<p>(I made a similar thread previously but I thought I'd repost a more specific one)</p>
<p>I had lousy grades and eventually dropped out of H.S. my senior year due to health problems. I took the GED and I just now finished my first year of college. I'm looking to transfer from SUNY at Buffalo into a solid school (preferably Northeast) to study Biology or a similar major with the intention of applying to medical school. Ideally I would transfer into either CALS/Human Ecology (state aid) at Cornell.</p>
<p>--------------Stats:---------</p>
<p>GED:
3710/4000 (I guess that's good? I'm not expecting people to know)</p>
<p>Semester 1(cross-registered):
CC - 12 HRS @ 4.0GPA
University at Buffalo - 5 HRS @ 3.67GPA</p>
<p>Semester 2:
UB - 13 HRS @ 3.772GPA</p>
<p>Overall UB GPA = 3.743 (18 HRS)</p>
<p>Overall undergrad GPA = 3.84 (30 HRS)</p>
<p>ECs: not much at all - used to do karate and kickboxing, worked 5 hrs a week this year at my university library, and I do legal research and proofreading for my dad's law practice</p>
<h2>-I'm not sure what I should do this summer to help my ECs (or any additional advice to improve my application(s) would be appreciated)</h2>
<p>My main question/issue is that I never ended up taking the SATs... it says on Cornell's CALS website that submitting SAT scores is optional, and I'm wondering what a list of similar schools within reach that either don't require SATs or have a history of lifting those requirements in certain circumstances. I'd take a Cornell acceptance in a heartbeat, but obviously I need a backup plan as I don't want to stay at UB.</p>
<p>Many schools don't want SAT scores from transfer students who already have 30 college credits. They ask for your High School transcript and college transcript.</p>
<p>There are some schools which don't require it for transfers (eg, Johns Hopkins)</p>
<p>If SUNY Buffalo (ie staying there) is not an acceptable safety for you, make sure you have some safe schools on your list. A bit harder to gauge if you don't have scores to compare, but you could judge by acceptance rates to a certain extend. Safe would be very very high rates (well over 50%).</p>
<p>There are plenty, especially state schools. Just look around at all the schools you are interested in. It says whether they do require them or not on the website. Some will say they are not optional, some "recommended" (diminished chances of acceptance w/o I would imagine), and others require them under any circumstance.</p>
<p>A ton of schools will say something like "if you have completed at least 30 hours of college coursework after HS graduation you don't need the SAT". Just look around at schools you might be interested in and check the requirements. </p>
<p>I can't really tell you what schools would be right for you, but I am sure there are plenty within reach, but Cornell is a reach. You can certainly make it less of a reach if you do some things to help your chances. I will also be applying for transfer to Cornell (next spring), but have a better gpa and ECs, although I am applying to a different school at Cornell. It is definitely worth applying though because your college stats aren't bad by any means, but definitely work on your ECs, something related to what you want to do in the future would be great if you can land it. Your 5 hour a week gig is probably not going to help a lot though, but If you can work more hours (substantially more than only 5) that would help. I worked 5-6 times longer than that since sophomore year of HS. Obviously your essays are going to be very important too. Research of the schools and hard work is what it is going to take to get into any great school, but I am sure you already know that. How concerned are you about how highly ranked the school is?</p>
<p>edit: didn't see the other 2 posts until after I replied. Andale, does that site provide a list for transfers? I couldn't find it on there.</p>
<p>I'm very concerned with the rank of the school. I'm going to try and raise my GPA by going to summer school in about a week, but I'm not sure what else to do and I don't really have a good list of schools to apply to.</p>
<p>It depends on what kind of atmosphere you want, and are you wanting to stay in the northeast? There are too many factors to just say where to apply. Do you care about the size of the school?</p>
<p>As for what else you can do...since you want to be a doctor maybe try and find some work in a hospital or something. My friend came home this summer and is doing a full time paid internship in a lab. He is going to JHU though which certainly didn't hurt his cause. Speaking of JHU, maybe that is somewhere you should look into also, esp. since Andale said they don't require SAT for transfers. </p>
<p>When exactly are you looking to transfer though? A lot of schools only allow fall transfers, so if you were planning on trying for spring take that into account.</p>
<p>Well as far as applying for the Spring, I was thinking of doing that at Cornell to give me the opportunity to apply twice, but I won't have the English2 requirement completed. As far as schools, size isn't an issue, geographically between Michigan, Georgetown, and Bowdoin, and I'm mainly looking for quality/rank, as I can deal with urban or rural environments. I realize this is a huge range but I'm expecting my GED status and lack of SAT/ACT and a GPA of less than 3.9 to limit my options quite a bit.</p>
<p>ferryboat10, there are plenty of schools that require SAT score. Of the top of my head, Yale, Columbia, Carnegie Mellon, and many other other schools similar to these require them.</p>
<p>If you don't meet the prerequisites, don't apply until you do. Just wait until fall, because it will essentially be wasting your time. Make sure you meet every single requirement when you apply, otherwise it is all for naught.</p>
<p>Some will, some won't. Carnegie Mellon won't take them I know for sure, NYU won't take them if they were done more than 1 year into college (but at least you can still apply). Not sure on others, but many will probably take them, but it may depend how late in college you take them.</p>
<p>That site is useful, Andale, but all I could find were schools where it was optional for freshman applications... any idea if there's a list for transfer applicants? Anyone else know of northeast schools that fit my situation and are ranked in the top 50?</p>
<p>If its true what Andale said about Johns Hopkins, there you go (well if you consider Baltimore NE, its not really, but close enough). My friend goes there and loves it although said its hard as hell. Probably not the best chances of acceptance for a transfer either, but if they don't require the SAT it is certainly worth the application.</p>
<p>I got into Michigan without sending in any test scores.</p>
<p>Just look at the requirements when you are applying. Most schools I applied to stated that test scores are optional if you have taken 60+ credits or have achieved an Associates Degree. Get an associates in General Studies and you'll be fine.</p>
<p>Are you in in state? I imagine the tuition is even worse than a priv school for a New Yorker like me... I did look into Michigan as a possibility though</p>
<p>i figured i'd try Cornell, Rochester, Michigan, and maybe two matches if I find any</p>
<p>and I don't think I have a shot at Johns Hopkins</p>