<p>My freshman year I was at a mediocre public college(hunter); it is the first term of my sophomore year at a good public college (geneseo), but now I am thinking of transferring to a public university that is probably not as good (stony brook) as my current institution. I love the classes here for the most part, but I feel dreadfully alone, it is 8 hours from home. Plus, at Stony Brook I may be able to do English research, as I plan to go to grad school for english. In the end I am going to do what makes me feel better in the end, but I would still like to know how it will affect my chances at graduate school.</p>
<p>I have no idea about the comparative reputations of the English departments at Geneseo and Stony Brook, but it would certainly be a bad idea to "transfer down" to a program with an inferior reputation in your intended field of specialization. </p>
<p>If however, you were transferring in order to study with a scholar with a stellar reputation in your specific SUBfield of specialization, that could (and should) be explained in your SOP.</p>