I’m currently a rising sophomore at Stony Brook University majoring in computer science. When I was a senior in high school, I applied to many top schools but was rejected/wailisted despite having a 1500 SAT score, 4.0 GPA, unique essay, and dedicated extracurriculars. This led me to attend Stony brook, which was my safety school.
The summer after high school graduation, I did a software engineering internship at educational technology company, where my supervisors were Yale and Columbia grads. This summer, after my freshman year of college, I am doing another software engineering internship at a technology company that focuses on maintaining digital security and fraud prevention. I am also on the executive board of Stony brook’s computer science club.
However, my GPA is not that good since it’s less than 3.5. I was wondering what my chances are for transferring to a top school (ex. Johns Hopkins, Yale, NYU, Cornell, Brown, Boston Univeristy) given the internships related to my degree, possible rec letter, and club board member position. Also, what can I do to increase my chances of transferring and when should I apply to transfer.
Stony Brook is a very good university for computer science. Once you graduate, your internships will help you a lot in terms of finding a good job. Your internships are really a big deal in a very positive sense.
I think that your best strategy for success in a CS career is to work harder next year to pull up your GPA, and continue to do well in your internships.
A GPA less than 3.5 is not likely to help your chances of transferring. However, I think that you can do very well without needing to transfer.
What happened with your GPA? The transition to university can be tough for some kids. Did you fail to anticipate how hard Stony Brook was going to be?
The transfer deadlines have already passed. Some of the colleges on your list accept Spring transfers. But for the others you’ll have to wait until Feb 2021 to apply.
CS is one of the few majors where undergrad college doesn’t make much of a difference. As long as you can pass the coding tests, you should be able to get interviews.
I work as a software developer. After about 3 years of work experience, employers don’t even ask where you went to school. It’s driven entirely by practical work experience, and it’s incredibly diverse. If employers with Columbia degrees are hiring a Stony Brook intern, they also know that prestige doesn’t matter, otherwise they’d be hiring Columbia graduates. Just stay put and finish your degree. If you can get an internship, you can find a job too.