Advice Needed

Transfer Students
1

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p>I am currently about to start my sophomore year at the University of South Carolina. I went to a very good private school in Atlanta (10%+ of my class went to Ivies), but slacked a lot in relation to my abilities in HS. I graduated with a 3.53 GPA (steady upward trend throughout HS), 4 APs (US History - 5, Art History - 5, English Lit - 4 and Environmental Science - 3), and a 32 on my ACT and decided to take a big merit scholarship and a place in the Honors College at South Carolina over some higher ranked schools. I got into Alabama (Honors), South Carolina (Honors), Indiana, SMU (Honors), and TCU (Honors) out of high school and was rejected by Boston College (legacy) and Southern Cal. </p>

<p>I finished my first year of college with a 3.95 GPA. </p>

<p>Fall 2009:</p>

<p>English 102: Rhetoric and Composition - A
Math 122:Calculus for Business and Social Sciences - A
Political Science 201: American National Government - A
Sport and Entertainment Management 201: Intro to Sport and Entertainment Management (was initially a Sport and Entertainment Management major) - A
University 101: Student in University (freshman welcome class) - A</p>

<p>4.0 GPA</p>

<p>Spring 2010:</p>

<p>Economics 224: Intro to Economics - B+
English 285: Themes in American Writing - A
Speech 140: Public Communication - A
Sport and Entertainment Management 202: Intro to the Live Entertainment Industry - A
Statistics 201: Elementary Statistics - A</p>

<p>3.9 GPA</p>

<p>Cumulative GPA: 3.95</p>

<p>I have been very successful at school so far. I was involved with my residence hall government and was voted as "best pledge" in my fraternity in addition to currently serving on our Recruitment Board. I am now a Business (specialization undecided) and Political Science major and while I like my school a lot and have friends, I can't help but wonder if I can "do better". So I'm exploring the possibility of transferring. I don't want to stay in the Southeast forever, and the fact is that South Carolina doesn't have a national name to it. </p>

<p>Schools I'm looking at:</p>

<p>Georgetown
Southern Cal
Notre Dame
UVA
UNC
Boston College (legacy)
Duke (legacy)
Vanderbilt
UT-Austin</p>

<p>Any other suggestions? I know this is a very top heavy list but if I don't get into a top school, I would rather just stay at South Carolina. I know all of these will be tough to get into but do I have a shot anywhere?</p>

<p>Thanks for your help everyone, I appreciate it a lot.</p>

2

<p>I would say given your involvement in campus life (though don’t mention the ‘best pledge’ thing, it doesn’t mean anything), your high GPA and your high ACT score, along with an upward trend in high school, you have a good shot at a lot of schools on your list. As you’ve probably read on other posts here, make sure you look into financial aid at the schools you’re applying to. UT-Austin, UNC, and UVA are all state schools, so you’ll be paying OOS tuition for that. Can you afford it?
Of course, schools like Duke and Georgetown are extremely hard to transfer into, but with that high of a GPA, it isn’t impossible. I’d say this is a pretty well-rounded list, and you can expect to get into at least one or two of the schools on your list.</p>

3

<p>I don’t see why you wouldn’t get in assuming you’ve got a great essay, some ECs and volunteer hours. IMO, you’d probably make it to at least 2 of the schools in your list. But are you transferring as a sophomore? if you are, they’ll make a great deal out of your high school scores.</p>

4

<p>I will be applying for admission to Fall 2011, my junior year. </p>

<p>I am also lucky enough that my family and I can afford tuition at all of the above schools.</p>

5

<p>I say in @ USC</p>

6

<p>Bump. Anyone else?</p>

7

<p>Any other feedback?</p>

8

<p>I think you have a very good chance at UT, UNC, UV and Vandy. The rest you have a good shot. So basically I would say you’re going to get into one of those places (probably more) so now you need to look into financial aid, scholarships, etc because you’re going to be either paying OOS or private school tuition. Also consider the cost of living in different places if you get into multiple schools. Best of luck!</p>

9

<p>I’m going to bump this because the semester is over. I got a 3.8 for the semester, which brings my cumulative GPA to 3.9. I am the treasurer of my fraternity now and a student senator.</p>

<p>For reference, my grades:</p>

<p>Intro to Financial Accounting - A
Computer Systems in Business - A
Intro to Psychology (Honors) - A
Intro to Logic (Honors) - A
Professional Communication - B</p>