Hey, Quebec high-school junior & aspiring aerospace-engineer here.
In writing this, I’ve come to realize how painfully true this is:
“Advice is what we ask for when we already know the answer but wish we didn’t.” --(I have no clue)
…Well, anyway, any feedback would be appreciated. Thank you in advance. Here’s what I’d like to know:
- If I’m an American, but went to high-school in Canada, would I be considered an International Student in the eyes of an American university’s admissions committee?
- Would I need to submit a course-equivalency-assessment by an accredited organization with my college applications?
- Is it true that QC high school credits are worth more than US h-s credits? (In other words, is my GPA higher in America than in Canada?)
- Would being a Florida resident & being born there help for FL universities?
- Would not having ANY ECs mean an automatic rejection if I applied to the above-mentioned schools?
- Could a killer application and stellar SAT, ACT, and SAT Subject Test scores, as well as a brief explanation of why I dropped the ball a bit sophomore and junior year, compensate for an average GPA?
I’ve always known that I wanted to go to university, but was told never to worry about it because I was a “very good student”. (Apologies for sounding so immodest.) Up until sophomore year, at least.
My Dad didn’t want me staying after school, and I couldn’t afford to be on the sports teams or in cadets (etc) anyway, so I never really had the chance to beef up my ECs. There weren’t really any clubs at school, either. I was in Student Council for one year, took all the “enriched” & science-option classes available, took music (class) for four years (and played in a couple of shows), and was certified as a “peer-tutor” (even though that program never got off the ground), but that’s about all I can say. I’ve got a summer job at a local museum at the moment–my first job–and I’m planning to complete my 12th grade online this summer as well (instead of going to CEGEP, which is, in QC, a mandatory two-year “pre-university” program). Doing my grade 12 online would allow me to finish high-school quickly, and bring up my GPA a bit before I would start applying to universities for the 2018 spring semester as a freshman.
I’d never had a clue what I wanted to study in university/“do with my life” until about three months ago. Now that I DO know, I feel like it’s too late and that I’ve screwed myself over. Worst case scenario, I figure I could go to a community college for a while, join clubs that I’d be interested in, prove that I’m “passionate” about engineering and that I can do well academically (once I feel like I have a solid goal), and THEN apply to a four-year university.
That being said, though I do understand the pros of going to a community college–given the situation I’ve put myself in–if at all possible, I’d love to just start at a four-year university and stay there until I get my degree.
(I’ve realized that I’d love to specialize in astronautical engineering, so after my bachelor’s, I thought I’d transfer to the University of Southern California, which has a flagship “Astro-ENG” master’s program.)
Sorry this spiel was so long… So what do you guys think? Do I have a shot at any of these schools? Or any other schools with a strong undergrad aerospace program? Or am I just asking strangers to confirm that applying as a freshman wouldn’t be such a good idea right now.