I’m in the spring semester of my junior year in high school right now. I screwed up in the fall. Got a C in Calc AB and Honors U.S. History 1. B in Honors English. My GPA is about a 3.17 now. It used to be about 3.5. Forgive me if I sound little a whiny little kid over something that’s not the big of a deal (I tend to overreact a lot). I think I could get into East Carolina or Western Carolina but I really would like to go to UNC Chapel Hill, NC State, or even UNC Asheville. If I got all A’s this semester my GPA would be about 3.26. I wanted to know if I should go to community college, raise my GPA, and transfer to a really good school like UNC or should I go with a less selective school like Western, East, or UNC Greensboro. Once again I’m really sorry if I sound like a brat or something I just worry way too much.
I don’t think considering Community College is necessarily a bad plan. I think you should still apply, and try to pull up your spring semester grade, and try to raise your SAT/ACT. That being said if your heart is set on selective schools such as UNC Chapel Hill then I’d say CC would be a better plan. Since I am from California I am a little unfamiliar with the other schools you listed but I would encourage you to still work hard in school. If you are fine going to a less selective four year then go for that. Right now I am a senior and I will tell you that college apps are getting difficult these days and if you want to save the money, and have a better shot at your dream school then I think 2 years in CC isn’t a bad plan. Once you are a senior don"'t forget that finances are also important. The four year I was considering costs around $50,000 a year and as a result I am considering CC to save the money then transfer to my dream school. But once again as I am unfamiliar with the selectivity of most of the schools on your list so I cannot really tell you how difficult it will be to apply for all of those colleges. Best of luck with your junior year and hang in there! -Ben
You have nothing to lose by applying right now, so go for it. If you don’t make it past, then undergoing the CC route is a viable option, if you’re a motivated student.
Have you done any Dual Enrollment (“Huskins Bill” and Concurrent Enrollment) Classes to date? That might be a better alternative to AP/Honor Classes and allow you to accumulate College Credits before finishing High School. At this stage, you could complete in excess of over 30 credits by taking classes at your local Community College. These courses could also boost your weighted GPA and minimize the number of credits required to complete your Associates Degree if you do decide to go the Community College route. You could start as early as Summer 2015 and the Tuition/Fees/Books for the Dual Enrollment Classes are covered by the State/Local School Board.
The best financial aid goes to freshmen, so apply to 4-year colleges and see what happens. It may end up being cheaper than 2 years at cc + 2 years full pay at a 4-year school.
What’s your ACT or SAT score?
No. Your grades and class levels indicate that you are ready for a four-year college. After a year or two at one of these, you can consider transferring to another higher-tier school - if that’s what you end up wanting to do, and you get good grades.
I would only consider community college, at this point, if your finances make it necessary…
Your stats and situation are similar to my daughter’s. She has a few Cs on her transcript, all of them in AP classes, including AP Calculus. (She is working on bringing it up to a B for spring semester, we’ll see. She’s a junior.)
I have no intention of sending her to community college. She is ready for a four-year college and being away from home. You probably are, too.
Btw, your grades aren’t as horrible as you think, they are actually good, compared to many others in your high school. And depending on your ACT scores, you may even qualify for scholarship money at some lower-tier schools.
Have you considered Guilford in Greensboro NC? A small private. That was on my daughter’s list for a while, and they seem to accept a lot of B students, and give out some merit aid to said B students, as well.
I agree, depending on your ACT, I think you have a shot at UNC Asheville, UNC Wilmington, Appalachian State. I second Guilford - and run the NPC on Eckerd and NCF if you like UNC-A, plus Geneseo, Muhlenberg, Goucher, Hendrix.
I’m still waiting for my ACT scores to come back but my PLAN said I should make about a 23-24. I didn’t study at all for the PLAN and I studied quite a bit for the ACT so I expect at least 24 to 26 (I’ll still buy a retest or two because it could only hurt my wallet). I looked a little bit at Guilford. It’s a nice college but it’s expensive. As for my grades, they are decent and I worry too much. I’m 15th out of 124 in my class. Junior year is hectic as usual I suppose.
Apply to the universities you want, if you don’t get in go to a different university versus a community college. Then you can transfer later or get a masters at the college you want (if you want one). Money is a factor too, going to a cheaper university first and then transferring later can be cheaper, depending how many of your credits transfer over. That is what I am doing, I am attending a lower state university for my BS and then will go somewhere else for my masters to save money.
Check your target universities and CCs to see if the CCs offer the needed transfer prep courses. If so, then starting at CC can be an option in addition to the universities.
Check your target universities and CCs to see if the CCs offer the needed transfer prep courses. If so, then starting at CC can be an option in addition to the universities.
You’re almost top 10% in your class; it wouldn’t make sense to attend a CC when you have so many universities that would admit you.
I bet you looked at sticker price… did you run the Net Price Calculator on Guilford?
Run the NPC on every college cited above. Keep the ones that are “within budget” on your list and plan to apply to them.
@BeeDAre @MYOS1634
If his/her absolute end goal is UNC-CH, NC State, or UNC-A, then I think it makes sense why he/she would be considering a CC first.
Usually, lots of schools give more priority to CC student transfers, rather than transfers from other 4yr universities. If OP was to try to transfer from one of the various schools that have accepted him/her, he’d/she’d have a lesser chance than if he/she applied as a CC transfer.
Again- if one of the aforementioned 3 schools was the end goal, going to a CC would yield greater chances to OP.
Of course, this is without taking into account the short and long term financing issues, which tend to be the decider, more often than not.