Hello everyone. I have been facing a huge decision for the past couple of weeks and I need some advice.
As my previous post says, I am absolutely miserable at my current school. I attend a private 4-year traditional university on the East Coast. However, I am intending to do a transfer. Unfortunately, my current GPA is not nearly good enough to apply to any school.
As a result, I was wondering if anyone here has done a reverse transfer and knows anything about it. Can I do a reverse transfer and essentially “start over”. I am planning to attend Santa Monica College so that I can transfer to USC (SMC has the highest transfer rates to USC). I was wondering if this is at all possible. Overall, I want to reverse transfer from my current 4-year uni to a CC and then to USC.
Any advice and help is appreciated. Thank you
You can go back to a CC if you don’t have enough credits for an associates degree, but you current transcript will still follow you wherever you go. You wouldn’t be the first student to leave college for a CC, then switch to another 4 year school. But USC seems unlikely if you have poor grades now.
@intparent Are you sure about the transcript? Because I read from another post that old GPA’s are not recorded when transferring.
Colleges require you to send all transcripts when you apply. There is a clearinghouse where they can see (and they do check) to see where else you have attended. You will be required to provide a transcript. It may not roll into your GPA when you transfer, but they will look at it for admissions. So you can’t start over and pretend you didn’t attend the college you attend now.
Lots of students do what you are planning. Recovering your grades and possibly even changing your major in the time at the CC can give you a lot more options when you transfer to your final college or university. Yes, you will need to provide official copies of this first bad transcript when you enroll at the CC, and again when you apply to transfer from there, but the general rule is that newer better grades count for more than older bad grades. Do well at your CC and options will open up for you.
I agree with @happymomof1 of 1–CC will open up a lot of options for you. You will be given a chance to explain yourself too. While bad grades will exist, it is a “fresh start”.
I made the same decision as you’re considering and it was the best one I ever made. No use being at a school you detest.
@OhWhatsHerName Do you mind explaining how the process was for you? I’m really curious to know how it went
@InNeedofHelp117 of course!
What I did for my 4yr was to go on a leave of absence so in case I changed my mind I could always go back. I should have withdrawn right then, but either is fine and the school doesn’t care.
I enrolled in CC, and then met with a counselor to see which of my credits could transfer there and then figure out what I still needed to take to transfer to my target schools. I talked with someone who goes to my cc and they decided to stay at CC to get an AA before they transfer but that won’t happen for me because I already have a lot of units.
I don’t know about USC and if they prioritize CC transfers. In order to get that preference for a UC you need 30+ units at the CC. I found that out too late so I’ll still be a 4yr transfer.
I think the biggest thing is that you need to make sure classes transfer over. Maybe there’s a way someone from USC can help you?
It’s not a hard process! Everyone at my CC has been amazing and my professors are great. There’s a lot of support and it is overall less strenuous than university.
@OhWhatsHerName Thank you so much for taking the time to tell your experience! It makes me a little less stressed knowing that someone went through a similar event that I’m going through