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Hey guys
I was wondering if it would be "smart" to take some basic classes offered at my local community college like english11, physical education, a foreign language, etc. So that when I go to my four year college next year I can start off ahead and the classes at the community college will probably be easier. Is there some kind of catch to this because wouldn't a lot of people do that then? The classes I plan to take are transferable to the school i am going this fall. Is there any drawbacks? Thanks for any help in advance.

By Demingy (Demingy) on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 09:15 pm: Edit

As long as the classes are transferable to your school, then there shouldn't be any problems, but I would double check that you'd be able to transfer them (trust me, it is good to double, triple, and quadruple check with many schools because sometimes there is some confusion when it comes to transferring credits). Also, are you sure the classes will be easier? I know a lot of people assume that community college classes are easier than the classes at a university, but that isn't always the case.

By Justinmeche (Justinmeche) on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 10:05 pm: Edit

Listen to Demingy about getting approval. Get written approval. Some schools may have specific forms about transfering credit. And remember that only the credits may transfer, not the grades.

By Screwed4life (Screwed4life) on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 10:35 pm: Edit

okay thanks for the advice I'll be sure to check if they are transferable. Oh can you all clear me up on what it means that the credits will only transfer. So won't that look bad then if it just has a credit written down and not a grade--just wondering?

By Demingy (Demingy) on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 10:47 pm: Edit

To answer your question, if the credits are transferable but not the grades, then that means that you'd get credit for the classes (wouldn't have to take them again) and the credits could apply toward your degree (read my advice that follows), but you wouldn't start your freshman year with the GPA you earned at the community college. It just means that your grades wouldn't apply to your GPA at the university (so you would still start at 0). The university would still see the grades you earned, so it wouldn't look bad.

I also wanted to point out something else that you should check with your school about transferring credits. Some universities will allow you to transfer classes from a c.c. but they will only accept those classes as "pre-requisits" and you'd still have to take the same number of credits at the university. So, in other words, if you were to take (for example) English11, they could still require that you take an English class in place of that but you'd be allowed to take a higher level English course.

Just make sure you get everything in writing. And don't worry, it actually isn't as complicated as it sounds. If you don't understand what they mean about something, just ask them to clarify (if needed, present an example).

By Jenniferelaine (Jenniferelaine) on Monday, May 17, 2004 - 11:33 pm: Edit

Trust me on this, this is my specialty. I'm going to finish my undergrad with a double-major in only 3 years. This is thanks to night school while I was in HS (no APs were offered), and I entered college as a sophomore.

Generally, credits transfer, not grades. You will send transcripts to your school of choice, so they will see the grade. The grades from other colleges just will not be calculated into your GPA. Most colleges accept credit if the course transfered earned a grade of "C" or better. So all you have to do is get "C"s in the CC courses (unless you're going to take the LSATs, MCATs, GREs..)

What you should do is look into your prospective colleges GenEd's and take courses that will meet those GenEds.

Don't take courses that are major-specific (this applies to other 4-years only). Your school can reject them, or say they are only electives.

Always always always get the go-ahead from someone at your U's before you take courses. It can even be an adcom, they generally have dealt with this before. They will be able to tell you, or find someone who can answer your questions.

Do NOT and I repeat DO NOT take more hours than will put you over into sophomore status, generally 24-30hrs. This number includes AP credit. The financial aid offices will then classify you as a transfer student and you WILL NOT be eligable for freshman scholarships (those are the big money ones).

By Screwed4life (Screwed4life) on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 03:33 pm: Edit

Okay thanks for the help! So are CC classes basically like AP credit b/c you get hours but not a grade. Yeah I plan to just take courses that are "general requirements" Like for example, I am doing the pre-pharmacy curriculum and this is the sample curriculum for a first semester pre-pharmacy student
english11
perspective or foreign language
calculus
chemistry
physical education

So I thought this summer I could take english11 and a physical education course at a community college which they said would transfer and its on their website--so should i still get it in writing? Second semester iam supposed to take english12 so i thought if i pass english 11 i could start off first semester with english 12 and already have my pe requirement so i can save sometime because sophmore year the curriculum is pretty hard (physics, biology, chemistry, stats, and a perspective all in one semester) Plus I want to free up sometime and get a business minor b/c i heard that its quite useful to get one b/c pharmacy deals with a lot of business.

Oh and what's the general consensus--Should I go for it and take classes at a CC or should i just wait and take classes during summer school next year?

By Jenniferelaine (Jenniferelaine) on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 08:17 pm: Edit

I would go for the CC. CC is relatively cheap, even cheaper than your state schools. The teachers aren't Ivy-caliber, but the material you will be learning is general material that you shouldn't be paying $500/credit hour for to have a Harvard professor stand up there and teach you about Western Civ.

If there is any course that I would advise you against taking at a CC, it would be the English 100. I've found that just about every school has a "style" of writing which it's professors prefer. It's not a blatant preference, and not all profs (or departments) fall into this category, but untraining yourself to write a specific way is pretty difficult when you don't have the model for another.

By Screwed4life (Screwed4life) on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 09:02 pm: Edit

okay thanks--one more question! I understand what you mean by the english classes-b/c each teacher does have their preference but it wouldn't matter would it? b/c either way english 11 or english12 i would not know the professor so i would have to adapt my writing style to their needs anyway. Unless i get the same professor for both...