<p>Before I start my thread I want to make certain things clear. I AM NOT in any way saying that Carnegie Mellon is a bad school or trying to bad mouth it. It is an amazing school, period.</p>
<p>That being said, no school is right for everyone. I am not happy here for many reasons which aren't really important to anyone.
The school's environment just isn't right for me, and even though I have met some amazing people, I share very little in common with them.
I'm at the point where I am extremely confused and don't know what to do. My first semester GPA was horrible and even though I am working extremely hard my second semester GPA won't be perfect (though it will very likely be above a 3.0)</p>
<p>I want to transfer to a school of equal reputation that would suit me more (based on what I had heard and witnessed during break when I went to stay with some friends).
Being originally from California I want to transfer to USC or UC Berkeley (most realistic choices, can't be trying for Stanford now). My question is, how hard would it be for me to accomplish this? The one I want to transfer to the most is UC Berkeley.</p>
<p>Will the schools only look at my GPA? Does the fact that I'm coming from a very academically challenging school give me some leeway when it comes to grades? Does anyone know about anyone who has transferred out of CMU to some other college in a similar situation?
I am not just limiting myself to those two, I'm thinking about many colleges (East and West coast).
Also, should I talk to my academic advisor? I feel like telling him "I don't like CMU" wouldn't help me much... I also wanted to know if it's too late for me to transfer as a sophomore or if I'd have to complete a second year at Carnegie before transferring out.</p>
<p>Any help would be much appreciated. Please avoid asking me why I'm wanting to do this, and like I said I know Carnegie Mellon is a world class institution and it's an amazing college, but again... it's not the right college for me.</p>
<p>Thank you.</p>
<p>EDIT: Just looked URM up. No not a minority.</p>
<p>Damn(filler)
Just work harder and tough it out. It’ll be worth it in the end.</p>
<p>I have no issues with the work load, I just don’t fit into this college.</p>
<p>Is it the academics you’re unsatisfied with, or something else? I know you didn’t want questions about why you want to transfer, but I felt like this was relevant to ask. If it is the academics you disliked, consider talking to your academic advisor about pursuing a different major. We’re at a school with a number of great programs, and it could just be you haven’t found the one that’s the right fit for you.</p>
<p>If it the overall school atmosphere/some personal event, transferring schools might not make the problem go away. Coming in sophomore year and making connections and friends is going to be much harder than freshman year.</p>
<p>Wow.</p>
<p>The OP states that he does not seem to be doing well and the first response is a ridiculously unjustified assumption that he is a URM?
Take your ignorance and shove it up your ass.</p>
<p>As for the OP, I hope you find the college that best suits you.</p>
<p>If you don’t mind the workload, what happened with your GPA? If it is just the social aspect wearing you down, I understand and I will ask no more questions in that regard. </p>
<p>You should talk to your academic adviser. I know you don’t want to tell him that you want to leave, but he will find out anyways (even if you get declined from UCB or USC as a transfer). He is there to help. From what I understand, CMU is not for everyone, and I’m sure you won’t be the first or last to talk to him about transferring.</p>
<p>If the atmosphere doesn’t fit, then considering a transfer is not a bad idea. However, you should definitely do some thinking and make sure that it’s not just the circle of people you’ve met. </p>
<p>For a lot of the end of my freshman year and the beginning of my sophomore year, I was pretty miserable from a social standpoint. I’d met some great people and some friends to hang out with but didn’t really feel like we connected that well. I was like “well, crap, I guess this school just doesn’t have people I can really relate to.”</p>
<p>This year I joined two other clubs and got involved in some stuff on campus. It sounds cheesy, but it worked. I met three times the people I’d met during freshman year, and I’ve made some truly awesome friends and had some amazing experiences. But if I hadn’t stuck it out at CMU, I might’ve just assumed it was the school and transferred elsewhere. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that Berkeley’s a fantastic school, but it’s got… what, 30,000 undergrads? A lot of the students have already formed cliques or groups by now. If you’re prepared for the idea that Berkeley might not be any better, and that you might find it just as hard to relate to people there, then I’d say go for it.</p>
<p>USC is a little more of a long shot, since yes, they will focus more on your GPA. They’re a private institution and will be more specific about taking transfer students on. Berkeley is more transfer-friendly because they have the CC program (two years at a CC, automatic transfer with a GPA over 3.4). I don’t know anyone who’s transferred from CMU to one of those institutions, but I have many friends at home in CA who transferred into them from smaller colleges (Pomona, Cal states, etc).</p>
<p>GPA is the most important factor in transfer admissions. It’s going to be difficult to transfer to a school of equal reputation with your so-so GPA.</p>