Transferring from an Indiana CC to UIUC

[Mathamans]

I'd like to know if anyone has any knowledge on the difficulty of transferring to UIUC as a math and physics major from a community college in Indiana (I'm not sure if the CC in Indiana part was relevant, just thought I'd add it in case). What should I do to have a competitive application? Thanks.

 

[Dr. Courtney]

I'd like to know if anyone has any knowledge on the difficulty of transferring to UIUC as a math and physics major from a community college in Indiana (I'm not sure if the CC in Indiana part was relevant, just thought I'd add it in case). What should I do to have a competitive application? Thanks.

It's been a while since I looked at UIUC closely, so I am answering more generally about how to jump from a CC to a school in the class of UIUC. There may be more specific school admissions requirements to attend to.

Community Colleges are of varying quality in their undergrad math and physics offerings. Some are very poor. Some prepare students very well to transfer to the best public schools in their state. You would do well to get an independent assessment of where you are, and how well prepared you are.

I would contact a physics prof (an undergrad type of coordinator or contact is often identified at department web sites) at UIUC with your ACT scores, with a list of courses completed at the CC, the name of the CC, and the grades you earned in each math and physics course and talk to that faculty member about it. If you cannot figure out who that is, then another pool of good faculty contacts would be to identify the professors who teach sophomore and junior level courses in Quantum Mechanics, Electrodynamics, Mechanics, or Thermodynamics, and get their feedback on how well prepared you are and how to improve your preparation. Odds are you are not the first transfer student from your CC, and they will have a good idea how well prepared you might be. If they can't assess the situation, they can direct you to ways in which you can.

Good grades, research accomplishments, and good letters of recommendation make any application look better.

 

[ZapperZ]

I'd like to know if anyone has any knowledge on the difficulty of transferring to UIUC as a math and physics major from a community college in Indiana (I'm not sure if the CC in Indiana part was relevant, just thought I'd add it in case). What should I do to have a competitive application? Thanks.

Is there a specific reason why you picked UIUC? It is a highly competitive school to get into, especially in the middle of the program.

If you are a resident of Illinois, then you may have a better chance. If you are a resident of Indiana, I'm not sure why you are not looking at IU, Purdue, etc.

Zz.

 

[Mathamans]

Is there a specific reason why you picked UIUC? It is a highly competitive school to get into, especially in the middle of the program.

If you are a resident of Illinois, then you may have a better chance. If you are a resident of Indiana, I'm not sure why you are not looking at IU, Purdue, etc.

Zz.

I'm not set on where I want to transfer as of right now, UIUC is just something I was considering. I've read they're ranked quite highly in mathematics and physics so I assumed they'd have great courses to prepare me for graduate school. Additionally, 44% of undergraduates conduct research so I assumed the research opportunities were quite good. These are assumptions though, of course. If I decided I really liked what I saw, I could drive a mere two hours to visit the campus and have a try at getting an interview, or at least talk to some students and faculty members. Purdue has also been a consideration, as well as IU.