Hey y’all!
I will soon be applying to transfer out of my community college and am strongly looking forward to going to a good pre law. I’ll just lay out some major stats here:
*HS gpa ~ 4.6, graduated in the top percentile of my class but in what is considered an inner-city. 4’s on a couple AP tests
*College GPA, hopefully will be finishing with a 3.9
*working a full time job as a supervisor at a bank and part time as a pharm tech
*am currently 21, an independent student, overcame houselessness from HS
*attended Reed but have all W’s on my transcript because I had to leave 1st semester due to hospitalization
*SATs pretty low, 1260: 580 math, 680 reading (was going through some strong abuse at my residence so it’s noticeably suffered from my abilities)
*haven’t taken the ACT and would want to do that or retake the SAT, just nervous about that because my math skills are pretty poor and I’ve been out of high school for a few years now
*more ECs include : volunteerism
Mentorship
Culture vultures & pre-med club in college
honors program
pre med club
youth harbors participation (homeless prog I was a part of)
social activism at reed
what I think can help me:
I have worked two jobs to support myself my entire college career now and have done pretty well grade wise! I’m a first gen, black/biracial queer women, I overcame a trauma and put my step-dad in prison and have done a lot of work around that area. I aspire to be part of student govt and have done a lot for my community.
what I think is hurting me:
my Reed transcript, my SAT scores, my college transcript has an entire semester of 3 Ws and 1 F (I got into a major car accident and was hospitalized for some time. If I withdrew from all courses I would be forced to pay thousands as I was on financial aided couldn’t afford that. I tried to finish 1 class but was near impossible while still working and recovering)
may I also add my associates would be in liberal arts (a sociology pathway) and I would ideally like to be a Political Science Major with a minor in Medicine, Health and Society with a concentration in inequality, intersectionality & health justice (offered specifically at Vanderbilt)
please don’t be afraid to share your thoughts and your story! I know school considers a lot more than just numbers but I have some really good numbers and some below average numbers, I don’t know how I level out here. also I would definitely take advice?! thank you! <3
Your previous situation at Reed needs to be carefully explained in your transfer essay. But it is completely understandable. The independent student status may cause some colleges to pause, especially since you will probably need a lot of financial aid.
While Vanderbilt is need blind for undergrads, I don’t think they are need blind for transfers. So keep this in mind. You might consider other colleges that have specific programs for non-traditional students: Yale Eli Whitney and Brown RUE come to mind. Also check out the Law Letters and Society major at UChicago, sounds like it is right up your alley.
Good luck!
Thank you for sharing your story with us.
Your road to now has been circuitous, to say the least, and your push forward certainly demonstrates the kind of resilience that every college admissions office and scholarship granting foundation would take note of.
For those reasons, your estimation of your gpa, as well as your work history, you may want to look into the Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, through the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation.
https://www.jkcf.org/our-scholarships/undergraduate-transfer-scholarship/
https://www.jkcf.org/our-stories/2020-cooke-transfer-scholar-semifinalists/
Even if you don’t think you fit every aspect of the varied qualities the JKCF looks for, you may find you can see much of your profile there. For that reason, I would encourage you to read through their information, consider your own timelines and schedule, and look at their application deadlines.
If geography is not an issue for you, also take a look at the offerings at Wellesley College in Massachusetts:
https://www.wellesley.edu/wgst
https://www.wellesley.edu/wgst/faculty/galarneau/teaching/node/73296
https://www.wellesley.edu/search/google?keys=health+justice
https://www.wellesley.edu/wgst/healthandsocietyminor (minor discontinued after '20)
Look into your eligibility for their Davis Degree Program https://www.wellesley.edu/advising/classdeans/davis
(You may meet their eligibility criteria for women under the age of 24.)
You have proven yourself to be able to continue to push forward, to be able to look the hard thing in the eye and insist on vision even through your tears, so knock on doors and call and speak to someone at one of these organizations if you are at all able to envision yourself as part of one of their programs.
I second the note of good luck from sgopal2.
@Waiting2exhale wow this is SO much information and SO SO helpful!!! thank you so much ! i wish i could articulate how much this means to me!!!
@kemery09: You are more than welcome. I wish you the very best.