<p>As a Freshman I went to a college I really didn’t feel comfortable at. For many this improves as the year wears on. But not for me. I applied for a transfer for Fall of my Sophmore year. Unfortunately for your daughter the UC’s are quite inflexible these days. She will not have another shot at UCLA until Junior year. So she can make the best of where she is or as others have said, go to a CC or her local U.</p>
<p>When I was a freshman, I didn’t feel like I fit in for a while. I always wanted to go back and choose another college, but it wasn’t feasible. If I was your daughter, I’d stay where I am because financial issues are actually very important when deciding on a college. The debt that it takes to get an undergrad degree is not worth it, at least in my opinion. If you can go by, without debt, without loans, but if you can afford, then yeah the price is worth it, but it all depends on the issue, though.</p>
<p>“Anyone that can’t find Boulder at least somewhat enjoyable has issues.” - Ha, that did make me smile. Aside from the recent flooding the town is quite nice. The campus is large and varied, with groups of all types. It seems like it would be much easier to “make due” at CU than a small LAC.</p>
<p>I lived in the flats near the river and downtown Boulder. My place would have been at least surrounded by water if not damaged. I was a few blocks from the Mork & Mindy house closer to the river. Mary Decker lived in my apt building. She was already a big star and never talked to anyone.</p>
<p>The problem should be divided into two parts. It is not a single issue…ie, I dislike Pepperdine, therefore UCLA is the only school for me. It is 1) Pepperdine is not where I want to go to school, and 2) UCLA is still my top school choice.</p>
<p>If she looks at it as if she won’t be happy unless she goes to UCLA, and it sounds impossible to get into UCLA as a transfer, she is destined to be unhappy. If she is determined to transfer, start looking for schools where she would fit in (obviously should have already done this), that aren’t UCLA.</p>
<p>There isn’t anyone whom just one school would work for. Plenty of students transfer. If she made a mistake choosing Pepperdine, finish the semester or year out, as you don’t want to throw away money.</p>
<p>*"The daughter intuited that she didnt “belong” there either so its a moot point. "</p>
<p>====================
This is usually the case among teenagers because they know how many of their fellow students will attend their state flagship and consider it not good enough for themselves if so many of their fellow classmates can go there.*</p>
<p>I hear kids make this claim frequently, and it really is an arrogant or naive attitude. First of all, unless the Flagship is within commuting distance and accepts all/nearly all applicants, the school won’t be loaded up with most/all of a student’s high school classmates. At your typical public high school, most kids cannot afford to go away to school.</p>
<p>And, if your Flagship is UWash or similar then you’re going to get a fine education, even if some “average stats” HS classmates are in less-academically challenging majors across the campus.</p>
<p>Its definitely a multi-part problem. Of course there is the logistics of could she even get to UCLA via hook or crook but that is probably moot, so what is the next step? </p>
<p>Is the issue Pepperdine:
-“She doesn’t feel connected to the school or the students/faculty at all”
-"She is very involved in the school. She is an athlete, in multiple clubs, looking into research and even looked into going Greek. "
- "It not about belonging in Malibu or Westwood. It about the school, not the geography. "</p>
<p>verses UCLA:
- “I don’t know if there is “one” thing about UCLA. For her it’s about knowing that’s where she belonged”
-“she was accepted to UW and I agree, it’s a fantastic school! She visited and said she didn’t feel it was where she belonged.”
-"It not about belonging in Malibu or Westwood. It about the school, not the geography. "</p>
<p>So is the problem Pepperdine? Can you fix her Pepperdine experience or is anything short of UCLA going to be unacceptable because she doesnt belong there? </p>
<p>I am struggling to see what part of the the Pepperdine experience wouldnt be immediately apparent to someone investigating it as a top choice, especially if they did an overnight. Maybe that it is a dry campus? Maybe the content of the convocations? Hard to tell, which makes me feel the majority of the problem might be that it isnt UCLA. </p>
<p>Likewise it isnt clear what the particular advantage of UCLA is supposed to be. Maybe research, who knows. How would she be more connected to the faculty if she was one of 200 kids in a lecture hall?</p>
<p>If the problem is Pepperdine, then a list of alternatives is helpful. If the problem really is that every other school isnt UCLA then its the student who has to be adjusted. What cannot be cured must be endured, so she’ll have to go to college at a prestigous school, on the beach, in a safe area, with nice kids, and save her parents $200K in PLUS loans. Not the worst thing ever.</p>
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<p>However, the fact that she has started classes at a college after high school graduation may disqualify her from frosh application at some colleges (e.g. the UC wording about “enrolled” rather than “completed credits” at a college). If this route is to be seriously considered, she needs to check carefully whether her target schools will accept a frosh application from her.</p>
<p>This thread has become a self-licking ice cream cone. The OP left long ago.</p>
<p>I was the first female to go to college on either side of my family…and had a military transient upbringing. Didn’t get into Wm and Mary OOS (we had no idea that OOS was even a challenge because neither of my parents knew anything and my guidance counselor was a graduate of Bob Jones. (!!). I ended up at Furman University which was a beautiful place with caring personal classrooms and very devoted teachers. It was also too white, too conservative, and definitely too religious for me 35 years ago. I spent a good bit of my freshman year in tragic poses with transfer papers but my parents were completely uninterested in assisting me in any way and wouldn’t have known how to anyhow. My personal journey there led to scores of friends who have lasted my lifetime, close relations with my professors who enjoyed that I was different, and a faculty medal at graduation. Furman was good to me and I ended up giving a lot to life at Furman via volunteer leadership and other means. Furman is much less conservative now and has divested itself of any religious denomination as did Rice, Wake Forest and Richmond.<br>
I have no idea if the OP’s daughter also feels a bit stifled by Pepperdine’s conservative culture. Only conjecture.
Here is my idea: Make friends, dig in, find teachers that are special–they are there!, and go abroad Sophomore year instead of Junior year. (Many LAC students leave for a year to compensate for the claustrophobic aspects of an intimate campus—I did two semesters off of Furman’s campus). Transfer Junior year into a public university in WA or into a private university should you be so lucky that has a no loans and generous Need depth of field for financial aid. That could be difficult but I can already read the transfer essay about the wish to spend two years out of Pepperdine’s culture after doing her level best to extract good from Pepperdine for her first two years. Vanderbilt would be a school that does take some transfers for instance. And has many many Californians already enrolled.<br>
If I had a nickel for every Duke student I saw on admitted student day who was bemoaning not getting into Brown or the Vandy student who wanted to go to Yale. It is perfectly human to be attached to the reach school that let you in. And no one is more human than an 18 year old.<br>
Actually, both of my sons were admitted as honors students to William and Mary, and I was seriously still in love with the school I was not destined to attend myself. The Human Heart! we love what we love!</p>
<p>Hmm. Isn’t Pepperdine still much more expensive than UCLA, even for an OOS? Pepperdine and USC both cost more than UCLA for an OOS. UCLA accepts junior transfers.</p>
<p>Apparently, financial aid and/or scholarships made the net price of Pepperdine affordable for the OP and the student.</p>
<p>Most kids at Pepperdine do study abroad in sophomore year, I believe. Pepperdine has several campuses around the world – London, Florence and Heidelberg, for sure.</p>
<p>^^^ and DC – I saw their name on a building next to the GW campus this am while on the way to the dentist!</p>
<p>I am in the same boat as your daughter. I was accepted into UCLA for Fall 2013 but, unfortunately, I turned down the offer to attend the U.S. Naval Academy Preparatory School. Since the prep school is NOT a college and only a secondary school, I have reapplied to UCLA undergraduate admissions. I’m hoping they will give me a second chance and admit me for the Fall of 2014. After being here at the Naval Academy Prep School for over half a year now, I know that I belong at UCLA, especially after seeing both campuses, UCLA and USNA. </p>
<p>Could OP provide her D more emotional support in the mean time? The first year (esp. The spring semester) is the toughest.</p>
<p>One CC parent visited her D every weekend for almost a whole semester when her D had difficulty at the beginning. The driving distance is like 6-7 hours one way!</p>
<p>i hope the OP’s DD got some resolution for her situation. It appears that UCLA is NOT an option for the spring semester or next year, but would be for junior year, if the young woman wants to either continue at Pepperdien and do well enough to transfer then She’ll have saved money on two years of college doing things that way, which would make the UCLA cost a bit less of a bite. But regardless, it seems that she can’t transfer there without attaining junior status. </p>
<p>So if Pepperdine is so unbearable, since UCLA is not attainable, that means another college or chin up and getting another 3 terms in at Pepperdine to get a shot of transferring from some other school to UCLA.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine the hardship one has to endure living in Malibu. </p>
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<p>If the campus culture is as some colleagues who attended Pepperdine recounted, it can be hard for someone who wasn’t raised in a conservative religious environment or worse, a secular environment. A few colleagues who attended due to good scholarship money had similar adjustment issues due to religious factors and adjusting to most students being from the wealthier parts of SoCal. </p>
<p>Another thing to consider is that unless one has cheap public transportation which doesn’t shut down early, being isolated in an expensive area like Malibu can be very painful for those with limited financial means. </p>
<p>this is old and she is long gone but wanted to add about what she said:
“First of all I know she’s unhappy there because finally after weeks of knowing something was wrong and asking and asking an asking she finally broke down and told me. It took over an hour for her to say to me she was unhappy and that she regretted not going to UCLA. She shared that she “didn’t think it was fair” to us or her brother. This is a child who comes from a very modest home. We never finance anything and she knows that. She didn’t want to ask for more than what “she” thought we could afford. My daughter very rarely asks for anything. Her splurges she asks for during HS would be having loch of campus once or twice a month. I know you don’t know her and I’m sure there are plenty of spoiled, manipulative brats out there but I guarantee you that is NO”</p>
<p>My son was between two schools and choose the safety (in state)instead of the dream school cause my husband went balistic about the cost and not getting enough aid. the instate was half the price but not an elite school by any means for his studies. We even said we will make it work but he said no cause he is the type not to burden. Luckily, he is happy where he is…though i constantly struggle with it. He worked so hard and then settled for less. I wish both son and husband would have talked it out more and not a few hrs before deadline to make a rash decision. He is a sophmore now and happy. I just pray that many doors open in his future with regards to a career.</p>