<p>How important is one's high school record when applying as a transfer applicant? In other words, if I was mediocre in high school but stellar in college, would I have a good chance to get into a top school?</p>
<p>This depends on how many credits you have completed and what schools you are considering.</p>
<p>Agreed. The more credits, the less HS matters. Generally, if you have only 12-18 credits completed by the time you apply (generally applying for second-year/sophmore status), they look at your high school record (some do 50/50 high school and college). If you have ~45 credits when you apply (applying for junior/third-year status), then they pay much less attention to high school/SAT.
However, most privates still look at high school records even when applying for junior year. But above is the general rule of thumb =)</p>
<p>I subscribe to the "strongest positive quality" theory: they will focus most on your strengths rather than on your weaknesses. But obviously the most recent work is the best indication.</p>