Starting Over

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I was the kid everyone knows that only applied to one school. It was my sheer favorite, even though I had visited some other schools as well, and I was extremely (over) confident that I would get in.</p>

<p>I didn't. I found out today. And the thing is, I know what everyone thinks I don't know. "What the hell were you doing applying to only one school?" I had several applications half done for some other schools, but overconfidence, the fact that people legitimately thought I was a shoe-in, and laziness all prevented my from a) practicing some foresight and b) finish applying to other schools. Which leads me to my post's focus: Starting Over.</p>

<p>I need to make a college list. I've never done it before. My goal is to make a list of schools that are GOOD, have late application deadlines/rolling admissions, and are CHEAP. I only plan on attending said school for a year, or as short a time as possible so that I can transfer into my original dream school. My questions are</p>

<p>1) Is there a list of schools that have those traits (GOOD, have late application deadlines/rolling admissions, and are CHEAP) that I can browse through and then apply to? I can't be the only person on collegeconfidential who has this particular set of needs.</p>

<p>2) Is community college a good option? Are all CCs two-year schools? Does going to a four-year school when transferring look better than attending a CC? Is there even any sort of this community college discrimination practiced by Universities when picking out their transfer students?</p>

<p>3 I just breezed through classes using only my raw intelligence to bail me out when there were tests/projects. This habit translated into my B-, C+ grade average for first two years of high school. My junior and senior year grades were much, much better, due to my taking school seriously (I was enrolled in IB courses), but my overall average was adversely effected. My overall GPA is like a 2.9. So when's the earliest I can transfer out of college from question number 1 without having the target school look at my high school grades/SATs? What if my grades in college were really good? Would the target school recognize the trend in my grades and not even care about my high school GPA? Is this timeline 1 semester, 1 year, or two years in college before transferring?</p>

<p>4) What grade/rigor should I shoot for in college before transferring? Does it change depending on whether or not I'm in CC or 4-year school?</p>

<p>5) Do high school grades even matter when transferring?</p>

<p>I really want to stress number 3. I need to know how soon I can transfer in. I don't want to lose out on friends, the college experience, knowing people for 3 years as opposed to 2, etc.</p>

<p>Thanks guys. I almost needed this "kick-in-the-ass" to jump start me. I've been awfully complacent. Today has been the most incredibly up-ending day.</p>

2

<p>What was your ACT or SAT score?</p>

<p>Your high school grades will likely count if you transfer after one year.</p>

<p>What do you mean by a cheap school? HOw much can you afford to spend?</p>

<p>How much was your dream school?</p>

<p>What is your home state? Your local in-state school or CC will likely be the cheapest.</p>

3

<p>You could try Hawaii Pacific University, it’s pretty cheap and it would be a great experience. If you’re against that, then I believe that U Pitt and U Tulsa do rolling/late admissions, but these are both more expensive. I, personally, would try Hawaii Pacific, it’s better than people give it credit for.</p>

4

<p>With a 2.9 GPA, many schools may be out of your reach. Also, of course, we don’t know your SAT/ACT score, which will make a difference. However, I would suggest you take a look at Keene State College (nice pretty school in NH with total out of state costs of approximately $26,000 and a deadline of April 1), Kutztown University of Pennsylvania (priority deadline was Dec. 1, but it should still be accepting applications, total OOS cost of approximately $24,000), West Virginia University (approximate OOS costs $28,000) and University of Maryland-Baltimore County (average GPA is 3.6, but if you’re in-state with decent boards, you have a decent chance)</p>

5

<p>I see that you were rejected by UM-CP. </p>

<p>Are you in-state for Maryland?</p>

<p>the fact that people legitimately thought I was a shoe-in,</p>

<p>People give advice about things that they know nothing about. And, they sometimes tell people what they want to hear. A 2.9 GPA to a state flagship is not a shoe-in. Many flagships require a 3.3 or more. </p>

<p>What is your SAT or ACT score?</p>

6

<p>*You could try Hawaii Pacific University, it’s pretty cheap and it would be a great experience. *</p>

<p>Not cheap. It would cost about $30k per year, plus the cost to and from Hawaii at least twice a year…from Maryland.</p>

7

<p>Hawaii Pacific Tuition and Fees: $14960</p>

<p>EDIT: Oh, neglected to post the estimated room and board: $9,000</p>

<p>I guess I get what you mean.</p>

8

<p>Why don’t u look into some SUNYs? (Stony brook, Buffalo, Binghamton, Geneseo). I’m not very sure if S B B have rolling admission but I look Geneseo yesterday and it’s rolling. Its tuition&fees is around 22,000 or less.</p>

<p>What are ur stats?
How much do you consider to be CHEAP?</p>

9

<p>I took the SATs in the middle of junior year.</p>

<p>I got 1910 total, 640 640 630 - I don’t remember the scores per section, but it was spread evenly.</p>

<p>And my jr and sr year grades were 91 and 92 (first semester of senior year) respectively. And by cheap, I mean no more than UMD-CPs total cost: 21k a year</p>

<p>Can you guys answer this one</p>

<p>:::So when’s the earliest I can transfer out of college from question number 1 without having the target school look at my high school grades/SATs? What if my grades in college were really good? Would the target school recognize the trend in my grades and not even care about my high school GPA? Is this timeline 1 semester, 1 year, or two years in college before transferring?</p>

10

<p>You might also take a look at Truman State College in Missouri. Total OOS costs about $18-19,000 and it’s a fairly decent school.</p>

<p>Sorry, I don’t know the answer to your transfer questions.</p>

11

<p>If your target school is UM-CP, then you need to look at their webpage in the transfer admissions section. If the info isn’t clear, then email admissions and ask. </p>

<p>Sometimes, you have to have 2 years of credits, so that schools won’t look at high school grades.</p>

<p>Have you considered applying to…</p>

<p>UM-Baltimore County
UM-Eastern Shore</p>

<p>I don’t think their deadlines have passed.</p>

12

<p>Didn’t anyone tell you UMCP’s average weighted GPA is a 3.9 and their middle 50 SAT scores are around 600-700 in both Math and Verbal? You did very poor research and got very poor guidance. My advice to you would be to attend CC for two years and transfer in.</p>

13

<p>If the OP lives in Maryland, I highly recommend at this point to apply to local area universities as soon as possible.</p>