<p>I have read about a thousand posts like this, but I am going to go ahead and put this up anyway. I am going to a college that I like but I am worried that it won't be a good match for me so I am looking at the possibility of transferring if need be. It obviously is not ideal but that's life. I know that to applying as a sophomore, HS gpa and all that jazz play a major role. My hs GPA is bad (like 3.4). While there are reasons for this, it is what it is and I have to deal with it. I got a 32 on my ACT and my ECs are good if that matters. I am a aa woman in a stem field so I think that will give me a possible boost. After viewing a friend's viewbook to UPenn, I fell in love, but it was after April 1 and I wouldn't have had a shot if i did. So what I want to know is if I do well in college, do I have a chance to transfer as a sophomore?</p>
<p>Did you apply as a high school student? If so, I’m surprised you didn’t get in.</p>
<p>Anyway, I think if you can earn a 3.3 GPA as a freshman, you’d have a good chance (~50%) of getting in as a transfer. A 3.5 give you very good odds (~75%), and a 3.7 would all but guarantee your admission.</p>
<p>I would say that your high school GPA is too low and you would be better off spending two years at a college and then applying for transfer. One semester of grades will not be enough for you to demonstrate that your high school GPA is not representative of your potential in the classroom. </p>
<p>UPenn is not the hardest Ivy league to transfer into, but then again it is not the easiest. Consider some other schools, Cornell is the easiest Ivy league to get into. </p>
<p>What do you want to major in?</p>
<p>UPenn takes 14% of first-year applicants. How do you figure a college 3.5 = 75% chance of acceptance?</p>
<p>I think that poster confused Penn State with UPenn, that’s all that I could hypothesize from their theory.</p>
<p>Umm…the OP is black. Have you guys missed this?</p>
<p>A 32 on the ACT for a black person is unbelievably rare and will more than make up for a low GPA.</p>
<p>UPenn is very hard either as a high school or college. Your best bet is to get a 3.9-4.0 in college for 2 years than transfer as a junior. However, even if you do get a 3.9 at college and have a bunch of EC, don’t expect a guarantee acceptance. Especially if you are doing business</p>
<p>I am really not applying to it because it is an Ivy league school. It fits all that I want in a college. The comp. science program seems very strong and the size is just right for me</p>
<p>i just want you to understand the true reason you like to transfer ain’t important at all. your high school gpa is so low that i believe you’ll need a 3.9 or more in order to be considered if you want to transfer as a freshman.</p>
<p>For pretty much the ivies, admission will first look at your GPA (need at least a 3.8-4.0), then they will go and look at your essays and stuff. So getting a very high GPA is essential to even be considered. </p>
<p>And like yiisheng said, ivies don’t care at all what why you want to go there; it is very easy for anyone to say that UPenn is their dream school, is the school i wanted to attend since elementary school, have done everything I could, etc etc.</p>
<p>If you transfer as a sophomore, they will look at your HS records along with your college records, which I don’t think is that great for you because of your 3.4GPA. I suggest transferring as a junior and getting a 3.9</p>
<p>Others are neglecting to tell you to not just concentrate on the academic portion of your resume. Even if you do get a 3.9 GPA and are an URM, you still need to have other attributes to offer to the university. There are more than enough students with perfect scores and GPAs, but universities seek out the most well round students. Students who would make a difference to the campus and be an overall asset to the already highly diverse student body. With that being said, get involved in clubs and try and do research/ intern.</p>
<p>Hope that helps! And to the above response about the OP being “African-American”. That is a bit misleading. UPenn is not accepting applicants with 3.4 GPAs because they are a minority, no matter how high there SAT/ACT scores are.</p>
<p>^ but for schools like UPenn (and transfer) a 3.8+ is almost required as well as great ECs.</p>
<p>
I hope you guys are joking. Let me guess, in your Why Columbia essay you both wrote how NYC is blah blah blah. Or how Harvard is one of the most prestigious universities in the world.</p>
<p>Sorry but it’s not all about grades. Anyone (with the desire) can achieve great stats. Very few can articulate why Penn, Columbia, Harvard, etc can fulfill their needs that their current school does not satisfy.</p>
<p>Total BS about the GPA. From my own experience talking with my networks and what even a quick look in the CC results thread will show is that 4.0’s get rejected ALL THE TIME FROM IVIES while people with 3.3’s, 3.5’s, 3.6’s get into multiple ivies as transfers.</p>
<p>The main thing that matters is your essay. Anyone can get a high GPA. Only a very few select people who deserve to get in will be able to articulate their LEGITIMATE reasons for wanting to transfer (not crap about prestige, the city, or stereotypical junk - legitimate reasons, which most people frankly don’t have which is why they get rejected). </p>
<p>Of course you’ll have a harder time getting in with like a 3.0, but nonetheless remember in the end your 4.0 will mean nothing if you don’t have a powerful essay, the king of your application (combined with your recommendations).</p>
<p>^ @monkeyking : what would you consider as legit reasons to transfer?</p>
<p>@MitchAPalooza I’m saying you need a high GPA to be considered by the admission officers. Obviously they will look at your essay and read your motives as to why you want to go to Upenn and make the final decision based GPA, essays, EC, etc.</p>
<p>I don’t think anyone that’s applying to Harvard or UPenns says the reason they want to transfer there is because it is a prestigious school and it has a great name. I’m sure they’ll write about a specific teacher there, a program they liked, the opporunity to do great things with the surrounding community and the student body, etc etc. </p>
<p>It isn’t ALL about grades, but it is a high factor.
You don’t see any 3.2 or 3.4 students getting in on average? Not counting student athletics or if you are some famous movie star, book writer, etc.
For average college students, I’m sure you need at least a 3.8 to get a good chance.</p>
<p>haha very interesting. I really curious who will say **** like because this school is prestigious, I want to transfer… one needs to be a complete idiot to do so. And I assume no one in this thread is an idiot?</p>
<p>@yiisheng Did you get the official notification from Cornell？</p>
<p>@ChengStat not yet. But as a matter of fact that I can’t login the housing, I guess I’m rejected</p>