persona of a large college. </p>
<p>Finally, as a future business major, I am looking to enroll in a prestigious program. Since UNC-A is such a small school, and stresses the arts, the business program is lacking. Contrarily, UNC has a top 20 undergraduate program, which will help me graduate with a better looking degree. Since my future success will be inevitably linked to my college success, I feel inclined to enroll in a better overall program. </p>
<p>Having mentioned all this, I urge you to allow your son to choose a university based on his future happiness, rather than prestige. If there is one thing that I have learned from my fellow freshman peers across the United States, it is that happiness is paramount to the overall success throughout college.</p>
<p>Good luck on your search!</p>
<p>Cthomp30</p>
<p>Thanks, CThomp! Yes, DS is kind of artsy/folksy, so UNC-A might be a great fit. He’s very musical; he loves '60s folk and protest music, traditional folk music, Celtic music, bluegrass, gospel, Sacred Harp–you name it, he loves it. He’s not way-out-there-leftist, though, so who knows how well he’d fit in with Asheville’s famously liberal culture? (OTOH, Chapel Hill also has a reputation for way-out-there leftism, too, doesn’t it? Hmmmm…) </p>
<p>uncsoph – ISTM the artcle at the link used much stronger language than “you may be eligible.” Rather, it indicated that a 3.0 GPA at an NC community college was almost a guarantee of acceptance into a good UNC-system university. And the experiences of my friends bear this out. One colleague is sending all of her kids (except one athlete) through UNC-system universities via the community-college-first route. She has had absolutely no problem getting them accepted at the institutions of their choice. So, no, it’s not a sure bet, but it’s not a stretch or a long shot, either.</p>
<p>Figured I’d wander back here and see what’s up. Hi KJC. :)</p>
<p>"Really it is more class ranking, then 1st semester college gpa and essays with essays being very important for sophomores.</p>
<p>College GPA and essays for junior transfers… And an upward trend is very helpful."</p>
<p>This. I’m going to go so far to say that essays hold a bit more weight than GPA for juniors, at least. I wrote two <em>really</em> good essays (the 500 word one and the optional one) and my transfer GPA was only 3.46 and I got in. Both are important mind you, but my ECs weren’t particularly compelling either. </p>
<p>Something I learned when I applied last year, don’t start comparing yourself to the other people applying. I SWORE up and down I probably wouldn’t get in after seeing the stats of other people here who were applying, and I was quite gladly wrong. I will say Carolina does indeed look at the whole package, so keep that in mind. That’s why Carolina is so unpredictable in who they admit if you’re looking just on stats, because your stats aren’t the whole story and saying you wrote a “good” essay isn’t really saying anything at all that people can use to get a sense of where they stand. </p>
<p>I will share the one thing I am pretty irritated about at Carolina. They don’t have a set grading scale. What constitutes an A is entirely up to the professor. This seems reasonable until you realize they can set something obscene as the top 5% of the class is an A (in a class of 20 this is ONE person) or even anything above a 96 or something is an A. I found this out when I got a 95% on a midterm and was given a B. (I’m still ****ed about this, btw.) If I’m doing above average or well above average work, I think I should be graded accordingly instead of being trapped in some numbers game where I don’t know the rules. Most professors won’t state this openly in their syllabi, but a few do. I’m under the impression (per what a couple of professors told me) this is to counter UNC’s reputation for grade inflation, but still. Many professors won’t even tell you what you have to do to get A work, beyond crap like “do well” or “be above average”. Transferring from a university where my expectations/the grading scale were clear to this has been a hell of a shock. No one told me about this and I would have liked to know, so I’m telling you guys so you know what’s up. </p>
<p>On that note, for those of you that get in, my best advice is to not stress your GPA. Even though to you (and me) a C isn’t acceptable, to Carolina a C is a perfectly valid grade that shows you performed as well as the average Carolina student and a C isn’t “bad” here at UNC. Lots of C’s go out, especially in science/math classes. Also, last semester my grades fluctuated wildly over the course of the 15 weeks, from Ds to As even. I ended the semester with As and Bs though, so don’t get discouraged if your grades aren’t what you expect, it generally gets better, and don’t underestimate how much a final can make (or break) you. Of course, my Bs were 94 and 95 averages for the courses. (Did I mention I’m ****ed about this? lol) But I understand how things work now, so I don’t take it personally, a B at Carolina is really what a B is supposed to mean and indicates above average knowledge/performance. </p>
<p>Feel free to PM me with any questions/comments. I’ll share my 500 word essay too, on request. Also feel free to keep any negativity to yourself, cause I don’t want it. :)</p>
<p>Would you please send me the essay? Both of them if you could.</p>
<p>I will by applying for admission next month, however I am worried that I will get in to Chapel Hill but not be able to get in to Kenan-Flagler.</p>
<p>Send me a PM if you want the essay. The 250 word one is far too personal to subject to outsiders so it does not get sent out. Though the 500 word one is sorta personal too, just no where near as revealing as the 250 word essay.</p>
<p>The reason i only have 18 credits is cause i had to take pre curriculum classes last year. I am taking 14 credits right now and some in the summer. so i will have over 30 credits. i will have close to 40. and the full time is 12 hours per semester. so would that help me get into unc? i understand my highschool grades werent good, but my grades are really good in college so far. i have a 4.0</p>