<p><em>this is going to be so embarrassing</em></p>
<p>Hi there. I'm currently hoping to become a microbiology or astronomy major (particularly a medical microbiology major) and hope to transfer to either UT Austin or Texas A&M. Unfortunately, my math skills are terrible as I got placed into three semesters of developmental math (the developmental math classes don't count towards my GPA, first semester is pre-algebra). So even assuming that I do get out of my third math developmental class, third semester I have to do college algebra and fourth semester I have to do pre-calculus, making a transfer to UT or Texas A&M in the microbiology or astronomy major impossible (even if I attained a 3.7 GPA+ average). The only way I can transfer is if I have completed an equivalent of calculus and that means I have to do a fifth semester.</p>
<p>I do, however, have an option at the end of the semester to take the COMPASS take to get out of my two remaining developmental class and get into College Algebra 2nd semester, Precalculus 3rd semester, and Calculus 4th semester, but considering how hard it is to get into microbiology and astronomy, that only leaves me with three more classes of sciences to take (doing a second semester of biology, microbiology, and chemistry/physics).</p>
<p>What should I do? Do I need to clip out of those two remaining developmental math classes or do a fifth semester at the community college in order to potentially improve my GPA further, take more science classes (so I can take two semesters of biology, microbiology chemistry, and physics (I don't think my school offers an astronomy class, sadly), get more community hours in, and hope this makes a difference?</p>
<p>Not all four year universities allow applying for starting in the spring semester, or they may be more selective then due to less space available. So if you are not transfer-ready in four semesters, you may have to wait until you have completed six semesters.</p>
<p>Also note that, for a physics or astronomy major, you need to take the calculus-based physics sequence, which obviously requires calculus.</p>
<p>Use this as a chance to get really good at this math. Your future plans will be more possible if you aren’t struggling with the math components.</p>
<p>Many community college students need 2 1/2 years or more to get through the sequence(s) of courses necessary to transfer successfully into their target universities and/or programs. Don’t worry about this! The important thing is to be well prepared for the higher level courses that you will one day be taking.</p>
Having checked their websites, UT Austin and Texas A&M allow transfer during the spring, but you might be right about them being more selective.</p>
<p>Let’s say I apply as a microbiology/astronomy major and got rejected for the Spring, 2015 semester. Would I have to wait until Spring, 2016 to transfer?</p>
<p>As for calculus-based physics sequence, I don’t know if my college has this as a class. I hope so because I would rather not have to go to another university just to take that.</p>
<p>You could apply for the fall semester if you do not get in for the spring semester.</p>
<p>If the community college sends transfers to physics, astronomy, and engineering majors at four year schools, it should have a calculus-based physics sequence.</p>
<p>Checked yesterday and yes, they do have a calculus-based physics sequence (thankfully). However, this pretty much means I have to do five semesters if I want any hope of getting into the astronomy major I so desire to have.</p>
<p>Also thinking about clipping out of one of my developmental math classes (doing the last one during the second semester and not doing the third semester), doing college algebra during the summer, precalculus during the third semester, calculus during the fourth semester, and fifth semester, calculus 2. My college also offers calculus 3 and 4, though I doubt they’ll be needed.</p>