<p>Alright I'm not quite sure where to put this, but I need some opinions..</p>
<p>Currently I'm a junior in high school in North Carolina. I have straight A's, a 4.0 GPA, I played soccer during my underclassmen years and I cannot play this year because of work and a foot injury, and I'm not really into any "clubs" at school although I was a member of beta club, DECA, french club, and FFA. I mainly want to go to UNC Chapel Hill, Duke, or Wake Forest University then go to either medical school or graduate school depending on what I decide to do. The whole high school thing doesn't appeal to me, and I have good friends and all but I'm just so sick of it and how easy it is. I am planning on graduating next January (mid year graduate), so I can work mostly full time to save money for medical school. I currently work five to six days a week with school, but when I graduate I am considering going to a community college for two years. Therefore if I graduated next January I would just go straight my local community college during the Spring semester (which by the way, all credits do transfer and it supposedly guarantees a walk in to UNC Chapel Hill and NC State with a 3.00 GPA or higher). I want to do this mainly because my mom is a single mom, and I don't want her to have to deal with paying for college right now, I want to be able to work and save money before I go to a University, and I can get my basic credits out of the way. I also don't really care to live in a dorm, and I don't mind missing out on the first two years of my supposed to be "college experience." Where I'm confused is that I have read a lot of mixed feelings about going to a community college for two years before a University. I know that it would save my parents a lot of money, and if I did want to go straight to a four year university they would let me. I'm not 100% sure about what I want to do yet, but I am torn between going to law school to be a lawyer or medical school to become a doctor. Either way I'd be happy, and those three schools have medical and law programs.</p>
<p>My apologies for that being so long, but my questions are?
1. What do you think my chances of getting into any of those schools are, either right when I graduate or if I transfered?
2. Do you think community college and graduating early is a good idea?
3. Is medical school really THAT bad?
4. Any advice, ideas?</p>
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<li>I think you have a great chance at Wake and UNC, but Duke is iffy (not because your stats are bad, but because Duke is Duke and you can never rely on that stuff). You are definitely a competitive candidate though! I would definitely exaggerate on your ECs. You didn’t specify whether your GPA is with APs, but if it is, then you’re definitely going places.</li>
<li>I know a LOT of people, especially in the UC system in California, that do that. It’s very realistic if you have money problems, but the other thing is that for two years you’re going to be missing out on the college experience while your friends are having fun in college - you’ll be living at home and taking classes that aren’t necessarily very very challenging or stimulating, which is the other problem. You might not care about the college experience now, but if you’re going to med or law school you’re definitely going to regret it. The undergrad years are the FUN years before law or med school, and you should enjoy them while you have the opportunity - you’re only young once! Right out of high school is your prime opportunity to discover yourself, especially if you’re not sure about the med or law field. You should not worry about which one you want to go into right now, but rather go to college, take classes in both fields, or all fields that interest you, and you WILL figure out what you want to do. My suggestion? With your stats, you could for sure get some great scholarships and some other really great schools. You could also get a job while you were in undergrad to help out. UNC might give you some good scholarships too, the COA of UNC is about 36K I believe, and you might get some decent aid at any of these schools if your financial situation is not that great. Take a look at some Big Ten schools or private schools like Fordham or Tulane that might give you a lot of merit aid. You do have options! There are full tuition and full ride scholarships that you would be a very competitive candidate for - you just have to find them. Let me know if you want any more school suggestions via private message. Also, I would probably figure out the maximum your mom is okay with paying/you are okay with your mom paying.</li>
<li>I’m an aspiring premed myself, but I think it’s basically the commitment factor. A lot of people don’t realize how hard it is and expect it to be a cakewalk, and then they wig out. But if you’re committed, you WILL make it through. You just have to keep that MD goal in your mind, and avoid all distractions through premed. Medical school is hard but I’ve heard that most medical schools are pass/fail now so it’s more important to worry about learning, rather than getting a good GPA. While that is still hard, I feel like that’s a better environment than worrying about the effect on your GPA of getting an 89 vs a 90.</li>
<li>I really suggest you look into some other schools that would give you some great scholarships. Community college might sound like a good idea now, but especially if you don’t know what you want to do, it may not be the best bet. Just something to consider. PM me if you have any more questions! I definitely considered CC to ease the cost for my parents, but really it won’t be academically stimulating and I knew I would be miserable, especially if those were the two “fun” years of undergrad.</li>
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<p>Cost of attendance for a NC resident at UNC-CH is about half what avenlea posted and if your are low income the following quote from their website should be of interest.
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<p>A 4.0 GPA is great, but without posting your SATs people are not going to be able to give you realistic feedback about your chance of admission anywhere and therefore it is difficult to give guidance on your question of community college versus going directly to a university.</p>