Community CollegeComputer Science
Unverified. Submitted, nothing checked.Starting conditions
- Institution
- Large State School
- Major
- Computer Science
- GPA band
- below-2.5
- Graduated
- 2015
- Location
- Toronto, Canada
- Working through school
- First-generation student
- No professional network
Limited exposure to the destination field at the start.
The sequence7 steps
- Coursework11 mo
Completed the transfer-track math and CS sequence
Community college
- Job1 yr 7 mo
Worked part time to cover tuition
Worked part time to cover tuition. This took 19 months and was slower than expected.
Evidence for this step - Project7 mo
Built and shipped a portfolio project
Built and shipped a portfolio project. This took 7 months and was slower than expected.
Evidence for this step - Networking1 yr 3 mo
Met with the transfer advisor every term
Met with the transfer advisor every term. This took 15 months and was slower than expected.
- Application6 mo
Transfer application cycle
- Setback2 moPivotal
Waitlisted at first-choice school
Waitlisted at first-choice school. This took 2 months and was harder than expected.
Obstacle
The plan stalled here, and it was not obvious it would recover.
How it was resolved
Asked the people who rejected me what the specific disqualifier was, then fixed exactly that instead of everything at once.
- Transfer4 mo
Enrolled as a junior transfer
Enrolled as a junior transfer. This took 4 months and was harder than expected.
Evidence for this step
Outcome
Transferred to the state flagship CS program
Reflection
Would repeat
- Starting the outreach earlier than felt comfortable.
Would skip
- The first application cycle, which I entered underprepared.
Biggest obstacle
Having no contacts in the field, which made every early step slower than it needed to be.
What was luck
- One person answered a cold email who did not have to.