Will early undergraduate mediocrity ruin my chances for great Grad School?

Graduate School
1

<p>I spent the first few years of my college career doing extremely poorly at a community college. I have tons of W's (Withdraws) and even failed a few classes (which i later retook), this went on for years until i finally started to get serious. My grades got better i started making consistent progress, no longer withdrawing from classes and so on. </p>

<p>This last year I transferred to San Francisco State University and have gotten nothing but A's since, a trend I intend to continue as I enter my senior year. Unless i mess up, I will be graduating Cum Laude and am starting to look into Graduate schools.</p>

<p>I am hoping to go to UCLA, UCB, USC, maybe even NYU or Columbia (I know it's a long shot). It's probably difficult to go from SF State to a top school even with consistent good grades throughout school. How much weight will my excellent performance in the last two years weigh against years of mediocrity?</p>

2

<p>If you did well at your 4-year university, then you will probably be fine.
however, it is difficult to assess your chances with this vague information.</p>

<p>I think you should go for it though. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>I have heard many stories of people having improved their academic focus and grades and ultimately being admitted.</p>

<p>With that said, admission has many components. Good grades will play a role but won’t be enough on their own in most cases. It is pretty hard to say anything more without knowing what degree and field you are looking into and what your test scores are. Your recommendations and statement of purpose are also a huge part of admissions in most fields. In many fields you will also need some type of research experience.</p>