Apply or a Transfer or Take a Gap Year and Re-apply? Advice Please

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I posted a thread a few days ago about how I was rejected from all 8 Ivy Leagues, Duke, Stanford, and Northwestern. I go to school in England, 4 A’s at AS (highest possible grades), 9 As and 2As at GCSE, final A level results are predicted AA*A, SAT highest score was 2210, maths II 730, physics 710. I have many impressive EC’s but they aren’t absolutely amazing when compared to everyone else who applies to these schools.

I was disappointed to be rejected from everywhere as I much prefer the curricular flexibility in the US. I’ve got a place to study economics with a year abroad at University College London (UCL) which is a very good university (QS ranks it 5th in the world), and the course is only 8% acceptance rate, and only 20 places on the year abroad. For this reason, I don’t want to lower my standards if i apply again to the U.S, as UCL is better than some of those schools anyway. I would like advice on whether to try and defer my place at UCL, taking a gap year and applying again to some of these US colleges (my applications this year were time-pressured, although i was still happy with them), or whether to go to UCL and apply for a transfer.

If i were to take a gap year, I would try and get a job/internship that makes me stand out, and do some community service which I didn’t this year. I could also apply early to one or two of the colleges (i didn’t have time this year) which I think would increase my chances of getting in. If I were rejected again, which I know isn’t unlikely for schools this competitive, I would go to UCL.

If i applied for a transfer, I would be coming from UCL which would look good, wouldn’t it? However transfer acceptance rates are even lower… and some of the schools are not ‘need blind’ for financial aid for transfer applicants (I am a US resident so although I applied for aid this year, this shouldn’t have been the reason I didn’t get in).

Whichever option i take, I will try and get my SAT scores, esp the subject tests up a bit. But I really don’t know which option would give me a better chance of getting in. Please don’t comment saying i should be happy with UCL and give up, or that i should lower my standards, as this won’t happen. But I would appreciate any advice, thanks

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First, you should decide on what you want, as a student who applies for both Brown and Penn, or both Yale and Dartmouth, hasn’t thought of “fit”. Second, you should look beyond the Ivy league to include colleges such as Williams, Amherst, Wesleyan, Pomona, Colgate, Davidson, Emory, USC, UChicago… All of these woud be as least equivalent to UCL and most are considered “Ivy-equivalent”.

If you apply as a transfer, it means you’d get less financial aid than freshmen, and indeed it’s harder to get in as a transfer. Cornell mostly admits transfers to CALS (Dyson), not Arts&Sciences, and Princeton does not admit any transfer.
In addition, since you’d be unlikely to have grades, it wouldn’t look “anything” to apply from UCL - your university matters less than the grades you got there, even if attending UCL would indeed indicate you’re a very strong student. You’d need to develop a relationship with professors/lecturers/tutors, and get a strong recommendation from them.

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@MYOS1634 Thanks for your advice. I was so keen on going to a US college that I didn’t really think about which Ivy in particular I’d fit into best, and I’m still not sure. E.g Brown is relaxed and doesn’t have a core curriculum, which I like, but Columbia is in the financial capital of the world, so to study financial economics/economics there would be great. I will have to think carefully about which ones I fit into best if i reapply.

I don’t really agree that those schools would all be at least equivalent to UCL, but I will look into them.

Some schools such as Duke claim to be need-blind and meet full demonstrated need for transfers. So wouldn’t I get the same aid as if I applied as a freshman?

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If you apply again with essentially the same package the result will almost certainly be the same.

You will need to apply almost midway thru the gap year. Doing some community service along with an internship really won’t change things much.

UCL really is a top notch place. It will be instantly recognized by most European and NY area companies. Where do you ultimately want to work? In the US or UK?

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I would like to work in New York if I can. And then do a postgrad in the US, esp if I go to UCL.

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@sgopal2 Do you think that as UCL is globally recognised, it would increase my chances if I applied as a transfer? I know I’d need good grades there and strong LoRs.

Also, if I were to take one, what would you suggest I do with my gap year? Thanks

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UCL is well recognized throughout most of Europe, Asia and Australia. However outside of a few areas of the US (mostly NYC) UCL is not well known as a brand name. I think you might have a good shot at transfer, but you would really need a good reason why you are transferring. Honestly though, getting in as a transfer to these schools is more difficult than applying for entry as a freshman.

You probably need to do TWO gap years, not just one because of the timing of the application cycle. Think outside the box. Do something daring. Why not work as a gold miner in the Klondike? Take a job as a circus clown? Do something that makes for interesting reading.

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I’m in the same position, but instead I’m considering deferring my acceptance to Georgetown.