Albany/Binghamton/Buffalo/Stony Brook | International Relations/Political Science Transfer

Transfer Students
1

I cross-posted this on the SUNY General board, as well. Sorry if it seems spammy!

I have a 3.9 GPA and will be applying from an NYS community college to all of the four flagships of the SUNY system - Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, or Stony Brook. I live on Long Island currently and I’m within 40 minutes of Stony Brook, but regardless of where I’m accepted or which university I choose, I’ll be opting for room and board for personal reasons.

I haven’t been able to visit any of the universities except for UAlbany, and I’ll be visiting Stony Brook this coming semester once I begin my final session of classes at the nearby college.

My questions, to cut it short, are which university would be the best choice for someone looking to major in international relations/political science, and most likely grab a second major in Chinese (or Asian Studies, with a Chinese focus)? And would I be looked down upon if I went to any of these universities, did well, and graduated in my desired program; would it be possible for me to find internships while studying and employment afterward?

Albany is in the capital and offers a number of internships, but I keep hearing about Binghamton being an academically challenging university. With only a few months left before I have to submit my SUNY application, it’s creating a great deal of stress and worry about the future.

Any help is appreciated.

2

Binghamton is notable in that it’s the most selective public university in a wide region that includes Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and the six New England states. By this standard, Stony Brook would not be far behind. As you visit your choices, you can keep numerical factors such as this in mind while getting a feel for the tangible aspects of the campuses.

3

Knowing that, would you personally suggest any of the four universities, assuming (perhaps I shouldn’t) that I am accepted to them? Albany has been my first choice for this past year, but after reading up on it and the other schools, it’s been difficult to come to a conclusion. Albany seems to be seen as a party school with mediocre academics on this board, while Binghamton is considered by many here to be the top institution in the SUNY system.

4

Based on Albany’s academic strengths (basically anything pertaining to public policy) in relation to your own interests – and your experience of having visited the school – it would appear to be a reasonable first-choice college for you. However, I’d recommend you keep Binghamton on your list for the reasons you referenced: because it is so relatively strong across multiple academic areas, it may offer you surroundings you’d find suitable for the level you have achieved. At this stage, you may want to consider some private schools as well.

5

Thank you.

I would love to look into private schools, but the potential debt is too much of an obstacle for me. Most of the SUNY universities will cost around $22k/year including room and board, while most private institutions (George Washington being one I had looked over previously) are $45k+ annually.

6

Yes, I wasn’t sure how far along you had gotten in your research. Nevertheless, be aware, should you not be so already, that you can access the NPC’s for tentative colleges of interest.

7

First you are looking at the wrong SUNY schools.

the only SUNY school that offers homeland security as a major is Canton.

If you are looking at International relations the only 3 suny schools that offer it as a major is
Geneseo
New Paltz
Buff State

If you are in NYC, you should definitely toss an application at the source; John Jay

8

You should look at the possibility of building an IR major from a political science concentration.
Apply to Geneseo, Bing, and Albany. Add Baruch (weissman).
An issue is that IR is more prestige - conscious than other fields. What do you want to do with your degree?
Considering your high GPA, the private colleges are definitely in play - Hobart and William smith, Skidmore, Hamilton, Tufts, Georgetown, Barnard if you are a woman, Cornell. Princeton will start accepting transfers this year, targeting cc students in particular. Oberlin and Dickinson are both excellent for Asian studies. Vanderbilt meets full need for transfers. Don’t stop yourself from applying because of their sticker price. Look at the net price.
Run the NPC’s - depending on your parents ’ income (75k or less, 125k or less, 250+) they may not be that expensive. I’d they’re, then you have good options in nys .

9

@MYOS1634

The problem with my GPA is, while it’s a 3.9 and will hopefully stay that way, I have nothing else to accompany it. My extracurriculars are non-existent and my SAT (which a lot of the smaller LACs require) was mediocre at 1530, with the highest results being in reading, I believe. My high school GPA was also sub-par (in the 2’s) which is why I attended a community college in the first place - high school was a period of poor work ethic. All 4 of the major SUNY schools don’t require anything particularly outstanding to transfer to them; Binghamton, for example, only requires your GPA and college transcripts if you have > 24 credit hours. I’ll have 68-70 by the end of this semester.

I’m a male, so Bryn Mawr, Barnard, Smith etc. are all out of the question.

My parent’s income is < $30,000/year, if that helps give you any ideas.

I’m just not sure where I can attend besides SUNY with my lack of ECs and low secondary school scores and a poor SAT/no ACT. LACs have interested me for a while, but I don’t believe I could a) get into them and b) afford them.

I’ve been looking at Albany mainly for IR by going into their political science department and then concentrating in global studies (I believe that’s what it’s called there). Or Binghamton and doing the same, but with international affairs. I’ve also had an interest in computer science, which is definitely secondary, but as a B.A. double major rather than a B.S. due to me lacking any calculus proficiency.

@sybbie719

What I would like to look into doing is springboarding from a Bachelor’s into a Master’s degree program. Most of the SUNY schools don’t offer Homeland Security by itself, but Albany (for an example) offers an MPA program with a concentration in Homeland Security, and a Bachelor’s program, which just opened, in Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity.

If I were to attend a SUNY and maintained my GPA within +/- .1 points, would I have a decent chance of attending a private school’s Master’s degree program, or would attending a public university make me a less-likely candidate?

10

I just want to say thank you to anyone helping and sorry for the stupid questions. I don’t have much guidance outside of the internet and my family isn’t familiar with any of this.

11

Have you considered studying and retaking the SATs? Did you try the ACT since some students tend to do better on one vs the other?

12

I haven’t, since most of the colleges I’ve been looking at seem to also want high school transcripts accompanying them with the SAT/ACT. Even if I were to do better on the SAT or did well on the ACT, I don’t believe they’d look past my poor showing in secondary school.

13

What is the worse that could happen, they say no. You are no worse off. You can ask schools for a fee waiver to help defray the cost.

While her son was admitted out of high school, I would recommend reaching out to @mathmom , whose son is a recent grad in IR from Tufts. I know that there is a heavy language requirement for their IR program.

I agree with @MYOS1634 about tossing an application at Baruch and still John Jay. You may have to commute from LE (or maybe you can find a roommate. Both schools now have dorms). Living in NYC perhaps you can start your career with a city agency.

14

You’re right, not much will happen if I’m not accepted, but I’d still feel a bit of disappointment knowing that I wasn’t acceptable enough for the university. If that makes sense.

I was looking at Baruch earlier. From my location on the island, I would have to pay ~$400/month in LIRR fees, but that’s still a lot less than what I’d be paying in dorm fees. I could also look into Stony Brook, since that’s next door to the college I currently study at, but I’d much rather not have to stay in the same area for personal reasons.

15

It’s not too late to join a club. Or/and: a political campaign is under way, there are two major candidates and two smaller ones, find a campaign for which to volunteer.
Activities can be found :slight_smile:
Yes if you maintain a high GPA at a Suny you have a sit at a prestigious Master’s program, but why not shoot for top schools that will likely cost less than Suny s and One require a Master’s degree (which often has no financial aid available)?
If your family makes less than 30k a year, you get fee waivers (google nacac transfer fee waiver) AND if admitted to, say, Cornell or Vanderbilt or Princeton or any top LAC, you get a full ride.
Take care of the Cuny /Suny apps first. It’s quick. Then, start on the other applications. I don’t see what ounce got to lose.

What classes have you taken so far?

16

I’m intending to join the student government and possibly work the field office for one of our Congressmen. Working for the college’s newspaper is also a possibility since I was told my writing was decent enough.

In terms of classes, my Associate’s degree is going to be in liberal arts/general studies, and most of the classes were intended to fulfill New York’s general education requirements. I’ve taken a handful of political science classes due to that being what I intend to continue with. All of my grades have been As (4.0s at the college) except for a B+ in religious philosophy and a B in the mandatory art class. This semester I’m taking Chinese, Chemistry, Web Development, Climate Change Studies, and the final English class I need for the degree. Ergo, nothing particularly rigorous or outstanding.

I was going to complete the LA/GS degree regardless due to me being unsure of what to do, but does that knock me down a peg in terms of viability as a candidate at a 4-year institution?

I have the SUNY application ready to go for the most part (the free transfer waiver is always nice) and will be sending them out as soon as I finish my final class, along with any supplemental materials that are needed.

17

I’m flattered that Sybbie thinks I might be helpful! I think doing IR via poli sci or history is perfectly viable. In fact my Tufts graduate says in hindsight he’d have been better off studying history. The IR major at Tufts requires taking a language every year or until they consider you reasonably fluent. You’d have to talk to someone in charge about what would be required of a transfer student. I’d suggest you look at Tufts as well. My son had no IR related ECs, but he did spend a lot of time on his essays. I think he really was able to sell himself as a diamond in the rough. His essays were funny and showed that he could put his intellect to use even for relatively mundane projects.

Do run the net price calculators - some of the private schools may be more affordable than what you think. Holistic admissions isn’t always just about who has the best ECs. Did you look at American? We are full pay, but they gave my kid B+/A- high school GPA and a 100 point difference in math and CR for the SATs a 1/2 off sticker price merit scholarship. He liked it better than GW or Georgetown.

18

@mathmom

I’ve looked into Tufts as a transfer, but they require SAT scores and high school transcripts, both of which I believe would keep me at the bottom of the barrel.

Looking at American University, they don’t seem to require transcripts from high school, nor do they require SAT or ACT scores from students with over 24 transfer credits. They only require transcripts from previously attended tertiary institutions and a letter of recommendation, along with the Common Application.

After looking at the NPC, my total cost is a bit over $20,000. This doesn’t include any merit scholarships (which I don’t know if I’d get, I’ll assume not for cost calculation) or Stafford loans.

That actually doesn’t seem that bad. It’s $12,000 more per year than any of the SUNYs I’d be attending, so let me ask, is AU respectable for IR? And if so, what sort of path would you recommend with them?

19

^ Maybe I’m wrong about that, actually. The Common Application says you need transcripts from high school, your SATs/ACTs/other tests, and extracurriculars for /all/ applications, but AU’s transfer policy says you don’t need the first two unless you have less than 24 credits. I’ve never used the Common App, could I receive a bit of clarification from anyone who knows about it?

20

AU is very respectable for IR and it’s Washington location makes term time internships very easy. There was a former poster here who’s daughter was a terrible test taker who did very well at AU and had all kinds of opportunities there. I understand you don’t want to get your hopes up, but I really think most colleges will look at your CC transcript and give it far more weight than high school. There really are second chances in life. The Common App asks for lots of information. Don’t let it scare you. College admissions offices understand that low SES students may have different responsibilities than ones with more money to spare.