chances as a transfer student?

<p>hi, as i posted in another thread, i am considering transfering to UW-madison from the school i currently attend (western illinois university)
now let me start by saying i didnt do very good in high school GPA wise (2.98). ACT wise i did better with a 25...but still not very good.</p>

<p>in college, my first semester i took 16 hours and didnt do hot again, 2.812 (i pledged to a fraternity and didnt have my priorities straight). second semester i did considerably better with a 3.46, with harder classes. this semester im assuming i will get between 3.4-3.6 again, with 18 credit hours, so i am on an upward trend as i have realigned my priorities. </p>

<p>now i know schools are a little more lax on allowing transfer students entrance, as it doesnt affect the college's statistics, but do i still have any chance of getting in?</p>

<p><a href="http://www.admissions.wisc.edu/facts.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.admissions.wisc.edu/facts.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>according to this, i am almost certain i would not get accepted as an incoming freshman (remember those statistics are the middle 50%, so im sure some have gotten accepted with similar grades than mine....but not many)</p>

<p>i guess im going to have to write a hell of an application letter.</p>

<p>apparently you have to be applying to an ivy league or better school to get a response from anyone on this forum.</p>

<p>ive seen people get answers to their posts in 15 minutes or less, how come no one can give me an idea as to if i even have a chance?</p>

<p>The reason not many people have answered you is that they don't know that much about transfers, so they don't want to give you bad data. Also, keep in mind it is the weekend--so many people are pretty busy right now;--responses are quicker on the weekdays.</p>

<p>As far as your chances--you'll need about a 3.2 average in my estimate to have a real good chance to get into University of Wisconsin at Madison--and a 3.3 with a rising trend to be sure of acceptance.</p>

<p>Based upon what you posted, you have a 3.136 GPA now, and if you go 3.5 this next semester, you should be at a 3.26 or so--meaning you have a good shot--especially with the increasing trend in your GPA.</p>

<p>Just make sure you write a good essay explaining how your priorities have changed from what they used to be and about how you really want to get into Wisconsin;--then you should be okay. Also, I'd apply to one or two other schools as backups--just in case (pick schools similar to Wisconsin that you also like--and maybe University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana campus or Chicago campus) if you live in Illinois, because most in-state public universities favor transfer students from local colleges).</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

<p>if i dont get into madison im just going to stay at WIU.</p>

<p>my GPA this semester is 3.068 (i took more hours my first semester when i had the 2.812 then i did second semester)</p>

<p>im having a bad time writing said essay because i never had to write one to get into WIU, so hopefully tomorrow i can get that written, have it proof read, then get my transcripts and ACT score sent to wisconsin, just in time to clear the october 1st deadline (i didnt even decide to apply until 3 days ago...)</p>

<p>thanks for the reply</p>

<p>Personally, I think your chances of getting into Wisconsin if you wait one more year before applying will go up dramatically (assuming you can keep getting 3.46 GPAs each of the next two semesters). I think you are very likely to be rejected if you apply now--both because they will take your high school grades into greater account--and because you have only a 3.068 GPA now.</p>

<p>Look at Wisconsin's website for transfers--they say that until you have two years of college, they consider your high school grades very strongly. So wait and you will have a much better chance.</p>

<p>Also, if you only take a few days to write this essay--instead of a longer time to write it, proofread it, then re-write it, etc.--you will likely have a weaker essay than you would if you start writing one now for a semester or a year from now.</p>

<p>all good points, as long as i dont get too many credits that i can transfer, then i will wait.</p>