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When I was a little kid my parents moved around a lot, country to country. As I turned 13 my family decided to settle in a deep south town (here is the link to the background story about it and how it made my life miserable).
Before moving to the deep south my family lived in California and New York. In both areas I made straight A's and excelled, I had a lot to do. When I came to AL for middle school I was packed in class rooms with kids from urban areas, we never learned anything, fights broke out here and there, and most topics would end up with the teacher talking about African Americans and their "experience" in the US rather than us learning anything.
The high school I went to had about 4 AP courses offered, we didn't have sports, we didn't have many extra curricular activities, and since my parents were immigrants we did not know many people in our area who could suggest us things to do.
I finished my first year at a local university with a 2.8 GPA as a Biochem major. Thing is I know transferring to a good university is out of the question. But I really want to see how it is like being at a world class university (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Georgetown, or Penn). Maybe at a later age or something like that.
I know a number of friends & colleagues who started out at 2nd tier state/public colleges for undergrad but ended getting PhD's, JD's & MD's from top-tier universities. However, they're all overachievers who worked their asses off to graduate magna or summa or Phi Beta Kappa, while doing interesting research projects relevant to their fields of study. They didn't slack off or take a lighter load just because they were at a less demanding 4-yr.
My advise is to study harder to bring up your GPA and seek the advise of a faculty advisor or even a TA grad student who can help you structure your coursework & internships in preparation for graduate admissions. Good luck.
But I really want to see how it is like being at a world class university (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Georgetown, or Penn). Maybe at a later age or something like that.
How can I EVER get that experience?
Tons of very deserving people NEVER get that experience and do just fine. I think you will be one of them. I don't know how you think it would change your life even if you did. There are many great colleges that can give you experiences out there. Find one that fits you because it's the only way you will be successful at it.
When I was a little kid my parents moved around a lot, country to country. As I turned 13 my family decided to settle in a deep south town (here is the link to the background story about it and how it made my life miserable).
Before moving to the deep south my family lived in California and New York. In both areas I made straight A's and excelled, I had a lot to do. When I came to AL for middle school I was packed in class rooms with kids from urban areas, we never learned anything, fights broke out here and there, and most topics would end up with the teacher talking about African Americans and their "experience" in the US rather than us learning anything.
The high school I went to had about 4 AP courses offered, we didn't have sports, we didn't have many extra curricular activities, and since my parents were immigrants we did not know many people in our area who could suggest us things to do.
I finished my first year at a local university with a 2.8 GPA as a Biochem major. Thing is I know transferring to a good university is out of the question. But I really want to see how it is like being at a world class university (Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Georgetown, or Penn). Maybe at a later age or something like that.
How can I EVER get that experience?
Not trying to rattle any chains, but it sounds like you had the pleasure of living in the nicer parts of CA and New York state.
Never lived in New York state, but where I lived in CA I was already slow at math during grade school and usually grouped in with a mainstreamed student body at the same time.
Aside from that, there were plenty of instances where it came to either doing my assignments and taking the blows, or sitting in the office after shutting "wannabe gangsta" up.
Anywho, there seems to be a plethora of world renowned universities in different areas and this alone means that if one turns you down, then there's several others with a potential welcome sign on it.
Also, I would say get some work experience in and start making good with the higher-ups.
Good references from lines of work and the fact that you've already got a bachelors should raise your head above the rest.
As for myself, I'm unable to travel back to the past.
All I can do is work to secure funding for school and rack the usable units up a semester at a time.
Life is what you make of it. Instead of bemoaning AL public schools and your mediocre first year at college, kick ass in your classes if you really think you're that smart. Enjoy the chance to be a "big fish" in a "small pond" so to say, rather than wish you were one of 1,200 rockstars at Harvard. You can still get into a great graduate school, but you seriously need to pull it together. Only A's. Get to know your professors and wow them with your intellectual curiosity if you've got it. They will repay you with great letters of recommendation for grad school and jobs. Get the best internship offer you can. Get involved with student government or other campus activities where you can hone your leadership and public speaking skills. These are all fantastic things for a resume that will show a top grad school or employer you were a star at your school.
The past is the past. You can't change it. So move on into the future and let your gripes go. You have no other choice if you want to rise up into success.
So what if your school only had four AP classes? My school had a whole bunch but I was a transfer student (my family also moved around a lot), so I wasn't allowed to take them. And I still made into a top university, got a good GPA, and went on to a very good grad school. You don't have to take AP courses to get into a good school.
One thing's for certain though, you won't succeed at anything in life if you spend all your time complaining about your problems. Everyone has their own trials and obstacles to overcome. Do you hear successful people making excuses for the disadvantages of their childhood? Obama? No, of course not. He's not the only successful person who faced disadvantages as a child. They are all around you.
So what if your school only had four AP classes? My school had a whole bunch but I was a transfer student (my family also moved around a lot), so I wasn't allowed to take them. And I still made into a top university, got a good GPA, and went on to a very good grad school. You don't have to take AP courses to get into a good school.
One thing's for certain though, you won't succeed at anything in life if you spend all your time complaining about your problems. Everyone has their own trials and obstacles to overcome. Do you hear successful people making excuses for the disadvantages of their childhood? Obama? No, of course not. He's not the only successful person who faced disadvantages as a child. They are all around you.
Obama went to a freaking private school, one of the best in the country. Chances are you went to a good high school too and your family was not an immigrant family like mines who knew absolutely nothing whatsoever about the landscape in the US. But you will say "oh well if you wanted it bad enough you would have sought out help", I didn't have any help in my area at all, nearest SAT prep class was 20 miles away.
You can say excuses and excuses but let face be fact, quite a few kids at those schools are a bit privileged.
Obama went to a freaking private school, one of the best in the country. Chances are you went to a good high school too and your family was not an immigrant family like mines who knew absolutely nothing whatsoever about the landscape in the US. But you will say "oh well if you wanted it bad enough you would have sought out help", I didn't have any help in my area at all, nearest SAT prep class was 20 miles away.
You can say excuses and excuses but let face be fact, quite a few kids at those schools are a bit privileged.
Ok, fine. Want to talk about dirt poor immigrants who came to the US with nothing and ended up becoming millionaires? (despite not going to Harvard, perhaps not even finishing high school). Then read this:
It’s no wonder that immigrants who come to America are FOUR times more likely to become millionaires than native-born Americans. And it’s not because these immigrants are smarter than native-born Americans. But their beliefs are very different.
Many immigrants came here believing this was the land of opportunity, that a person could become almost anything he or she wanted to become … if he or she worked for it … and so they go after that dream with a passion. By contrast, some*native-born Americans have chosen to believe that life owes them a living, and so they wait for the government or good fortune to take care of them, instead of going after their dreams with an equal passion.
Bottom line? Want more success? Remember, “what you choose to believe is what you get.”
Op, you can't change the lot you drew in life. But you need to change your outlook or you're never going to break free from your pity-party and start succeeding. You can talk about. Or you can do it. Only one of those options is going to get results.
Obama went to a freaking private school, one of the best in the country. Chances are you went to a good high school too and your family was not an immigrant family like mines who knew absolutely nothing whatsoever about the landscape in the US. But you will say "oh well if you wanted it bad enough you would have sought out help", I didn't have any help in my area at all, nearest SAT prep class was 20 miles away.
You can say excuses and excuses but let face be fact, quite a few kids at those schools are a bit privileged.
Get the chip off your shoulder. No, I didn't go to a 'good' high school, and my family didn't have it easy. I didn't have access to college prep classes. The only book my family had in our house was the Bible. You are not the only one who had a tough childhood.
And Barack Obama was raised by a single mother, went to public school in Indonesia, and faced predjudice because of his multi-racial heritage. He got where he is because he worked hard and didn't let these challenges stop him. Not because he whined about them.
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