Transfer Student with Questions

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Massachusetts - Amherst
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<p>To all:</p>

<p>First off, thanks in advance for any help you might give to me. It is greatly appreciated. And now to my questions, but first, a bit about me.</p>

<p>Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ
GPA: 3.323 | Post Freshman Year GPA: 3.625
High School
GPA: 3.947 | Rank in Class: 53/264 | SAT I: 1480 (V 680 M 800)
(I wont bog you down with HS or college activities but I think I got it more than covered.)</p>

<p>I was an engineering major at Stevens; I'm now switching to Chemistry at UMASS (that's the major to which I applied). Speaking of which, I've done Co-op at Stevens and worked two 8-month work terms at reputable engineering firms (I'm in the middle of the 2nd term now.) I've also started my own company, College Mattress LLC (<a href="http://www.collegemattress.com)%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.collegemattress.com)&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p>

<p>And now to the questions:</p>

<p>1.) When do you think I might get a response regarding my admission status? (I haven't received or heard anything from UMASS admissions. UMASS received the last missing piece of my application (paper app and personal statement) on March 22 at around 10:30 (I overnighted it.))</p>

<p>2.) Do you think I'll get in? (I do feel very good about it, but I was just wondering what someone else might have to say.)</p>

<p>3.) Am I qualified enough to gain entrance to the Honors College? (I didn't have the prerequisite 3.2 all of my semesters, but I have a strong upward trend in my grades (by semester, 2.8, 2.8, 3.4, 3.7) and I enclosed an extra couple paragraphs of a request to enter the honors program (why I wanted to by there and why they should let me in))</p>

<p>4.) How likely is it that I'll get some merit scholarship/aid? (I've heard most transfers don't get any, but I was just wondering what your thoughts might be.)</p>

<p>5.) Who do transfers normally live with and where? With other transfer students? In general housing with no special consideration at all? (i.e. just thrown into some random housing selection)</p>

<p>6.) Assuming I have some choice, and keeping in mind that I'm a chemistry major, where might be a good place to live? Any suggestions?</p>

<p>7.) Also, (and I know this is more of a specific question), what courses might I take to fulfill the med-school required 2 semesters of Biology with a lab?</p>

<p>ANYWAY, I know it's a bunch of stuff, but like I said, any help or information would be MUCH appreciated and helpful. Thanks again in advance and have a GREAT day.</p>

<p>Regards,</p>

<p>Tom from NJ</p>

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<p>Tom--</p>

<p>Chem is a top program at UMA, esp given the rep of the grad program in polymer science, which is ranked #1 in country.</p>

<p>The first transfer accepts will be mailed out late next week.</p>

<p>Yes, you are clearly admissible, esp if you earned those grades in an engineering curriculum.</p>

<p>You may need to request a CC appeal, if you don't get in upon admission. You have a good basis for appeal.</p>

<p>Transfer scholarships are rare at any school and that is the case at UMA. Not likely.</p>

<p>Transfers live all over campus. UMA has a lot of freshman living spaces, so there will be fewer freshmen where transfers live. Room-mate will usually be another transfer stuudent. Transfers can request housing areas in priority order.</p>

<p>A lot of science students live in Northeast ... a quiter area close to the science and engineering buildings.</p>

<p>There are two terrific pre-med advisors at UMA and they will be available at orientation (and throughout student career) to supplement chem advising with med school advice and info on course choices.</p>

<p>Hope that's helpful!</p>

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<p>First off, Admisscouns, thank you very much for your response. However, I still have some questions.</p>

<p>1.) What exactly is "a CC appeal" and how much I do this / find out more information about this?</p>

<p>2.) Although rare, is there at least SOME chance I'd get a scholarship? Or I mean, what's the deal here?</p>

<p>3.) What exactly is "priority order" and how is it figured out?</p>

<p>4.) Can you tell me anymore about Northeast? Also, concerning living situations, I've heard that sometimes classes are offered in the dorm you live in; is it possible to get into classes/dorms/apartments like this?</p>

<p>5.) Concerning the Biology requirement, although I'm sure the people I meet at orientation will help me; However, I need to find out about what courses I'd need to take and if I could take any in the mean time to act as transfer credit before that time. (Because I have to register for them now or soon.) If you can't answer this question, maybe you can point me in the right direction?</p>

<p>Thanks again, I look forward to talking with you more on these college confidential forums. :) You seem like a very nice person. Have a great day.</p>

<p>--Tom</p>

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<p>I am glad to see a discussion towards transfer students. I myself have a few concerns about the transfer process/credit.</p>

<p>1-I talked to a represenative at a transfer fair at my community college and she said credit is transferable as long as it meets their criteria. I have a tech prep class I took at my high school which goes towards credit for my degree, however, I was wondering if anyone knows if this would count for credit at UMA. I told the rep that I am working on a general studies degree to work on the general classes and am following the transfer credit list on the registrar's office webpage and she said that was fine. At the end of the semester I will have 62 credits so if there is anyone out there who had the same process I would like to know if the transfer process went well. </p>

<p>2-I want to major in Sociology but unfortunatley there are not a lot of Sociology courses at my current school so I would have to catch up on the classes, which is no big deal. I see that the college of social and behavior sciences is one of the biggest colleges on campus, so i was just wondering what other's perspective is on it. I see they have a great marching band program, and that is one of the reasons why I want to come here because I did that in HS and even though it's a lot of work I really like it and hopefully get a few more years of doing it.</p>

<p>3-If anyones interested my stats from my current college are:
-Cumulative GPA 3.15 General Studies program, will have an A.S. at end of semester
-Personal essay about background and personal achievments
-Activities i.e. resume
-(2) awsome letters of recomendation
-Brief transfer statement
-Transcript sent at end of fall 2006 semester with 46 completed credits, 16 in progress</p>

<p>This is my top choice of schools I want to transfer to, but we'll see what happens. I have been accepted to another school for a back up just in case but I personally feel pretty confident. The other college I was accepted to did an unofficial audit so I have an idea what I have to do for course for my major.
If anyone has any details I'd appreciate the tips...</p>

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<p>Tom--</p>

<p>CC appeal is Commonwealth College appeal. However, if you send me a private message with your name, I will review your file for CC.</p>

<p>There are two scholarships for each of the MA community colleges for students transferring in from a designated associate degree program. There are a handful of honors scholarships, but you pretty much have to have close to a 4.0 to get one. Hence, unlikely.</p>

<p>Priority order is YOUR priority order. You rank the residential areas based on your personal preferences.</p>

<p>The programs offering small classes in the residence halls are for freshmen. They are offered to assist students to make a successful adjustment to college life. Therefore, not usually available to transfer students, unless you need some missing gen ed requirement and that course is offered in your residence area with space available. They are more usually available to transfers in the Spring semester.</p>

<p>Any Intro Biology I and II courses with labs (4 credits) should be fine. If you want to clear specific courses with a transfer counselor prior to registering, just call the Admissions Office at 413-545-0222 and ask to speak with one of the transfer counselors.</p>

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<p>Capt--</p>

<p>Without knowing course prefix (dept and number), course title, number of credits, and name of school, I can't really tell you if a specific course will transfer. However, if you are graduate with a general studies program and it meets the Commonwealth Transfer Compact requirements, you are guaranteed a minimum of 60 credits.</p>

<p>You only need 30-some credits for the sociology major, so you should be able to catch up without difficulty. Plus, there is a lot of flexibility in major requirements in that major.</p>

<p>The marching band is simply TERRIFIC! Many students attend UMA just to participate in the marching band. Great director, award-winning, and a good experience overall.</p>

<p>With a 3.15, you should have no problem getting admitted. The first accept packages will go out next week.</p>

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<p>I am from Manchester Community College (in CT) and I know we have a similar transfer agreement with our state schools. I do not want to go into great detail of all the courses but after doing some research about this issue I think it should not be a problem.</p>

<p>Thanks for your help admisscouns I really appreciate it!
Anthony</p>

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<p>Could you give me a quick transfer eval as well? It would be much appreciated. Very competitive Massachusetts prep school for high school, they don't really do GPA but around a 3.5 with a 1950 new SAT. I'm now abroad for a year but miserable so my GPA has dipped to about a 2.6 my first semester of freshman year and I just want to get back to America and UMass, if I explained this to the admissions committee in the explanation section should I be ok? I also have very solid recs and extra curriculars, the only thing really worrying me about my transfer admissions chances is my low GPA for my first college semester. I'm also from out of state. I know that I would have been stronger as a freshman applicant but now I've realized that I really want to be back in New England. Thoughts? Evaluation?</p>

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<p>Chillin--</p>

<p>With strong HS and SAT, plus 2.6 in first semester, you would probably be fine. We know first semester is tough anywhere, and if you are at the wrong school, it can affect performance. Definitely explain this in your transfer statement. I think you have a good shot!</p>

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<p>Admisscouns,</p>

<p>I just wanted to post one little note here as another way of reaching out to you. I sent you a PM yesterday and would greatly appreciate it if you could take a look at your earliest convenience.</p>

<p>Thanks again.</p>

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<p>puff-o-smoke:
done. see your email. then smile.</p>

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<p>Admisscouns:</p>

<p>Cheering would have been a more accurate description. (Which is what I was doing...) :) [SMILE!!!]</p>

<p>As you might imagine, saying thank you cant quite express my gratitude towards you right now, but none the less, THANK YOU.</p>

<p>And have a WONDERFUL day.</p>

<p>:)</p>