Harvard Transfer fall 2011

Transfer Students
1

<p>I am a Sophomore at a larger state school in New England and I have always wanted to go to Harvard. My Grandfather went there so I grew up a Crimson Crazy and still am. I always assumed that because he went there that I could slack off in high school and walk in. I realized, however, that was not the case.</p>

<p>The stats: </p>

<p>HS- GPA 3.1 SAT 1710</p>

<p>ECs: Captain of the Baseball team
golf until jr yr
hockey until jr year
Youth and government
Chorus 2 yrs
Captain of Fed Challenge team sr year
AP English jr year, all honors courses outside of that</p>

<p>--Yes.. HS stats are a joke. To me though, the kick is that I turned it around when I got to college (even though I understand that some stats may still be chuckled at).</p>

<p>College:</p>

<p>Economics/Philosophy
GPA: 3.7/4</p>

<p>Club Baseball Team
Internship with U.S. Congressman winter of my Freshman year
On the Strategy team of the Investment group
Captain of the College Fed Challenge team
Chairman of my own student organization (heavily backed by our Business school, as it is the first economic group to be started at our school)
Did economic research last summer (fellowship/award for "outstanding freshman")</p>

<p>I am not adamant about transferring but attending Harvard has been a lifelong goal. I do understand my stats are relatively low but I feel that my reasoning for wanting to transfer is strong. Outside of having an obsession with Harvard, I feel that it is best for me to be around students as driven and ambitious as I am. I have a passion for Economics which is demonstrated by my EC's and I feel that, though my grades are sub-Harvard, I would be a good add. Furthermore, I bother to even mention my HS stats because I feel that there is a substantial leap that is observed when comparing HS and college stats. I matured exponentially during my senior year of HS, when my passion for economics and finance originated due to the financial crisis.</p>

<p>I am curious as to what people think. Do you think my HS stats are seriously detrimental to my chances despite my progress shown in college? Are my EC's in college sufficient enough to prove that my leadership and extracurricular experience make me Harvard material? Or does my sub 3.9 GPA sink me that heavily? Finally, does having my Grandfather as an alumni and knowing some other notable alumni carry any weight in even bothering to apply?</p>

<p>Any feedback would be appreciated.</p>

2

<p>I admire your talent and courage. Harvard is a big reach for almost every transfer for it only takes around 10. Good luck! Anything can happen if only you believe.</p>

3

<p>The SAT remains a problem. I’d ask them if they will allow a retake. At harvard only a parent makes you a legacy. If your grandfather has given generously, that would give you a big boost.</p>

4

<p>Harvard accepted 12 transfer students this past year. The acceptance rate is lower than Yale most likely, so expect below 2%. Harvard requires all SATs to be submitted and encourages SAT IIs. That being said, your original SAT will still be considered - if they even allow retakes of the SATs, as some top schools do not. You will be competing against students have perfect records and near perfect SAT scores. Sorry to be a downer, but I would bet you won’t be accepted. If you want to attend a top university, try for ones that accept more transfer students. (USNWR 15-30)</p>

5

<p>I’m glad for the feedback. Part of my apprehensiveness has been that SATs but I wasn’t sure how heavily they were considered.</p>

6

<p>I was accepted to Harvard last year as a Transfer. One of the best things about Harvard, like you said, everyone is driven by their passions. I’ve changed my major so many time, and at Harvard I’ve met people who have helped me look for my nitch. Please PM if you have any questions about anything.</p>

7

<p>I think harvardhop applied to Cornell and Harvard and got accepted by both. I briefly looked through the posts and I think he/she is just trying to help out those who are applying to Cornell. Could be wrong, but that’s what I got from what I read.</p>

<p>Scrutinizing the dates could lead to ntrading’s assumption proven correct, but I don’t have the time to do that…</p>