I’m an aspiring applicant to Harvard via transfer. I have a ton of questions on the transfer admission process. Some are general, some are specific to Harvard.
General Questions:
Is applying from a top ranked foreign university as opposed to an American one disadvantage me in any way in the transfer application process? For example, applying transfer from the University of Edinburgh (UK) or the University of British Columbia (Canada)?
Does geographic and ethnic diversity come into play in transfer admissions? I’m not an American, but I am an URM and from an underrepresented country, if that makes any difference.
Do Transfer Admissions superscore? I heard that generally for ivy admissions, superscore is a bit of a myth.
Would 5 SAT test dates total be considered a red flag for schools like Stanford and Yale which consider all scores?
Is it better to take higher-level, more specialized courses that show interest and ability in a subject area… or is it better to take courses that are only first- and second-year level and easier to receive transfer credit for across different universities?
Should I take courses primarily in the area I think I’ll major in, or would it be good to get at least a bit of variety so I can get faculty recommendations from one science and one humanities faculty professor? Are transfer admissions particularly interested in how I would perform in my major?
In terms of extracurriculars, is it better to show high specialization and an extensive list of achievements in one area, or better to diversify yourself with your extracurriculars? I’ve heard that colleges admitted well-rounded classes and not well-rounded people, but I recently spoke with someone who claimed to be very experienced in admissions and said the exact opposite.
University-Specific Questions:
Do the admissions officers that review freshman entry applications also review transfer applications? For example, I know Harvard freshmen admissions was organized by region. Does that mean my regional admissions officer would be the same?
Does being rejected in the freshmen round of admissions count me out in transfer admissions? Have you heard of successful transfers to highly selective universities, e.g. Harvard, that were rejected in Freshmen admissions? The reason I’m sure I was rejected was because of a particularly weak last two years on my highschool transcript. There was a reason for it though, I was seriously ill and plan to explain it. If I compensate for those with a 4.0 in university and strong standardized test scores, is that a game-changer for my application?