<p>Well, I wanted to apply to better schools, and the only school I applied to is a local university which does not make any rankings according to U.S. News except fourth teir and I am wondering if I made a mistake. Also, now that I have completely regretted my decision for having done what I did, do I still have a chance to attend a top ranking school? I am graduating with High Honors, I am the Senior Class Vice President. My GPA is a 3.75, I'm year book editor and I just feel that all of this has gone to waste. Do I stand any chances of being accepted into a better school by being a transfer student or is that not a possibility? I also tried asking my counselor but she was no help. She gave me no advice. Please! I really do not know what to do now and I feel terrible about the whole thing</p>
<p>I'm sorry most of the top schools deadlines have already passed but there are still a few of them left like UNC,Um-twin cities,Purdue,University of Indiana,University of Kentucky,Michigan state,and the University of Arizona.They all made US news' top schools rankings with UNC being one of the best public schools in the country.</p>
<p>so sorrryyyy... you should've snatched the chance...</p>
<p>You could always spend a gap year interning, travelling, or volunteering and then apply to colleges again in the fall.</p>
<p>There are 1.2 million high school graduates each year and the collegeconfidential website is about trying to get into the very top elite colleges that only have room for about 10000 students when you put them all together. You aren't really asking at the right place. </p>
<p>It does sound as if you could have been accepted to other colleges that you applied to, but the competition at the top 10-15 colleges in the country is absolutely insane. It is obviously late in the admissions cycle. I would recommend that you look at some local colleges besides the one that you already applied to. After freshman year, if you still feel this way, then you could transfer to another college. This is hardly the end of your life. Many people attend a state university in order to save money, but don't limit yourself based on money because many colleges are almost economical provided you qualify for need-based financial aid.</p>
<p>The "tier" system is misleading. It is a pyramid. The top 10-20 colleges are in tier 1, then about 50 colleges are in tier 2, and then about 200 colleges are in tier 3.</p>
<p>In addition, this is a list of colleges with rolling admissions:
<a href="http://www.princetonreview.com/college/apply/articles/types/rollingcoll.asp%5B/url%5D">http://www.princetonreview.com/college/apply/articles/types/rollingcoll.asp</a></p>
<p>Dufus,
I strongly disagree with your comment that "the top 10-20 colleges are in tier 1, then about 50 colleges are in tier 2." This would imply that Georgetown (ranked at 22 with an admit rate of 22%), the University of Virginia and the University of Michigan (Ranked at 22 and 25, respectively) are not on par with schools such as Emory and Vanderbilt which are in the top 20 according to US News. To define a tier of school strictly by the US News rankings is completely misleading, at best. To assign these top schools (Michigan, Georgetown, UVA, Tufts and so many more) to a class with schools such as the University of Iowa and Rutgers (tied at 68) is just as wrong as saying that Emory and Vanderbilt are a full tier above them.</p>
<p>There are plenty of colleges that you still can apply to. One question: Can you afford to do that? If you need financial aid, it may be difficult to find a college at this point that would give you aid, since many of the rolling admissions colleges are public institutions that give need-based aid only to in-state applicants, and do that on a first come, first served basis. It also is probably too late to be considered for merit aid at virtually any colleges.</p>
<p>If you can't afford to apply elsewhere now, you could go to the local college, do a stellar job and then transfer. Just realize that many colleges don't give aid to transfer students.</p>
<p>Another option would be to follow someone's suggestion and take a gap doing something productive like working a job, doing volunteer work through an organization like Americorps or doing some structured travel. This would allow you to apply as an incoming freshman to wherever you choose, which would allow you the benefits of consideration for need-based and merit aid.</p>
<p>We could help you more if you let us know what college you were accepted to and what your SAT/ACT and class rank was, and what APs you have been taking. In addition, it would help to know what majors and careers you're considering and whether your longterm plans include remaining close to your hometown.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I strongly disagree with your comment that "the top 10-20 colleges are in tier 1
[/quote]
No matter where you cut it off, somebody is going to miss the line by only one on the USNWR rankings. The whole "tier" concept dates back to before USNWR. Basically, it used to be a pyramid, and all of the colleges in the "Princeton Review Top nnn Colleges" constituted tiers 1, 2 and 3. I'm not sure what it means anymore. I particularly don't know what the OP meant.</p>
<p>From what I was just looking at, I think they have scaled back on the pyramid aspect. By doing so, they have decreased the number of schools in each tier so that it must be possible to be going to a good school in tier 57. Rankings are stupid. Tiers and USNWR don't really go together, but then USNWR came out with basically a new definition of tiers.</p>
<p>Dufus: I think you missed the point. I was thinking more of a shaded/gray area for tier 1 instead of having a definite line like "top 20" or "top 25".</p>
<p>I said the top 10-20. I probably meant the top 15-30.</p>
<p>It is still possible to submit apps at some better places, but if you end up where you're already accepted, it is not a tragedy. </p>
<p>Not everyone reaches as high as they can up the ranking chart. Some students don't want to/can't be far from home, some students have low cost as their #1 driver--there are all kinds of reasons why someone might go to a local or regional place that lacks "prestige." </p>
<p>Therefore, many of the less-selective colleges and universities have at least some bright students who attend them, and offer dedicated, gifted faculty who will be thrilled to work with and challenge such students. It might be harder at such a place, and your true peers may be smaller in number, but you CAN have a good, fulfilling, intellectually satisfying experience at an "unranked" college or one that many of CC would consider to be beneath your abilities.</p>
<p>I think a lot of depends on attitude and being proactive about finding yourself a niche that offers you some challenge. To start with, I'd be looking into honors programs, advanced sections, smaller seminars, stuff like that.</p>
<p>There are so many schools in the country that are great</p>
<p>Email ones a ask about spring admissions, some do that </p>
<p>Out of curiosity and to help others, why just the one school? Was it bad advise, money, fear, not thinking....</p>
<p>Check rolling admissions, there is a list somewhere on this site</p>
<p>Good luck</p>
<p>Well, I was wondering because I wanted to stay close to home for the first couple of semesters and then go to a better school, because I did not want to leave my family so soon, especially since my mother has been sick. But that is not the main point that I am staying home. I was wondering if colleges only admit people for freshmen /the fall semester right after high school. I was not looking for a school for the fall semester. I am def. willing to go to the school that I applied for in the beginning, but I do not want to end up receiving my undergraduates degree from there. Basically to make a long question short, is it possible to apply for a school while I am in college and not straight out of high school with a chance of being accepted. Even if it is for the fall of say 2007.</p>
<p>You can apply as a transfer student. To find out the requirements for this, check the admissions web sites of college that interest you.</p>
<p>If you don't want to leave home this fall, it is definitely possible to transfer schools after your freshman year. Just make sure that you check the websites of the schools you are considering transferring to and make sure to take courses that will help you fulfill their first year requirements. Also, as someone already mentioned, transfer students are sometimes ineligible for financial aid and on-campus housing, so make sure to check that as well if it will be a concern. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>To be honest, the super-elite top-12 colleges are not all the thrilled with transfers and accept them at a somewhat lower rate than freshman applicants. Outside of that, transfers are not that uncommon. If nothing else, people sometimes find that they are not happy in their new home after freshman year and want to transfer to a new college. When transferring, the high school record is not as important and they look more at your college records and recs from professors.</p>