Hello,
I applied for a transfer from Western to U of T in January, after first?year. I took MIT at Western. Liked the program very much but I failed one?of the ‘bird courses’ and couldn’t continue into 2nd year. My parents and I?decided that it was best to move back home and switch to U of T.?Western was very slow sending my transcript, and so I only found out two?days ago that I wasn’t accepted. I went to the Enrollment Office today and?they told me that I needed a B average in order to get in.?I am confused and don’t know where to begin.?If you could help answer the following questions, I would be eternally?grateful.
?? ? ? ?- My not-so-bird course is an F so it doesn’t count in my average.?My other marks are good with the exception of one, which brought down my?average to 68% (as I calculated it).
?? ? ? ?- I didn’t have a clear understanding of the process because I?thought that for transfers each mark was looked at individually, not the?average. Was I right or wrong?
?? ? ? ?- Every time I called the enrollment office (many times), I was?told that with 4.5 credits and only one of them a lower mark, I should get?into the 2nd year. Worst-case scenario would be to go into 1st year. Now I?was told that even applying to first year with my high school marks (that?got me accepted last year when I applied) is not an option.
?? ? ? ?- Don’t you have a ‘clean slate’ if you start first year again?
?? ? ? ?- I asked what my options are and I was told – none. No part time?course, nothing, because I wasn’t accepted. Only options are to go back to?Western, take online courses, full course load somewhere else… and bring?up my average to a B level, but I?m not exactly sure how I?m supposed to do?that seeing as it?s too late to apply anywhere else.
?? ? ? ?- Since I’ve received different information when talking to?different people at the Enrolment Office, should I try and get to someone?else regarding this matter? If yes, where do I go?
?? ? ? ?- If nothing can be done, what do you suggest as the best route for?bringing up my average so that I can re-apply and make it into 2nd year in
2016?
Thanks very much!
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hey there,
there’s not much i can say about how admissions decisions are made at the university. i have exactly zero say in who gets admitted and how, so i can’t comment on what you were told at enrolment services.
competitive applicants to uoft “usually have a solid B average,” so while they may consider your credits individually when making admissions decisions, your average is also taken into consideration.
i’m not 100% sure what you mean by “clean slate.” you kind of have a clean slate, and you kind of don’t. if you were to transfer to uoft, your previous GPA would?not be factored into your uoft CGPA. however, applying to transfer is competitive – admission is never automatic or guaranteed.
what you heard at enrolment services is what you’ll hear anywhere else in the university, unfortunately. they are the gods of admissions at this university and their decisions are final; i would strongly recommend heeding their advice. go to Western, and see about signing up for classes again. as long as you were in good academic standing at Western (which is at least a 55% average), you should be able to sign up for courses again.
you say you “couldn’t continue into second year,”?which is a bit confusing to me. granted, i’m no expert on Western, but you should be in good standing if you had a 68% average, according to Western’s website. that means that you have an opportunity to go back, sign up for courses, and improve your GPA. i’m sure you know your situation (and school) better than i do, but it might be something worth looking into with your registrar’s office.
i understand that your family has moved back to toronto and that it may not be that easy to up and?go back to london now. obviously, this is a decision you and your family have to make together. however, if you’ve been refused admission from uoft and you want to continue your studies this September, i’m afraid that might be your only option at this point.
i would recommend talking to your registrar’s office at UWO?to see whether it would be possible for you to?come back to school, and how you might go about that. once/if you sign up for courses, try taking advantage of the learning skills student development centre to help get your grades up this year.
think seriously about why you didn’t do as well as you could’ve this year, and come up with a plan about how to do better. invest some time in learning how to time manage, how to study effectively, and how to prioritize your school work.
the main thing is to communicate. talk to your family and come up with a plan that fits you. talk to Western to confirm all the steps necessary to return. talk to yourself (ok, not LITERALLY, but reflect, y’know?) about what it is you really want at this point, and how you can get it.
if there’s anything else that’s unclear about your application to uoft, or you have any more questions – about what your chances might be if you applied to transfer again after second year, for example – you can always go to enrolment services and ask.
finally, aska’s always here for you if you have more questions.
all the best,
aska