Not transferring transcripts due to bad grades?

[AdventureAddict]

Hi,

I attended a community college in WA when I was 16-17. I was young, stupid, and didn't understand the permanency of grades/transcripts. As a result, my GPA was atrocious.

Fast forward to today, and I'm a 4.0 student at a community college in CA. My grades are extremely important to me. I'm planning ahead to when I transfer to a 4-year, and my plan was to transfer my grades from my current school, but not the one in WA.

But then a friend mentioned that the school would be able to find out and that they would consider it academic dishonesty. Is this true? I can't imagine that community colleges between states communicate with each other. But if they do, then that is truly unfortunate for my situation. I would be completely heartbroken if my 4.0 GPA were tanked just because of the stupidity of my teenage years.

Any advice or info on this situation? Thanks in advance!!

[ItsThatJenGirl, CNA]

I would not leave any transcripts off of my applications. Not only will they find out, it's dishonest.

I have old, bad transcripts, too. It's just one of those things.

[Quota, BSN, RN]

All schools I've looked into require you to disclose all schools you have attended and provide transcripts. I'm assuming this was a number of years ago and it sounds like you are doing much better now. Most schools take that into consideration and it might not have a major impact. Depends on the school I guess but yes you need to disclose all the information. You could be denied admission based on non-disclosure.

[Simplistic]

I would not send in your old transcripts. Its a lose-lose situation in my opinion. If you DO send them in, you most likely wont get accepted into your school. However, if you dont send them in and somehow the school finds out, you also probably wont accepted. I would just NOT send them in and pray that your school does not find out.

[NPOaftermidnight, MSN, RN, NP]

I would not send in your old transcripts. Its a lose-lose situation in my opinion. If you DO send them in, you most likely wont get accepted into your school. However, if you dont send them in and somehow the school finds out, you also probably wont accepted. I would just NOT send them in and pray that your school does not find out.

This is really, really bad advice.

Your old transcripts certainly could hurt your chances, but you are obviously doing much better now and your current grades reflect your commitment. The schools will be MUCH more interested in your recent academic history than a few classes you screwed up when you were a kid. MANY people have rough patches in their transcripts, just be honest about it and be prepared to give a short explanation. Many college apps even have a section specifically for explaining poor past performance, so know you are not alone. Trying to hide these grades is literally the worst move you could make.

[Simplistic]

Nope. I wouldnt consider it bad advice, its just the truth. Roll the dice and DONT send in your old transcripts.

[ItsThatJenGirl, CNA]

Nope. I wouldnt consider it bad advice, its just the truth. Roll the dice and DONT send in your old transcripts.

There are national databases available to schools to access just this type of information.

[HAMSAMICH]

Look into academic renewal (some schools go by different names) at your first school to try to remove the bad grades from the GPA calculation. The letter grades remain, but they're omitted from the GPA calculation. After academic renewal, you might still wind up with a respectable GPA and peace of mind. Most schools look at the 3 big science courses, TEAS scores and have some sort of repeat policy.

I'm in a similar situation, but I did academic renewal and submitted all transcripts. My counselor and I strategically removed bad grades to improve my transfer GPA. Yes, I know your regret and anxiety.

Be careful, some admission counselors publicly express that they take pride in finding academic cheats.

[NewNurs2020]

My old school let me get rid of my D and Fs since it had been at least 5 years. I think it was academic renewal? Also if you have retaken some of the old classes your new grades will replace them.

[RNNPICU, BSN, RN]

Congratulations on your 4.0!

You will have to disclose your old transcripts. Many others have had similar situations to your current situation. What is more important now is your current academic abilities. Most applications also have an essay component. You could address your pathway to success. Schools WILL discover your past grades. You also could call the school and ask how far back they want transcripts, i.e current or everyone. In addition, on applications it will ask if you graduated from the school.

You will have to be honest, especially when it comes to nursing school.

[delawaremalenurse]

I would not send in your old transcripts. Its a lose-lose situation in my opinion. If you DO send them in, you most likely wont get accepted into your school. However, if you dont send them in and somehow the school finds out, you also probably wont accepted. I would just NOT send them in and pray that your school does not find out.

ABSOLUTELY BAD ADVICE!!

Failure to disclose all transcripts is considered academic dishonesty. Most schools will be able to see previous schools attended with a quick educational database search.

The penalty for failure to disclose is most often academic dismissal...you don't won't that following you around with all the effort you've put forth to do better academically.

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

Nope. I wouldnt consider it bad advice, its just the truth. Roll the dice and DONT send in your old transcripts.

How is it the "truth"? It is your opinion that the OP doesn't send his/her transcript. Which is a really bad opinion because it's being dishonest & could result in the OP getting kicked out of school altogether. Which is faar worse than having a few bad grades.

Why should the OP "roll the dice" at all? Why not be truthful & avoid any possible punishment? I can't see it going well if the OP lies.