<p>I'm a rising sophomore at an Ivy and I absolutely love the academic offerings and curriculum available. Because of (personal) social reasons, I would like to transfer. I have loads of friends here, but I sometimes feel like many of them are superficial or "convienient" friendships. There is a bit more to my frustration, however, I do not feel comfortable going into too much detail as I am still discovering things about myself that I'm not completely able to verbalize. To put it simply, I'm a double minority who can't relate to many people here; African American questioning gay male.</p>
<p>There's only one Ivy that I would want to transfer to. I've heard that some schools (especially Ivies) prefer community college transfers when evaluating applications. I do admit though that at my school, we do have quite a bit of Cornell transfers, however, I have yet to meet a transfer from any other Ivy. Because I already go to a really good school (which I am very grateful for), would this be taken against me? The other school has (arguably) "better" academic opportunities than my current school, however, I crave a specific social environment offered by the school to which I wish to transfer. Because my main reason to transfer is not academic, will this be a problem?</p>
<p>I apologize if this seems like a superficial reason to transfer! Thanks for the help!</p>
<p>I think your personal reason holds as much merit as someone transferring for purely academic reasons, especially coming from an Ivy.
Also, rest assured that transfer committees would prefer an Ivy transfer over a CC transfer anyday, no offense to cc transfers. And I think when you are transferring at the Ivy, Top-10 level, it has less to do with academics and more with “fit.”</p>
<p>It seems like you have a stronger reason to transfer than just academics; it’s not superficial at all. (I’ve seen “academics” being used as a euphemism for “prestige” a lot, and Ivies seem to be good at sniffing out those who only want to go there for the Ivy name. This may be an advantage for you since you’re obviously not looking to get into an Ivy for the sake of getting into an Ivy.) I’m a CC transfer myself and I don’t feel that we get preference. From what I’ve seen, Ivies generally look for diversity in their transfers and like hahahahah said, fit.</p>
<p>Ivy league schools are awful at sniffing out those who “only want to go there for the ivy name.” Are you kidding? Have you spoken to an ivy league student before?</p>
<p>^Thanks so much for the reassuring responses! I’m definitely not looking for anything other than just a better (more genuine) fit. It’s funny because my school is known for being this beacon of diversity; sure it’s diverse, but the groups don’t mingle. No offense to anyone, but it’s annoying being one of the few black kids at these parties full of skinny, blonde, white boys–I sometimes feel out of place.</p>
<p>I’m a very outgoing person so I’m not too concerned about making new friends (if I could get in), but is it difficult fitting in as a junior transfer?</p>
<p>BombasticLove, you described pretty much every student body from an upper-tier school. The trick is to accept quality over quantity and weed out the genuine friends. Adapting to feeling out of place is part of being outgoing. I don’t doubt your intentions, but I think you should ensure that there isn’t a route without transferring–especially since you would be a junior transfer.</p>
<p>hahalolk: Nope, I’m not from Texas and I’m not a southern baptist.</p>
<p>orrrly: You are absolutely right. I’ve used what you said as reasons for me not to transfer while toying with the idea of actually considering it. That’s why I feel like the other school probably wouldn’t accept me because the situation might not be much better there…I do realize this, but I wish these schools didn’t sugarcoat or glorify the social scenes for pre-frosh. It has been a growing experience and I still love the place! Like I said before, I only plan on applying to one school and if I get in, great. If I don’t, I KNOW I’ll be fine where I am, if only a little frustrated at some of the people I guess.</p>
<p>Oh and do schools care if you retake the ACT/SAT as a college student?</p>
<p>This is true at a lot of schools, though I don’t doubt that they it does vary to some degree. </p>
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<p>I’ve seen this at Stanford (CC and non-traditional), but so far not really at any of the Ivies to any substantial degree.</p>
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<p>Yes and no. No in the sense that since you already attend an academically demanding school, it is likely you will be academically successful at the transfer school as well. Yes, only because desiring a more challenging academic environment will not be an argument that you can make for why you want to transfer.</p>
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<p>Use both reasons. People often do transfer because of fit, but academics tend to be a stronger reason.</p>
<p>Thanks so much entomom! I’ll be sure to highlight academics too; you bring up some very valid pieces of advise. (And I’ll be sure to mention that I’m not looking for a more challenging academic environment in the essay(s)–academics really isn’t even a factor.)</p>
<p>How many times have you visited said school? You will probably need proof that the school you’re applying to is a better fit. Explain your experiences and don’t generalize (obviously). Getting in shouldn’t be that much of a problem.</p>
<p>I’ve visited once and loved it…even though our car broke down in front of the admissions office and we were stuck there for a few extra hours. Go figure! The gay scene at the school was alive; interacting with various students confirmed this, but I’m going to have to think about how I can convey this into words without sounding awkward. I also have (minority gay) friends at this school and they’re always expressing how wonderful of a time they are having. Is it fair game to mention second-hand anecdotes? (I’ll obviously talk about my visit there as well.)</p>
<p>i don’t mean to sound rude, but i don’t think other ivy league schools are going to care that you want a different social scene. they want people that will take advantage of all of the academic and professional resources available at their institution. they want people who really really want to go there because of everything the school has to offer. i was accepted to an ivy (i’m transferring this fall) and im pretty sure it was only because my essay was me talking about how i genuinely like the academic program and the school has so much more to offer me than my current school. no offense, but i think if you mainly want to transfer because you’re not feeling like you have a good group of friends, then you should either try some new things and activities to meet more people or apply to a less prestigious university where the social setting is different and people are more relaxed. </p>
<p>i know how you feel though. i just finished my sophomore year at GW and even though i loved it, it was really hard finding my group (it took me till the end of freshman year). i met a lot of superficial people and it took awhile to find a true group of friends. also, you think the ivy league students are bad? try going to school where everyone is snobby because they have money–and they aren’t even really that smart. at least ivy league students have a reason to be proud of themselves. </p>
<p>anyway, i really think that instead of spending so much time on transferring with writing essays and talking to teachers and blah blah blah, you should instead join some new clubs or try a sport. i met my best friends from gw when i played a sport and not only did i find my group, but it also looks great for medical school. if your current school has good academics, then stay there. that’s just my opinion. good luck!</p>
<p>^Thanks for the different perspective. It’s funny because I am actually very involved in clubs and such–I have a hard time telling people “no” that I end up spreading myself too thin and actually doing too much. Trust me, it’s not that I don’t have any friends (I do); I’m just having a harder time finding the solid ones. It obviously takes time…I realize this. Thanks again for your opinion; good luck next year, ker2008!</p>
From what I’ve seen, Ivies generally look for diversity in their transfers and like hahahahah said, fit.</p>