At the moment I am a high school senior, I start going to the community college, NVCC, this summer.
I think I need to get a 4.0 in the CC in order to have a good chance in getting accepted and I am NOT doing guaranteed admissions due to the amount of money I have to spend on elective courses…I won’t be working and will not have any extra curricular activities since I want to make sure I have all A’s in all of my courses.
I want to do CS at VT so I need to have a very high GPA and will apply in my first year of CC and I think I’ll be a sophomore at VT due to some AP credits.
High school GPA right now is a 4.1, 7 APs and couple honors, and my SAT is trash at a 1260, I think 560 English/700 Math, but I don’t think the SAT score even matters for transfer students…right?
At NVCC:
Summer:
SDV(College Success Skills class which is a mandatory)-1 credit course
Principles of Public Speaking CST 100-3 Credits (Not sure about this one)
Total NVCC Credits: 17 Credits
Total VT Credits: 15 Credits
2nd Semester Spring 19:
Computer Science 2-CSC 202-4 Credits
College Composition 2-ENG 112-3 Credits
Linear Algebra-MTH 285-3 Credits
Discrete Mathematics-MTH 286-4 Credits
Principles of Public Speaking CST 100-3 Credits ( if I take this over the summer I’ll replace this with Differentials Equations)
Total NVCC Credits: 17 Credits
Total VT Credits: 15 Credits
At VT:
First Semester(not 100% sure):
CLE(Elective)-3 Credits
CLE(Elective)-3 Credits
CS 2114-3 Credits
PHYS 2306-4 Credits
ENGE 1216-2 Credits
CS 1944-1 Credits
Total Credits: 16 Credits
What do you all think?
I will try my hardest to get all A’s, but is that enough? I will take any suggestions…
Are these courses enough? I can’t take anymore unless they are humanities or social sciences since due to AP credits I can only do 1 year at the CC. All of the courses that I’ll be taking at CC is transferable except for the SDV course…
I THINK you and I were in the same public speaking class - only I’m a year behind you. I’m trying to get into JMU for Fall 2019. I recommend that you contact admissions at Tech and tell them about how many courses you’ve taken.
Ahaha nope, I am a high school senior, were you taking CST 100? PLEASE tell me everything about that class? Should I take it over the summer my first time at NOVA?
Thanks!
Here are the check sheets and you should follow them as closely as possible. Note they would NOT have you taking the 200 level Comp Sci course freshmen year. First year Engineering classes are difficult so you need to give yourself some easy classes when possible. Make sure you fill those “area 2, 3, or 7” classes instead. I bet the guaranteed admission counselor will help you and VA Tech is helpful if you call them. Good luck. https://registrar.vt.edu/graduation-multi-brief/checksheets/college/index.html
You seem to be doing all the right things. I had low SAT scores, went to CC for 1 year, then transferred to VT eng. Here are a couple of things I learned…
You goals are right-on, all As are great, but particularly in your math and science classes. Bs aren't the end of the world but a C in Calc will kill your chances. Safest bet, get all As.
I haven't seen the latest curriculums, but your semesters should match or almost match the VT curriculum. The VA CC system does a good job of doing that.
Don't be afraid to use the Summers. I used the Summer to get chemistry and it was much easier to focus on one course. 17 credits in an eng curriculum is TOUGH. You may used to working that much, but maybe not. When you have courses that are all math-like courses where you have to work problems every night, it's a lot of work. I was acomputer eng major at VT and I averaged 14 credits per semester. The projects in the CS courses and in EE courses were tough for me to balance at once. I'd recommend signing up for your planned load, but don't be afraid to drop a course before the deadline if you feel the workload prevents you from doing well.
Agree with PP, get in touch with VT admissions. They were very easy to talk to and will see you on a visit. Get their opinion on your plan. True story... They actually denied me based on my first semester results, but when I showed them my 2nd semester grades, they granted me conditional admission based on final results.
DON'T be afraid of seeing your professors at office hours. It can be intimidating, but don't let that stop you. They like to get to know their students and want you to do well. Don't be afraid to ask for help!
So they denied you based on your 1st Semster results so how could you get them to accept you back? Lol I would really want to know this since what if I get rejected from my first semester course load and grades?
Did you do any extra stuff apart from getting the required GPA and taking tough amounts of credits?
Yeah, pretty interesting story… I didn’t know they had denied me when I visited in the Spring (the letter was in the mail). It took me about a half a semester to get acclimated to college, so I had a rough start and had to ace my exams to get an A in calc. That was my first experience with calculus. Nowadays, most kids get that in high school (this was the 90s).
Going into 2nd semester, I knew what I was doing and had straight As going by mid-semester. I felt that the turn around was impressive and that VT needed to see how I was doing. So, I visited with my parents and met with an admissions person. I showed her my grades and she said that I’d already been denied, but if the grades held up, then she’d let me in.
I’d already been accepted into GMU by then, but I had decided that I wanted to go to VT and if I didn’t get in, then I’d just go to CC another year and get my Associates degree, then go to VT. Back then, CS was in the Arts & Sciences College with Math, but I wanted to get into CpE in the College of Eng. Point of the story, do well and you have a good shot. Also, stay in touch with Admissions.
Very interesting indeed, I think I might have to visit the college and talk to the admissions like you said!
That might make me have a higher chance if I have everything else perfect…maybe
Thanks a lot ArcDad!