Advice - Should I transfer or not?

Transfer Students
1

So I was recently admitted as a transfer to the University of Texas at Austin, while I currently attend the University of Houston. I current;y have a 3.71 GPA at UH

I’m having a lot of trouble deciding whether or not I should transfer.

While I have always wanted to attend UT from the start, here’s my argument for possibly staying at UH:
I am attaining a Political Science degree with the intent to go to law school. My goal, in the end, is to have the grades and LSAT scores high enough to admit me into UCLA Law. Going to UH offers much less rigorous courses and I may even have the opportunity to graduate a semester early, giving me time to have an internship or extra time to study for the LSAT. On top of that, I would be closer to home.

argument for UT:
UT is one of the most prestigious public universities in the nation, and the rigor of the courses are much more complex than UH. honestly, while I hate to admit it, I’m not that confident that I can make it out with a 3.7+ GPA at UT. in the end, however, If I dont get admitted into a Law school high enough to get me into a top corp or a large firm, a government degree from UT is an incredible degree to hold. On top of that, I feel like the environment is much more suited for me in comparison to UH.

tl;dr: my final goal will forever and always be UCLA Law, and I’m just insecure on my abilities to succeed with a high undergrad GPA at UT.

also note: im fully expecting “well if you arent confident at UT how will you make it thru UCLA Law school” and to that I say that while I will obviously try my hardest at UT and im confident in getting above average grades, its just that the opportunity to make an even higher GPA is staring me right in the face at UH

any advice is welcome. thanks guys <3

2

If it were me, I’d go for it and transfer to UT. You don’t want to look back in 10/15 years and wonder what would have been had you transferred. I completely understand where you’re coming from with staying at UH and trying to protect your GPA and it’s a totally reasonable concern. That said, you said yourself that you’ve always wanted to attend UT and that the environment is more suited to you - honestly it kind of sounds like you already know what you want. I would say take the risk and make the absolute most of your time. Sure, you may have to adjust to a heavier workload or higher expectations of your work but your college experience will be better for it. Again, this is all just me, but I honestly believe you would regret it if you passed up the opportunity to study at a school you clearly like so much.

3

I agree! Although grades do matter, they aren’t everything. It’s important to be an environment you want to be in and the competitiveness and difficulty will be more motivational hopefully. And when you’re truly doing the thing you want, how hard it is, isn’t as much of a factor because you like it and want to learn about it. Also, the harder something is, the more rewarding as well. Definitely do not let difficulty be a reason to hold back I personally believe!! :slight_smile:

4

I know it’s summer, but I hope you see this! I’m in the same position as you were. I’m a political science major at UH, but I really want to transfer. I have a 3.8 GPA which I’m hoping can get me into UT. However, I’m afraid to transfer and for my GPA and decreasing my chances of getting into law school. What did you end up doing?