Transcripts Transpirations

I am still knee deep in writing my supplimental application, and seeing as I am trying to cram in school nosing and self smoke blowing into 400 words, with absolutely no sarcasm, I required a break. So I figured this would be a great time to be super sarcastic and cow-ish to get it all out so it doesn't leak into my application. So here I go. More University Application Drama (I swear I have no idea how I get myself into these situations). The Transcripts Transpirations.


When applying to University or a College of any kind, for an undergraduate program, they generally will require your transcripts from high school. Why? Because classes that you are potentially going to have to take to complete said undergrad, most likely at some point will have a high school pre-rec. Seems reasonable enough to me. The step before post secondary is secondary so it seems fitting a school would want to ensure they aren't letting in a total block head and that you won't get in and not have any classes to take. Should you be fresh out of high school, its all they have to tell you from the stoners who hung out in the parking lot all semester.

However. This all being said, as a returning undergrad, if you are applying to a different institution than the one you graduated from (which most would mean they were going on to a Masters Program...but not me I am a sucker for punishment) the same logic applies, you need all your transcripts from the institutions of which you were a student before, so that they the people at your hope to be new school can tell you from the 2nd year who "thinks" they know what they want. The supplimental application is purely to see who can put up with show boating to simply get what they want...who is willing to jump the most hoops or who has jumped the most hoops in the past...but I digress. Back to my story.

So after I sent in my application to a school of which I had never attended and am interested in potentially attending this coming fall, the first thing I did (other than cringe at the idea of spending $110 on an application fee) was contact all my post secondary institutions to request transcripts be sent along for review. For my two post secondary institutions (good grief I've used that word so many times its starting to make me think of an insane assylum...which they may just have been when I really think about it) this was no sweat. I gave them the address to send them to, paid my 10$ a set and I was on my merry little way. Too easy.

Enter my high school transcripts. Let me back track a little for better clarification of the issue. About a year and a half ago, faced with graduation from my university, and still no idea what I planned to do with my degree, I applied to a program that required my high school transcripts to confirm pre-recs to a trades college for medical imaging. I didn't get in but that is a completely different story.But the key to this part of the story is the fact that I had to obtain my transcripts from my school board. As it had been just X amount of years since I graduated my transcripts were moved from my high school to my school board office for storage into archives. No problemo. I gave them call, requested my transcripts got them, paid my 10$ and all was good.

Flash forward to now, I do the same. I call the school board office, request my transcripts. I tell them flat out that I have left an application to pretty close to the deadline and that I need the transcripts ASAP and to please contact me if this could not be done. I am told by an answering machine that I can expect my transcripts to be ready in 5-10 working days, of which 5 would be perfect 10 would be cutting it super close to getting them in but I figure I had told them I needed them ASAP and would hear back from them if this could not be accomplished.

Five buissness days pass. I hear nothing and assume that things are just taking their time. I'm getting a bit worried but I know I can still get them in on time so what else can I really do? I get a call on day five and I think "Awesome! Their ready and I can go pick them up and mail them off and I am in the clear!"

As I was at work and had missed the call from the school board I listened to the voicemail thinking it would just be them telling me to come pick them up (I was even formulating asking to get out of work a few minutes early to get ahead of the traffic and be able to get to the post office in time to send them out on the last shipment of the day...ability to plan and multi-task...something that I think makes me an ideal candidate for the program to which I am entering).

Well planning be damned, I got a call from my school board saying that there were no transcripts under my name and they were calling to confirm that I indeed had graduated from my school, my date of birth and my name.

Now I admit, I am applying to this program very last minute (a trait I am aware does not make me appear to be successful candidate for this program), so I understand that yes I left this a little late. BUT I am not to blame for the fact that it took the school board 5 days to get back to my ASAP transcripts request. I am also not the moron who misplaced transcripts. How does one do that? I thought they were electronic and it was more a matter of pulling them up on the computer pressing print then sealing an envelope??

Turns out not. So I call the school board back...and basically all they do is confirm my full name has always been my full name and that yes I graduated from where I graduated. They then tell me that they will "keep looking"....I ask what they heck they have been doing all along. Probably not wise to bite the hand that feeds but I was irritated. So Carolyn (my not so trusty records clerk) tells me to email her my full name and spelling (because spelling it out to her the first time was clearly pointless...maybe she is solely a visual learner?) . I email her, spelling etc as well as ask that the transcripts be faxed as the time has passed for them to be mailed with any sort of promise of their arrival on time. I also ask her to keep me up to date.

I get no emails back. I barely hear anything other than "they are still missing". I start to panic. I at this point have gotten an email from my university saying that my application review of pre-recs and GPA is being held up by not having my high school transcripts available.

So every day I call Carolyn. I ask whats going on, and I get the same answer "we're still looking" and all I can think about is that there is some poor sap sitting in a warehouse sorting through my entire graduating class trying to sort through boxes of transcripts poorly filed or in the wrong place. I evntually found out that they sort them according to birthdate and not graduating year, and then they cross reference them with your last name.

So 10 business days after I have ordered my rush transcripts I am told that they thought they found them, but they were really the transcripts of another girl with a similar name (oh yes keep it coming you shmucks...you're competence is ASTOUNDING)....they then ask if I had my copy from high school. SO wait a minute?? You're telling me that you can't find the governments offical copy and that you want to accept mine as legit? ....oh good god.

Well score one for me and my hording tendancy, I totally did. I scan it and send it to them. Apparently after seeing that I am able to keep my shit together inspires them to figure it out and 11 working days after asking for them, my transcripts are faxed off.

They tell me this after 14 working days. I had to call and get some other poor clerk in the office to figure out just what the hell this Carolyn person does all day and why it was impossible for her to call/email me to let me know they had been sent (like she said they would). This new person also mentioned that usually if things have to be pulled from archives it can take up to 3 weeks, but at that point they let the person know. I say 'How strange I was told they were simply missing and was given no ETA". She also mentioned it was strange that I asked for a rush and it took this long.

So after a long long LONG chat with Christine she shakes her head and goes "OOOOOOO I know what happened" and no kidding in about 15 minutes she has my actual transcripts in her hand...the ones Carolyn could not find, saying she knew exactly where they went etc. Where my other transcripts that were faxed came from I have no idea.

Turns out it sounds like when I originally requested them a year and a half ago they had just been shipped to the school board. They never got archived. They stayed in "request holding"...

So makes me wonder what other goodies are hanging out in that "request holding" file....because I'm pretty sure I would not be the only person who has this problem.

So moral of the story today kids, when applying to University/College, it totally pays to be obsessive compulsive and controlling. If I hadn't pressured this Carolyn person to stay on top of this it sounds like it never would have gotten fixed. If I wasn't anal retentive about paperwork I may never have been able to get my official transcripts sent. And NEVER LEAVE IT TO THE LAST MINUTE. Why? Because there are more Carolyns in this world. Put your application status into your own hands, take it out of the hands of idiots and take control. Decide your own destiny, and prove you want it. ..... now....to you know totally contradict my preaching...I'm off to take another stab at my supplemental application due in like 27 hours. Oi.


Do you have any questions about applications or university? I have quite a bit of experience with this crap. I have also written the MCAT and worked in many clinical settings. If you have a question or need advice I would love to pass it on!

Applications.....or the kiss of death?

My latest and greatest idea in finding my way through the real world is trying to get into another school to be able to eventually start a masters degree. Then maybe medical school or being able to rehabilitate people, get them up and moving. Thats the lastest idea anyways. So this brings me to the Colledge Applications.

When applying to college the first step is filling out the application form. For the particular program I am applying to (which yes happens to be another undergrad program...but I need the pre-recs to get into the masters program so I have at least another year of hoop jumping ahead of me provided I ever get into either of the different schools I applied to) there just so happens to be a supplemental application. Which basically asks me to show off and be awesome without showing off and being cocky about my truly awesomeness.

How do you find the balance? Isn't asking what makes you great a recipe for disaster? What do you say that is going to put you ahead of all others? What can possibly said in 200 words (which is the max for the two personal questions they are asking on this current application) that will wow and really express my desires? How does it really prove why I would make a successful student?

Even worse how do I pick the things I have done in the last four years that would best show I'm an ideal candidate? Who do I put as references. How do I make up for that fact that I really don't have any academic accomplishments, awards or even recognitions to speak of with my mountain of volunteer work?

I guess I'm just scared that I have to sell myself, in the past I have always been the quiet in the background volunteer that doesn't say much, just gets the job done. There is no recognition for those who just do their job. I have never done anything truly worth recognition, I just do what I feel is right and no one volunteers to win prizes. I guess I'm just concerned that for once I actually want something and yet I'm afraid to get rejected.

So here I go! Tomorrow I put in the final step of my application...put my heart out there, and probably get trampled on because not only do I have no major academic accomplishments to speak for, but my GPA is not the greatest in the world. But should I get told no, at least I tried. And it does not stop me from living my life, it just changes the game plan, and if there is anything I have learned (and moments of which I totally plan on putting into this darned application) is that change is good. Accept it. Get rejected by it. Just never forget that pass/fail, win/lose, get in/get rejected, there will always ALWAYS be cupcakes...or beer....or more opportunities to blog about how much growing up at 24 sucks!