I'm in an interesting situation, mostly because I'm doing this college thing alone and have been confused as to how things work.
I'm a freshmen at the very end of my first semester at a very expensive private university. The beginning of the year I was overwhelmed with being away from home and became depressed and haven't done well AT ALL with finals. I was unaware of the ability to withdraw from classes (which seems so stupid now) until it was too late and now my gpa will probably suffer incredibly. I planned on transferring next semester to a state uni in my hometown because i've found out now that even though my great HS grades and state test scores got me plenty of aid and scholarships, my parents are still unable to pay the difference so there is no way for me to register for classes here for spring and even if I could go here next semester, I would be losing scholarship money because of bad grades and at the end of the academic year I would face having to pay large amounts of money again.
Basically, I'm wondering about transferring without a transcript because the private uni is holding it while i slowly pay off the $ I owe them. And if I am below a 2.0 gpa as far as college work goes, will I even be considered? Am I being unrealistic about even attending school in the spring?? Anyone been in a similar situation? I'm just looking for advice.
Brandy:
First of all, I want you to realize that it is not at all uncommon for a first-time college freshman to struggle academically. I'm sure that now that you're at college, you realize that getting acclimated to this brand new environment is so much more than just doing well in classes. For a young woman (and the same applies to a young man), away from home and living on your own for the first time, there's so much more to college life than just showing up for lectures, studying for exams and taking tests. The situation is overwhelming for many, many students.
Before we talk about anything else, it's important that you realize that there ARE resources available to people in your situation - but you can't get help unless you take the initiative to go out and get it. Yes, that's another one of those big differences between college life and the insular security of high school at home - now you have to find help on your own.
Here's what I'm going to recommend. Over the break, sit down with your mom and dad and have a serious and frank talk about finances. I think you might be over-reacting a bit to the immediate impact that your one semester of bad grades is going to have on your scholarships. Most scholarship winners are only re-evaluated one time a year (for renewal), and even when you're up for re-evaluation, there is a certain amount of "understanding" about your situation - if you're in danger of not meeting the standards, you can appeal. One poor college semester does not wipe away your 4 years of high school success, so the committee will be able to sympathize that you had a rough go of your first semester, and they'll stand back and let you get back on your feet again in semester two.
You should also schedule an appointment with the financial aid department at your school. Your parents may not have taken advantage of all of the different forms of aid available to THEM to help you pay for school. If they haven't already done so, have them look into the government's PLUS loan program - a lending program exclusively for the parents of undergraduate students. Like the Stafford loan, the interest rates on the PLUS loans are much lower than conventional loan rates, and your parents will be able to postpone repayment until you leave school. Unlike the Stafford, your parents' application will be analyzed for credit worthiness - but how about this - if your parents aren't approved, that makes you eligible to borrow more from the Stafford program.
You didn't mention if YOU are taking advantage of the Stafford program. Trying to make it through an expensive college without borrowing is probably impossible, and it's financial suicide. If you're not taking advantage of the great Stafford program, discuss your options with the financial aid office.
Here's what I'm trying to tell you. I know that your first semester at Expensive U has been a disaster, but I'm betting, based on your great HS grades and test scores, that you're more than capable of shining at your new school, too. You've run up against a major challenge - okay - so you're not the most adept young lady at adapting to a new world - but don't give up so easily. I mean, life is filled with these types of challenges, and if you stand up to this one, and succeed, you'll have the confidence to take on all of the obstacles you'll meet in the future.
Give yourself one more semester at your current school. Visit the counseling office - c'mon - there's nothing embarrassing about talking to someone and getting some neat advice about how to cope with the stress and how to manage your time and how to improve your study skills. Talk to financial aid - I think they'll reassure you about your existing scholarships - and have some creative ideas about how to help your mom and dad out.
Moving home is pretty much just running from your problems. You don't need to climb under the covers of your old trusty bed to get your problems solved, you need to face them head on and regain your confidence.
I really hope this helped - even if it was just a little pep talk. Good luck to you - and I really mean that. You will be considered because you are not the only person who has been in this situtation but I say that you act ASAP in applying to that state school because most schools (in california at least) already had the deadline for transfer application but they will still consider you. If you did miss the application deadline one sad thing is that you might not be considered for that schools scholarships so I hope you transfer back home and it all works out for you.
You can also transfer without an official transcript (put the grades in yourself) but the school you apply to will eventually ask for an official one.
Note: The application process (n california at least) to attend any state uni for the spring 2009 has closed. You might just want to go to your local community college and hope that the state uni will accept the application you filled out. (fill out the application now) you do not have much time Every college is different when it comes to being able to transfer.
When I was attending a community college, I realized that it costs just as much to go to the community then to go to one of the State Universities. Plus the community college didn't accept any of my scholarships that's rotting away. So I decided I want to go to IUPUI. Indiana University- Purdue University of Indiana. So I went to the IUPUI's adviser and asked how to transfer for the next ssemester
I found out that my scholarship was long gone. Unfortunatelythey did ask for my transcript from my high school and from the community college. But there was one class I stopped attending because the teacher was just a total ***** and even if I was to go to that class I would have still failed.
I was worried that they would say something but I still got accepted in. But all my other classes I was doing fine it. Just give it a shot. But you need to do it NOW before it's too late. If you don't get in you can try for community college might be cheaper and easier to get in. Plus after two years you can transfer. |
