Okay, I'm going to be new to college life...

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>Let's see. I didn't take any AP classes in high school. I never took the SAT. I did alright in school and ended up with a 3.6 GPA (20 something A's, 6 B's, 3 C's). I made Honor Grad. I've been out of high school for about a year now and I'm 19. For financial reasons, I haven't been in college and I knew I wasn't going so I didn't even bother to take the SAT/ACT. I didn't do anything extracurricular because I'm not a very sociable person. Actually, there was my freshman year when I was part of CAP (Civil Air Patrol), but I quit. </p>

<p>I've stayed on with my parents for the time being since I have nowhere to go and really nothing to do. I've applied to around 37 jobs and I didn't get any over that gap year. That didn't make me happy. </p>

<p>The good news is that my dad qualified for some benefits and it looks like his boy will be going to college after all. Everything's paid for except room & board. It just took extraordinarily long for it to happen...</p>

<p>I guess I'll be going to a Community College now. My parents want me to remain close and they really can't pay my way to live somewhere else and I can't either. And yes, I know all about financial aid...</p>

<p>After a talk with an ex-girlfriend, she suggested I do something that will act as a safety net in case my dreams don't work out for me. My dream job is to be a Physicist, but if I'm going to have something that will get me a job, it'll be working towards becoming a Pharmacist. I don't really know where I want to go after that. I'd like to get into a good school, but I'm not sure about the acceptance rate of transfer students to them. I live in California. I'd have my sights set on Berkeley but realistically I probably know that no matter how hard I work in CC I probably wouldn't get in. I'd say that even with a 4.0. I didn't care much in high school for grades or classes. I just took a variety of them because I had no idea of what I wanted to be or do. They turned out to be mostly science-related upon looking at my transcript a few weeks back. </p>

<p>I'd love to be in England for a few years. I use to live there, but I moved to the United States. I was a U.S. citizen while I lived there and had to relocate because of my father's job. </p>

<p>I wish I knew how to make this all happen. Right now I'm concerned about testing into Calculus through the COMPASS Exam. The highest math I've taken is Algebra II in my junior year, but I've been doing math since just in my spare time really. Kind of like a thing to do to pass the time because everyone I ever knew doesn't live here anymore and they've gone to other places to pursue their dreams. </p>

<p>Any help, insight, or comments would be appreciated. Thanks.</p>

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<p>Look into all of the Cali public schools (and privates too.) Most of them <i>have</i> to admit qualified Community College candidates from certain schools.</p>

<p>I’d check out USC and UCLA as well.</p>

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<p>you should start becoming more social if you want to do something in the medical career.</p>

<p>STUDY ABROAD! (if your school offers it) i mean you can always transfer if you aren’t happy…</p>

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<p>Thanks for the advice.</p>

<p>I’ll definitely look into studying abroad. It sounds exciting enough.</p>

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<p>if you have the time and need the money, think about working as a pharmaceutical technician. you can work at a local drug store for slightly over minimum wage, or if you’re willing to put in the time and effort, you can get a job at a hospital and make more (i’m not sure how much in california).</p>

<p>you have to take a certification exam. you can find it here: <a href=“https://www.ptcb.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home1[/url]”>https://www.ptcb.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>if you’re pretty good at math, you shouldn’t need to study too hard for it. i have a lot of pre-med friends who did this throughout undergrad. even if you don’t have experience and want to go the hospital route, you can just volunteer, and after four weeks or so when their normal employees are flaking as usual, you’ll often get offered a job. it’s great experience!</p>