How much do grad schools weigh community college transcripts?

[Jchris002]

I am new to these boards and through lurking I have already had many questions answered, but it seems that their is a dearth in topics about the relevance of community college in the overall application. My community college gpa was low (2.7 or so). How much will this be weighed in relation to my university grades (3.5 overall and >3.8 over the last 2 years). Could this end up hindering my application?

[mechengr2000]

What matters is what has happened most recently. You will actually look really good because you show an upward trend. Good luck and nice job! i wish my GPA was that high!

[Henry Hudson]

CC grades do not count as much as your 2 upper years.

moreover, low CC grades and higher upper years look good - it shows you have matured and improved as a student. The reverse - high CC/low upper, would suggest either burnout, hitting a wall, or inflated CC grades.

so you're on the right track!

(I was in similar circumstances as you, btw. for my MA, I was accepted at 3/4 of my app schools, and 2/3s for my PhD. in both cases, the ones I missed were extremely competitive schools)

[x2x3i5x]

sorry if i'm replying to a semi-old post ...

but.... how much do CC grades matter?

To make story short: I graduated bio sci, and was depressed with my abysmal grades. (~2.5 cGPA, ~2.043 mGPA, my diploma says june 2010 graduation year)

But I know I could never turn back the clock sadly :(

I decided I'd attend CC, and I did their electronics technology program there, got all A's, one B, and so I have a dean's list honor from the CC.

now, something in electronics field seems to be my cup of tea (interests me more than bio sci now that I think of it).

Best possible method to get my foot into grad school now?? Been seeing that having a master's degree in hand makes life much easier when on the job hunt. I'm willing to work my tail off in grad school if I ever got in.

[jcsd]

sorry if i'm replying to a semi-old post ...

but.... how much do CC grades matter?

To make story short: I graduated bio sci, and was depressed with my abysmal grades. (~2.5 cGPA, ~2.043 mGPA, my diploma says june 2010 graduation year)

But I know I could never turn back the clock sadly :(

I decided I'd attend CC, and I did their electronics technology program there, got all A's, one B, and so I have a dean's list honor from the CC.

now, something in electronics field seems to be my cup of tea (interests me more than bio sci now that I think of it).

Best possible method to get my foot into grad school now?? Been seeing that having a master's degree in hand makes life much easier when on the job hunt. I'm willing to work my tail off in grad school if I ever got in.

Hi x2x3i5x,

Like mechengr2000 said, it's what has happened recently that matters even if it's courses from CC. More importantly is to take steps to demonstrate your intent on going into your program of interest. My best friend was in a similar situation. She graduated with no idea what to do with her Psychology degree from university and spent several years miserable working at menial jobs. After some soul-searching she decided she wanted to become an optometrist. So she went to CC for several years and took all the prerequisite sciences courses, getting all A's. She also did a lot of optometry related volunteering services, shadowing doctors, and did good on the OATs. She was accepted this past spring and will be going to optometry school this fall.

Is a PhD program your goal? I'm not knowledgeable enough to say whether going into a MS program first would help, perhaps other members on this forum can answer that. But when you do apply to grad school having things that can demonstrate your seriousness in your program of interest on your application certainly helps your chances. If the courses that you took at CC fulfills some of the prerequisites, then it's a good first step

[x2x3i5x]

Hi jcsd,

PhD program isn't my goal. I simply want to get a job and MS degree seems to open a lot more doors as it looks like. And so................. I'm now motivated in getting my act together and get everything done right from this point on.

I guess that isn't a bad goal, but it's hard to get there now that I'm where I currently am.

The CC courses actually look good? I mean, going for electronic engineering or one of those fields related to electronics, well ....

Edited August 15, 2011 by x2x3i5x