How to Get into a Good College with Low GPA

(Video: How to Get into a Good College with Low GPA)

It’s the plight that millions of students face every year – they look at the top schools in the country and they are deterred because they feel underqualified and intimidated by the application process.

Good schools will reject students, and the most selective ones will only pick the crème de la crème in the world from their applicant pools.

Fret not just yet. On the surface, things do look dire and hopeless for the rest of us. While people do get carried away by the stats, the truth of the matter is…you can get into any school you want.

“Huh? What was that?” That’s right. Shall we get a parrot, “You can get into any school you want.”

Yes, there are always the naysayers who will argue that you can’t, but you know what? There’s always an exception to every rule, and those people who were supposed to be the “exceptions” were just like any other student, challenged and broke that perception and landed into a top school.

Please note that we’re not guaranteeing anything at all that you’ll get into the top schools right now, especially if you have been flunking your classes (then don’t you even dare mention the Ivy Leagues at this point :).

However, there are systems in place and ways around it to help you get there eventually, by approaching through different angles to increase your chances.

The Transfer Element

Here’s the best way to get into a really good top school if you already have only average grades. It’s not something that most of you will admit to wanting to do at first.

What is it? Simple.

Go to a community college for 2 years. That’s right. Take your prerequisites at a local school, then transfer.

We’ll be honest, that’s probably something you don’t want to hear, but it’s the nearest thing to a guarantee way to get into the best schools around.

There does appear to be a stigma for attending community colleges, but then again it’s not where you begin but how your journey ends.

Most students just want to get into the top 4-year universities for bragging rights, but is it worth paying more for a 15-second of fame upon graduation and show off or rub it in all the faces of classmates and teachers who made your life miserable?

If you can, however, get into a fairly decent school right now, by all means, go right ahead. This is more for those who already have less than impressive GPAs and test schools; it’s better to go this route then not go at all.

You’re going to be surprised at how easy it is to transfer into the more expensive prestigious schools if you take on the course material of a community college for 2 years first. Not only that, you’ll save money.

Still not convinced? Think of it this way.

If you spend $45,000 per year on tuition (now that’s tuition alone and doesn’t include room and board which would amount to $60,000) at a private 4-year college, let’s say Harvard University.

$45,000 x 4 years = $180,000 to get your Harvard undergraduate degree.

If you start out at a community college ($3000 per year, or you don’t even have to pay with community colleges’ financial aid) then transfer, you’ll get to save on that much money and complete the remaining 1-2 years required credits and still get the same Harvard degree with all the bragging rights as the other students who already spent 4 years there paying the extra cost

It’s almost like hacking a Harvard degree that would take 4 years into 1 year, minus the cost.

You tell us, which is more economical?

Here’s an extreme far-fetched scenario for exemplary purpose only:

You attend a no-name community college without ever paying a dime and are just shy away from graduating with one class left to take, so you transfer and get accepted into Harvard to complete that remaining class then graduate with “Harvard alumnus” status instead of the “no-name community college alumnus” status.

As you can tell, this is completely made up to give you the idea of it’s not where you begin but where you end up for the prominent title.

Don’t scoff at this idea. There are some very high ranking schools that let floods of students in on transfer, all because they did the proverbial dirty work of getting through the first 2 years of their prerequisites with good grades.

Get Seriously Involved in Community

Let’s assume that you don’t have good test scores, and lackluster grades. The thing that can boast you up is being an active contributing member of society.

If you get seriously involved with community, you are going to get noticed. This includes volunteering, advocating, demonstrating active involvement in specific causes, raising money, and doing everything you can to ensure that you’re helping others whenever you’re not in school, will pay off dividends down the line.

Colleges love seeing how individuals will contribute to their campus beyond the classrooms.

Get involved or start an activism, non-profit group, organization, etc., that will get you newsworthy headlines. Be heard. Be known. Be memorable. That’s how you’ll get colleges’ attention out of everybody else overshadowed by high but bland GPA and test stats.

Plus, getting letters of recommendation from the heads of these organizations will help you as well.

Play Sports

Right off the bat, this is a tough one and not applicable to everybody.

You will find that if you play sports, you will get recruitment interests from other schools. Even if you don’t immediately get into the top school you want, you’ll be courted by Division 3, Division 2, and even Division 1 colleges with a FULL ride scholarship.

People underestimate how many schools need more athletes. They will pay for you to play, learn, and live at their school.

Sports are the heart and soul of the school (besides the brain within the classrooms), and not to mention are a huge revenue generator for them.

Play a sport, any sport. Some of the best colleges in the world, will let you in, if you can be an asset to their athletic program.

Write in Specific Styles for Specific Schools

Here is something you do right now.

Find some “college essay and application” books. Then crack it open and emulate the writing style that they recommend. You’ll be surprised by how a very on-point essay will get you past the initial rejection pile.

The college essay is the crucial part of the application process that can make admission officers overlook the other lacking qualifications.

This is your chance to voice yourself. Be unique. Be original. Tell them who you are? Explain some of the not so good they may have noticed that could have immediately blown you off. How will you make their school better? Put yourself in the college admission’s shoes. If you were the one responsible for determine if this student were to get in or not, what would impress you?

People forget that the essay can open up doors, so don’t skip this.

*****

At the end of the day, you should focus more how to find the best college for you, not what your parents are expecting because your cousin Felicia is attending Oxford University and why can’t you do the same, or for the glory of having people know you are the only one who left your small town for a big city private 4-year intuition with other student elites.

It might not be the most impressive starting point like going to a non-name university, but it is a starting point than attempting to apply to only the top schools but getting all rejections.

Besides, you can also try again once you build up a far more academic profile to transfer. Don’t think that because you failed getting in through the freshman admission, you can’t get in at all. There are always other paths to the same destination.

The application process will be easier for you compared to a high school senior who has no real-world experience.

Start small and work your way up. The journey will be much more rewarding.