<p>Even though this has to do with the transfering, given the focus of the thread, I thought this forum may be a better choice...</p>
<p>I go to Case Western Reserve University, and went there because with the debatable exceptions of Babson and the "Canadian Ivies", it was probably the best college I got accepted to. Now that I'm here, I don't have a burning hatred of it and would be unable to tolerate this school for the next four years. But, at the same time, I've come to realize that it is certainly lacking in a number of areas. </p>
<p>First, I've found Jewish life here to be disappointing in a major way. That is, while I'm not religious, and that isn't what I'm seeking from it, I've found that there are very few Jews here, and even fewer willing to identify themselves as such. The few that are seem, at best, apathetic to their Jewish identity, and at worst, have a sense of self-loathing based on it. And, quite frankly, this school is far from being Jew friendly, to the point where one of my friends, who is himself religious, fears for his physical safety when wearing a kippah, and others have had to drop classes in the Religion and Ethnic Studies department, because on teacher actively discriminates against Jewish students. The few outlets are pretty poor too. JSG, Jewish Students Group, almost never meets, and when it does, nothing really happens. They just try and sell us shirts. Hillel does very little other than offer a conservative minyan on Shabbat. And AEPi, at least here, has about as much to do with Jewish life, and knows as much about Judaism, as the Muslim Students Association.</p>
<p>The other major concern is my major. I applied here as a business major, though after thinking about it in the months before coming here, I decided that Political Science would be the better major for the same ultimate career. The problem is that we have a very mediocre Political Science department. Most of the school's resources go to engineering, natural sciences, business, and nursing. The social sciences are just not very strong here.</p>
<p>Relative to stats, mine are fairly low. I came here with a 3.5 GPA (very slightly weighted, don't know unweighted) and a low (around 1950) SAT, with SAT II scores ranging from 660 (though I got a 5 on the corresponding AP test) to 720. I had a total SAT II score of 2060/2400. Naturally, I could retake these if need be. As far as college GPA goes, I expect between a 3.8 and a 4.0 for my first semester, with the following classes:</p>
<p>FSCC100 - SAGES: Life of the Mind
POSC109 - American Government
BIOL225 - Evolution
HSTY289 - Chinese Martial Legend
ANTH319 - Statistical Analysis in the Social Sciences</p>
<p>For reference, typically anything beyond the 300s is graduate level.</p>
<p>High school classes were split. Half were at a well-regarded private religious school in Boston, and the other half were at one of the better Michigan public schools, where I took the heaviest load possible, including half APs junior year (had to meet a few non-AP requirements to do more) and all APs senior year.</p>
<p>Outside of class, my main activity is writing for the school paper, though I am also a member of JSG, and at least for a few more days, still technically an AEPi pledge. Also, I have an officer position for a freethought group on campus, and am planning to eventually get involved in the Peer Helpers Network later on this year. I am also working to create a campus ZOA chapter, which I would presumably be the president of.</p>
<p>I can get very strong recommendations from current teachers, high school teachers, or other individuals as the need may be. And, as far as the essay goes, I believe I can do a solid job there too. So with that in mind, I am hoping that somebody can suggest schools that:</p>
<ul>
<li>Have a strong political science department, and possibly a similarly good economics department.</li>
<li>Have a decent sized (>10%) Jewish population.</li>
</ul>
<p>Three things that aren't required, but would be great are:</p>
<ul>
<li>A SAMMY (Sigma Alpha Mu) or AEPi (Alpha Epsilon Pi) chapter, ideally the former. If neither is present, then it should either be a system open to the creation of new Greek organizations, or should not exist at all.</li>
<li>A fairly open curriculum, that allows for a good deal of freedom in course selection outside of the major's specific requirements (like Brown).</li>
<li>Politically moderate. Though Jewish, I am libertarian in nature, and thus want neither a fundamentalist religious school, nor an oppressively liberal one.</li>
</ul>
<p>Money and location are not issues. Neither is size, though between 2,000 and 10,000 undergrads would be nice. Also, I'm more disposed to either LAC or LAC-style colleges, but I'm very flexible on that point.</p>
<p>So far, Claremont Mckenna is my top choice. I'd thought about Chicago, but their extensive core means that many transfer students require an additional quarter or two, which as somebody not getting financial aid, would be less than desirable. As far as other colleges that might meet some of my requirements, I've been considering Brown, Cornell, Emory, and possible LSE in the UK, though I realize they are somewhat of a reach.</p>