<p>I also advocate another position…if you aren’t already dead-set on transferring, why not try to reach out and get interested in other things? Not that you haven’t, but without knowing your words make it seem like you are dead set on this intellectual conversation thing without making inroads into trying to celebrate the things that the students around you find interesting, like Homecoming and such. I went to an HBCU as well (Spelman) and Homecoming was a huge thing, but Howard’s homecoming was a HUUUUUUGE thing. There were buses that student groups chartered to go from Atlanta to DC so that we could go to Howard’s homecoming, lol. (There was a lot of this HBCU students going to other HBCUs’ homecomings, but Howard’s was like the Holy Grail.) Of course they are more focused on their own homecoming than the rally - I would expect that at the vast majority of universities, prestigious or not.</p>
<p>I mean perhaps you have absolutely zero interest in the party atmosphere and homecoming events and things like that. But if you are even a little interested, maybe try to get as into it as everyone else seems to be? You might be surprised, and realize that you really love it and that it enriches your experiences AND you might find the people you’re looking for staffing the homecoming tables. I found that the women at Spelman were a very well-rounded group; the ones who were really interested in partying and having a good time weren’t necessarily unintellectual. They could have a great deep conversation, and it showed in classes and sometimes out of class. But for the most part we just wanted to have fun out of class.</p>
<p>AS for #4, Howard is not the only place doing this. Many universities are combining or eliminating humanities departments because they don’t bring in as much money as science departments, and therefore are deemed unnecessary or extraneous. It’s really sad. But you won’t necessarily escape it at another university - it’s an industry wide trend partially borne by the recession.</p>
<p>For #5 - you do realize that scholarships are very limited for transfer students, even if you are a low-income ethnic minority student, right? I don’t know whether the scholarships you have are portable - if they are, that’s great. But if they aren’t, then please do keep in mind that it’s a LOT harder to get a scholarship (even with your low income and ethnic minority status) as a transfer student.</p>