How do I look at Cornell, Columbia, dartmouth, Brown, UVA and UNC?

Transfer Students
1

<p>I'm a freshman at the university of Minnesota. Long story short, I hate the social atmosphere and am not challenged academically. I want to apply to Cornell, dartmouth, brown, UVA, UNC, and Columbia. </p>

<p>As a high schooler I graduated with a 4.13W [3.7UW] and an IB diploma. I scored well on the tests. I also had a 33 ACT and was heavily involved in athletics. I started a student club that still runs. </p>

<p>In college I have a 4.0 GPA after one semester. Because I tested out of a ton of classes, including both econs, I didn't have many pre reqs to fulfill. I took intro chem and sociology along with 2 lib Ed classes (seminar, energy/environment class). I wasn't challenged by any of these. </p>

<p>I loved economics in high school and want to
give myself a chance at I banking or hedge fund managing, which I can't do coming from
a state school (even if I enjoyed it in the first place). </p>

<p>Basically, I'm wondering what my chances are at top schools and if these schools have Econ programs that can get me to where I want to be. Socially, am I going to be "transfer kid" for the next 3 years? I love academics, etc but my peers here have no interest in general. Can I make this happen? Do I have a shot? </p>

<p>Also, how can I express in my essays that I want a prestigious Econ program so that I can have the opportunity to do I banking? Obviously it's more than that but I don't want to
graduate from MN without the ability to get a good job.</p>

2

<p>So I can’t answer your question very well, but also look into UChicago</p>

3

<p>I believe that you have a strong shot at most of the universities that you listed. It is apparent that you are a strong applicant at any of those universities due to your academic achievements and it seems that you are well rounded.</p>

<p>I’d say you’re a definite in at UNC-Chapel Hill. I’d say you have a very strong chance, and I mean VERY STRONG chance at Cornell. For all the other ivy leagues, I cannot predict because I’m not familiar nor I do not think anyone knows what ivy leagues want in transfers. Though, I could see you at Columbia possibly, I know people who have gotten in.</p>

<p>Keep your GPA up and apply for Fall 2010 transfer.</p>

<p>As for your other questions, you will not be a transfer kid for the next three years. To mitigate these social problems, I advised you to get involved in clubs right away and maybe think about joining a fraternity, it does not need to be a social fraternity, even an honors fraternity or one aimed at for Economic/Business majors. For universities like UVA and UNC, these are larger top public schools, and due to the size, you need to be very outgoing and sociable. You cannot wait for people to come to you, because it just won’t happen. Some people cannot adjust to larger environments so you should think that over before you apply to UNC and UVA. </p>

<p>As for the comment with the graduating from Minnesota and not having “opportunities”, that is bogus. In life, as sad it is, it is more about “who you know” then “where you go”. Not everyone who goes to a top school is going to make it big. May I suggest getting to know your professors, visit their office hours and show interest, you may learn a thing or two about your professors. Your professors have gone thru a lot of education as well as most likely jobs (Economic professors; most likely worked in the real world for quite a bit of time). Get out there, get internships and meet people. </p>

<p>You can make an argument like that in your essay, with the diversity of individuals and stuff like that. However, you cannot blatantly just say I want to go to your school for the prestigious Economic program and for better future opportunities. Think of loop holes to get around the main reasons because really those reasons are not strong enough to transfer.</p>

<p>Consider looking into NYU too, they have a top economics program. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

4

<p>Thanks for your advice, and I’ve looked into NYU and added it
to my list! Question- what makes an Econ degree from an ivy so desireable? Why do recruiters look to ivy students most often? Is it the connections? Is an Econ degree from an ivy “harder?” my reasons for transferring have more to do with social fit and wanting to find a motivated student body. I’m curious as to why companies like Goldman Sachs recruit so
heavily from ivies.</p>

5

<p>First. Chances:
Almost certain-UVA and UNC (neither are best choices if you want to go into i-banking)
Likely-Cornell (huge school) and UChicago (it needs to fill all the spots used to be occupied by all those students who transfers out)
Reach-Brown, Dartmouth, and Columbia (with the abundance of qualified applicants and the few spots available, these schools are reaches for anyone)</p>

<p>A degree from an Ivy or Stanford/MIT/Duke is so desirable because many Ivies have strong connections to elite investment banks. Every Ivy is heavily recruited overall, and Harvard, Princeton, Penn (especially Wharton, emphasizing especially), Dartmouth, and Columbia do extremely well on getting their undergrads into elite banks on per-capita basis. Yes, the depth and scope with which you are expected to learn about economic concepts (or concepts in any other subject) at Ivies far exceed ones expected from you at state school and even at honors colleges. And, you don’t need to major in econ at an Ivy to get an offer at an elite bank. Many people on this blog who haven’t attended an Ivy don’t understand the value of the degree and the experience that accompanies it. If you do well at an Ivy, elite investment banks and law firms throw interviews your way. Your may concern would be to not blow any interviews too bad (i.e. don’t cuss, don’t brag, don’t bs, seem genuinely interested in the line of work instead of the promise of cash, etc.).</p>

<p>good luck!</p>

6

<p>@Ivy
Where did you get the impression that a large amount of students are transferring out of UChicago? U Chicago has one of the highest freshman retention rates in the nation among national universities! The transfer admit rate for U Chicago is much lower in comparison to their freshman admit rate because so many students end up staying.</p>

<p>Furthermore, the Econ program in CAS at Cornell is difficult to transfer into. CAS is the hardest school to transfer into for Cornell. AEM in CALS, on the other hand, is much easier to get into (they also have a GT program).</p>

<p>Both Cornell’s Econ program (CAS) and UChicago’s transfer admit rates teeter into the single digit range. They are pretty much just as much of a crapshoot as Brown, Columbia, and Dartmouth.</p>

<p>

I doubt the material is any different than schools like Cal, UCLA, UVA, UNC, and UMich. And I highly doubt students need to know the material much more in depth in comparison to students at other schools; especially considering the fact the Ivies have much more grade inflation than any of those public institutions.</p>

<p>To the OP
Your stats are good but it’s hard to determine your chances @ transferring to those elite schools. The acceptance rates are so low that it is really just a crapshoot. Nonetheless, good luck and keep up the good work! </p>

<p>[Best</a> Colleges - Education - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-freshmen-least-most-likely-return]Best”>http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/national-freshmen-least-most-likely-return)</p>

7

<p>Thanks for the input. If I craft good essays and apply to all of these schools will i get into one? Being able to choose from
UVA, UNC, and one other school would be ideal</p>

8

<p>@Supa_Ramga
AEM is one of the most difficult programs to get into, even through internal transfer from different colleges at Cornell.</p>

9

<p>@Gad
If you look at the Fall 2009 numbers. Of the 792 students who applied for transfer to the CALS (College of Agriculture & Life Sciences which houses the AEM program), 331 students were accepted. If you compare that to CAS (College of Arts and Sciences) where 1,155 students applied and only 108 were accepted, it’s easier to see which one is more difficult to get into.</p>

<p><a href=“http://dpb.cornell.edu/documents/1000156.pdf[/url]”>http://dpb.cornell.edu/documents/1000156.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Furthermore, these number do not include the guaranteed transfers. Unlike CAS, CALS actually offers a guaranteed external transfer program with community and two-year colleges. Thus, if one goes to one of articulated colleges and meets all the requirements (complete required classes, maintain a 3.0, etc) they can be guaranteed admission into AEM. No such thing exists for the Econ program in CAS.</p>

<p><a href=“http://foodscience.cornell.edu/cals/prospective/admissions/transfer/agreements.cfm[/url]”>http://foodscience.cornell.edu/cals/prospective/admissions/transfer/agreements.cfm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Similar to the UC system, it is much easier getting into AEM as an external transfer than it is as a freshman.</p>

<p>@supertime
If you really put time into your essays and show the colleges your genuine interest, with your stats, I’m sure you’ll have more than enough choices. The one thing that’s worth noting is that if you are not considered in-state for schools like UVA and UNC, you will be heavily discriminated against in the admission process. It doesn’t mean you won’t get in, it just means you better maintain that 4.0 if you want to get in.</p>

10

<p>Supa_Ramga
The OP is pretty much in at Cornell CAS and UChicago if he or she has good ps and recommendations. Cornell is at 27% while UChicago is at 13% for transfers, Check your facts before you post.</p>

11

<p>@Ivy
You seem to be talking out of your rear. I’ve put up tons of links. In fact, I posted the 2009 CAS transfer rate. 108/1155 is nowhere NEAR 27%. Furthermore 13% for UChicago is not very promising. especially considering that the 08 transfer admit rate was around 17%. Downward trend much? As I said earlier, it’s teetering into the single digit range. You should also realize that UChicago’s Econ program is considered one of the best (if not the best) in the nation.</p>

<p>Not only should you check your facts, you should learn to read you pompous ass.</p>

12

<p>@Supa_Ramga</p>

<p>Although the acceptance rate for CALS is higher than CAS, AEM picks students on its own and therefore has a different acceptance rate.</p>

13

<p>Yeah, when you apply to CALS you’re (at least for AEM) applying directly to the major. Somebody from 08 or 07 posted their acceptance letter and it included the details for AEM only; it turned out to be like 9-10%.</p>

14

<p>17% is relatively high for a transfer acceptance rate. If you look at historical CC transfers, people have seemed to have much more luck at Chicago than at the Ivies.</p>

<p>I would also recommend Northwestern. They also feed into banks, and unlike some of Ivies which have gotten astronomically selective for transfers, they actually are pretty reasonable for transfer admissions.</p>

15

<p>My big concern would be all of the classes you tested out of. Ivie and their peers are unlikely to accept those credits, so be prepared to take more than 3 years to graduate and to better your chances take high classes and apply as a junior. You’re unlikely to get into any ivy as a soph you would not have gotten into a a freshmen.</p>

<p>I’d have to say UVA and UNC look good, but few unconnected get IB/HF jobs from them.</p>

16

<p>Thanks for your help hmom. I understand what you’re saying and agree that I most definitely wouldn’t get as many credits from those schools. Would it be wise to include a paragraph in the extra comments box admitting that I will need more than 3 years to graduate? I am willing to pay for 3.5 or 4 years etc. Or ask that my college grades and activities show that I can handle the workload but not necessarily count towards my major? </p>

<p>I Understand where you are coming from and want to find some way around it. I don’t think I could take another year…</p>

17

<p>And to clarify- if I’m accepted to northwestern, duke, an ivy, NYU, or Chicago, I’m at least giving myself a chance to I bank, correct? Please see post above, as this is probably my biggest concern…</p>

18

<p>Duke only has an undergraduate economics program, so I’m not sure that is the best choice for you. UChicago is also more well known for its prestigious undergrad Econ. program. I’d say that you’re top pick should be Stern at NYU. And New York is a prime location for recruiters and part-time internships during the semester as well as the summer.</p>

<p>Hope this helps.</p>