Chances from ranked LAC to larger ranked University.

Transfer Students
1

<p>I am currently a freshman at Trinity College in Hartford CT, and unfortunately what I was looking for in a school last November when filling out my freshman applications has changed dramatically. Graduating from a high school class of 60, I figured I would be most comfortable retaining that small school atmosphere, (Rej ED williams, accepted lafayette, bucknell, colby, hamilton) yet I feel it is time to move on to a larger institution. Additionally, I had no idea what I was looking to study. Having taken a number of diverse courses first semester within the liberal arts framework, I have come to the conclusion that I would love a program combining elements of sociology, philosophy, and economics, providing a more focused approach on labor economics specifically. Or alternatively a focused business program. Also, I am very unhappy with the Hartford area and despite finding my niche do not particularly care for the overall homogeneity on campus.
Stats:</p>

<p>High School W/UW 4.1/3.9
Rank 3/60
SAT 1 M/V/W: 650/650/720
SAT 2 US Hist/Math 1 C: 680, 720.
*Essays and interviews were the strongest section of my application.</p>

<p>EC's (All 4 years)
Model UN (Held leadership/administrative positions JR, SR year.
Varsity Hockey (Captain JR, SR yr)
Varsity Golf
Editor/Writer for our news publication.
various community service
Worked 20 Hours a week.</p>

<p>Trinity:
Current semester projected GPA is approximately 3.7-3.9
EC's College democrats, Amnesty International, CONNPIRG, Habitat for Humanity, Intramural Ice Hockey.
-I have developed some phenomenal relationships with my professors who are more than willing to write strong recomendations for me.</p>

<p>I am considering (In order of preference)</p>

<p>Cornell ILR
Georgetown (Mcdonough)
Tufts
Brown
Emory
.....open to any other match/reach suggestions.</p>

<p>Other:
White, Jewish, Not requesting financial aid, New York resident moving to Rhode Island in January, waitlisted at Cornell CAS and Tufts last year.</p>

2

<p>You have a solid shot everywhere since you're doing so well at Trinity.</p>

3

<p>I think your chances are good everywhere except Tufts (<15% transfer rate) and Brown. Since Cornell ILR is your top choice, you should be glad to know they accepted 105 / 200 applicants for Fall 2006 (excluding GTs). That's a pretty nice transfer rate.</p>

4

<p>Looking solely at percentages is not always indicative of how tough admissions is at a specific school. Tufts, while having an admit rate that rivals many schools' admit rate in the top 25, simply does not have as competitive an applicant pool as, say, WUSTL, JHU or Chicago. A 15% admit rate considered alongside the caliber of an applicant pool is far more indicative of one's chances of success.</p>

5

<p>oh...I figured Tufts would get similar applicants...but I guess that does make sense. ****! I crossed so many schools off of my list due to percentages!</p>

6

<p>Well, you still have time. Most schools want their applications by March 1st.</p>

7

<p>yeah...I'm good with my 8 now though. And plus I've already got everything done for all of my schools except the essays - which are likely to be a pain in the ass, knowing how picky I am.</p>

8

<p>I really don't know what's the deal with the essays. I wrote my Rice essays (the first time around) fourth months in advance, and proofread it a thousand times, and I was rejected. I wrote my GTown essays the night before the deadline, and discovered four typographical errors after I sent the application, and I was accepted.</p>

<p>I wrote my UChicago and Rice essays in 45 minutes. It was great. It's really odd how these things work.</p>

9

<p>haha that's good since I say I'm writing my essays in advance but will end up writing them all a week or so before they're due.</p>

10

<p>Cav:</p>

<p>You could design your own major, something that Trinity is good at. As for Hartford, I understand where you're coming from.</p>

<p>I guess I'm wondering why Cornell is on your list, since all the other schools are in/near large cities. Cornell is great, but it isn't as well known as some of your other transfer choices with respect to what you're thinking of studying. As for sociology and economics, you might want to look at UChicago, Wash U., UWisconsin, and Northwestern. </p>

<p>If you want to focus on something business-y then I'd add Vandy, Duke, USC, UMichigan, Utexas, UVirginia.</p>

11

<p>nspeds: You are completely wrong. Check out the accepted applicants' stats at JHU, Tufts, and WUSTL. Nearly identical.</p>

12

<p>
[quote]
Check out the accepted applicants' stats at JHU, Tufts, and WUSTL. Nearly identical.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Yes, because the stats of a few students on CC are an adequate representation of the stats of an entire applicant pool...</p>

13

<p>No, I am not talking about CC stats - give me a break. I'm talking about those schools' admissions websites.</p>

14

<p>...and even if they were the same, that says nothing about the applicant pool in general.</p>

<p>For freshman admissions, I think UChicago has a higher SAT I and SAT II average for their admissions than Harvard. Should we then conclude that UChicago's admissions is more competitive than Harvard's?</p>

<p>You need to give me a break.</p>

15

<p>No, it's more than that, definitely.</p>

<p>I got into all the above schools we're talking about and most of the people I know -- at my high school and elsewhere -- got into at least 2 out of 3 of those schools, which really does lead me to believe that the schools attract and accept similarly-qualified students.</p>

<p>I'm not saying one school is more selective than the other, I'm saying they're similarly-selective.</p>

16

<p>
[quote]
I got into all the above schools we're talking about and most of the people I know -- at my high school and elsewhere -- got into at least 2 out of 3 of those schools, which really does lead me to believe that the schools attract and accept similarly-qualified students.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Not necessarily. You cannot tell from the accepted applicanants how competitive the overall applicant pool is.</p>

<p>
[quote]
above schools we're talking about and most of the people I know -- at my high school and elsewhere -- got into at least 2 out of 3 of those schools

[/quote]
</p>

<p>This does not account for the hundreds of applications that JHU, WUSTL, and Tufts receive.</p>

<p>...and in the same way, we would not even say that UChicago's applicant pool is as competitive as Harvard's.</p>

17

<p>I can't find stats for WUSTL , but here's a comparison of JHU and Tufts accepted student stats:</p>

<p>JHU:
Applicants: 13,863
Admitted: 3,698
Enrolled: 1,160
Admit rate: 27% </p>

<p>vs. </p>

<p>Tufts:
Applicants: 15,294
Admitted: 4,095
Enrolled: 1,282
Admit Rate: 26.6%</p>

<hr>

<p>JHU: Standardized Tests
Middle 50th percentile for admitted students in 2006*
SAT Verbal: 650-750
SAT Math: 690-790
SAT Writing: 650-740
ACT: 30-34</p>

<p>vs. </p>

<p>Tufts: Standardized Tests
Middle 50th percentile for admitted students in 2006*</p>

<pre><code>SAT Verbal: 680-760
SAT Math: 680-760
SAT Writing: 670-760
ACT: 31 (this one is the mean score; they don't give middle 50th percentile)
</code></pre>

<hr>

<p>How do you think that this does not show that the students accepted at both these schools are very competitive with/similar to each other? I know this is only part of the picture, but schools like JHU, Tufts, WUSTL, Northwestern, and the like are top schools that, yes, end up being great alternatives for kids who sometimes don't get into high Ivies; lots of kids also pick these schools -- for varying reasons -- over certain Ivies. Even Georgetown fits in this category (I noticed that's your school/alma mater); which has a lower acceptance rate, but similar stats of accepted students. I feel that Gtown, JHU, and Tufts especially vie for many of the same students because of their top undergraduate IR/polisci programs. When I was applying to school four years ago, they were actually my top 3 schools for that reason; I got into all, but picked Tufts for location and a great English program I could double-major in. I would've been happy at any of them!</p>

<hr>

<p>All right, I think we're off-topic; this thread is supposed to address the OP.</p>

18

<p>The urban trend is completely a coincidence, I don't mind isolation (Ithaca).</p>

19

<p>Ithaca isn't isolated; every time I've visited friends there I've had a great time. If you like quirky, you'll find a great group of kids at Cornell. During a lull in my social life sophomore year at Tufts, I actually considered transferring to Cornell A&S as both my boyfriend at the time and best girlfriend from high school went there. By the time my acceptance as a transfer came in, however, I was more than happy at Tufts so stayed on. That being said, I think I would've had a great experience in Ithaca as well! The only problem is that no one at Cornell goes abroad, so if you go, you're likely to want to stay all 4 years there as well just because no one else goes away... which also says something about how much people like being there! I, however, don't think a college experience is complete without studying abroad.... OK, I'm totally off-topic, sorry!</p>

20

<p>A few other questions....</p>

<p>-Would I be better off applying to Georgetown College or Mcdonough?</p>

<p>-I feel as if i would have difficulty articulating the academic reasons for transfering to Tufts, Brown, or even Wesleyan or Colgate considering that overall their programs seem similar to Trinity. Social life, location, etc shouldn't be too much of an issue.</p>