<p>Hi, I'm a freshman at a public university who wants to go to a very good graduate school. Let's say I have I have 3.6 GPA and have a fair share of EC's, Work experience, etc. I know it would increase my chances of getting into graduate school by transferring to a very good undergraduate school. Here are my questions:</p>
<p>Should I take a chance and apply to good undergraduate schools now so I can transfer Fall sophomore year?
Or should I work really hard this year and next year so I can transfer into a very good school Fall junior year?
Or should not transfer, work very hard, and graduate at this public U so I can apply to a very good graduate school afterward?</p>
<p>Also,
Will it hurt my chances if I apply this year get rejected and apply next year?</p>
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Should I take a chance and apply to good undergraduate schools now so I can transfer Fall sophomore year?
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</p>
<p>If your talking about applying to a more selective school (ie. one that you would likely not have been accepted to as a freshman applicant), then this not a good choice as you are unlikely to be accepted as a soph transfer.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Or should I work really hard this year and next year so I can transfer into a very good school Fall junior year?
Or should not transfer, work very hard, and graduate at this public U so I can apply to a very good graduate school afterward?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Either route can get you to a good grad school, depending on what you accomplish in undergrad.</p>
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Will it hurt my chances if I apply this year get rejected and apply next year?
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</p>
<p>It will likely not hurt, but it may mean spending time on fruitless applications while you could be accomplishing something more productive such as better grades or ECs.</p>
<p>Really impossible for us to say whether option 2 or option 3 would work better for you. It is not always true that graduating from a higher-ranked ugrad school will make grad school admissions easier. </p>
<p>So many variables - and being a big very successful fish in a lesser known pond can work very well for you. Especially with strong relationships with your professors. Did any of the profs in your field at your current school get degrees from grad schools you would be targetting? I would get to know such profs and talk with them about advice on grad school prospects.</p>