So… For a lot of reasons, I didn’t do so well in high school. I ended with a 2.75. I got into and am going to attend Radford University in the fall.
After visiting several times, I actually really love the campus and the education seems pretty good, however I don’t want to stay there for all 4 years.
I’m doing CS at RU and I want to transfer to a different in state school for CS as well.
My dream school has always been Virginia Tech, but I don’t think that it’s even possible for me to transfer there (I already don’t meet the requirements based on the courses I’m taking at RU).
GMU is like 10 minutes from my house, and I really really do not want to live at home. I think I’d rather stay at RU than live at home another year.
JMU has a decent program for computer science I think, but I don’t know how it stacks up
UVA I assume is out of my league.
Assuming I worked hard and got a 3.8+ at RU in my first year, where should I apply?
Don’t go into college just planning to transfer. Please keep an open mind and experience what it’s like at RU. That being said, you need to look at the Common Data Sets for schools (section D) to see if they will include your HS info in a transfer decision.
My advice is don’t have the mindset of planning to transfer. When that decision comes around then you can do whatever but until then stay open minded. RU is a really fun school, especially if you can find the right crowd there.
Anyhow, I went to RU and transferred out with a 3.74 after 2 years.
I applied to JMU, VT, and UVA. Was accepted to JMU and VT so they’re achievable if you reach your goal and both great schools. Also even though UVA is a stretch, still apply, I had a friend who was accepted with a 3.5 and was heavily weighted based on essays and extra currics.
All three of those schools are great (Hint: JMU is the best), but you need to find which fits you best by touring. I know one of the biggest issues I had with RU was the crimes and scenery.
Get involved at Radford - it’ll help in many ways, including laternon to transfer. (read _the naked roommate _)
Ask for substance free housing so that when you leave the party it doesn’t follow you home. If that’s not possible, a stem-focused LLC.
Have you picked your classes? Have 2 hard classes max your first semester - in college, you automatically have rigor (equivalent to 4-5AP’s per semester) and plan to go to office hours starting right the first week, with questions on the homework/reading/p-set.
If you want to transfer, you’ll have to avoid the mistake most freshmen make, which is starting to work hard in October after the first grades come in and they’re bad - college goes twice faster than high school, so you have to hit the ground running. Get textbooks ahead of time and preview the first chapters, writing questions in pencil in your notebook or in margins. Party on Friday and Saturday only, even if your roommate invites you to a party on Wednesday (that roommate is unlikely to make it to sophomore year.)