In desperate need of advice, please.

Transfer Students
1

<p>Last December, I finished my first semester of college at SUNY (State University of New York) Binghamton… and I absolutely hated it. Actually, “hate” might be too harsh of a word—I did make friends and had some good times—but I’ve never experienced anything quite like the chronic unhappiness I felt when I was there. I found that I disliked how large the school is, the impersonality of the classes, how lifeless the surrounding town is, and how much significance is placed on parties. Now, I enjoy a good party, but it just seems as though most students are living only for the weekend and aren’t truly happy until they’re standing in a frat house holding a cup of beer in their hand.</p>

<p>All that brings me to this point: I want to transfer. To be honest, I was dead set on transferring to begin with. Binghamton was nowhere near my first choice, and I had applied to it as a safety school. Unfortunately, I was accepted by only my safety schools and rejected from the rest. Knowing that my stay at any of these schools was only temporary, I figured I would enroll at the cheapest option for my first year: Binghamton. But although I immediately decided that I wanted to transfer, I really did try to give Binghamton a chance when I got there in the fall. As a fairly esteemed and competitive school, Binghamton prides itself on giving its students a value education, despite it being a public university; you’re definitely getting your money’s worth there. So I joined the orchestra, attended hall government meetings, hung out with friends, went to parties, etc. But none of that was doing anything for me.</p>

<p>Some schools I have considered transferring to include Colgate University, Wesleyan University, Hamilton College, and Boston College. Unfortunately, as badly as I want to transfer, my grades do not represent the ambitious, enthusiastic, and reasonably intelligent person that I am, and grades are a huge factor in admission to said schools. I came out of fall semester with a GPA of 2.8, and now I just feel lost and hopeless. I have come to College Confidential looking for advice on what to do next. Should I wait another semester before I apply to try to improve my GPA? As miserable as I am in Binghamton, I already know that the obvious answer to that is “Yes.” Any other advice, suggestions, or insight regarding my dilemma would be greatly appreciated.</p>

2

<p>I would say wait until you improve your GPA. That is the most important part of the admission. Also, really think about the reason of transferring by now, so that you can prepare for the essay when you do the transfer application. And finally, do some ECs, etc. So, right now, just work hard in your academic field and improve the GPA. Then, you may have a good chance for transferring. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>you probably need to stay and do more work than only one semester’s worth to really make you competitive for those schools.</p>

4

<p>@Knight_HYM: Thank you.
@ironicallyunsure: You don’t mean to wait until after the Fall 2010 semester, do you?</p>

5

<p>yeah, like spring 2011 or even fall 11. do some math and see what your gpa will end up being with a 3.5, 3.7, and 4.0 for the next semester or 2 to get a better idea of how strong it will be when you’re going to apply. maybe take some classes over the summer to speed things up if you really want to leave.</p>

6

<p>College is not about feeling personal, it’s about studying. And 2.8, which is below the median at SUNY-Binghampton, means that your real academic performance sucks even though you might think you are it - “ambitious, enthusiastic, and reasonably intelligent person.” Perhaps, you should have been studying more instead of being a social butterfly and attending “hall government meetings”, hanging out “with friends”, and going “to parties.”</p>

<p>… you are doing poorly at SUNY. Why do you want to transfer to Colgate? So that you can do even worse there? You should do one of the following - (1) withdraw from SUNY, get a job, and think long and hard about what you want out of life before going back to college … (2) transfer to a community college, where standards are lower and where it is easier to get good grades, (3) dramatically improve your performance at SUNY (to be competitive as a junior transfer to places like Colgate, you pretty much need to instantly become an A-student - don’t know whether this is possible…</p>

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<p>@ironicallyunsure: Thank you for the advice.</p>

<p>@drek’thar: What is your problem?.. you couldn’t possibly know that I had a GPA of 3.6 in high school, that I scored a 2240 on the SAT, that I took 10 AP classes, that I was student body president in my senior year, that I studied both violin and piano for 12 years, that I was concertmaster of our nationally-renowned high school orchestra and various other orchestras in the Metropolitan area, that I participated in model congress, that I wrote for the school newspaper, that I was a member of the National Honor Society, the National Spanish Honor Society, and the National Music Honor Society, that I’ve received various awards and honors from my high school, my community, and from the county and state legislatures? Who are you to suggest a lack of worth without knowing any of this? Yes, a GPA of 2.8 is rather dreadful; that perhaps says something of my work ethic, but not of whether or not I belong at an institution of higher education … or of my capability.</p>

<p>Yes, while I agree that college is primarily about one’s studies, feeling some sense of belonging is also a huge part of it (hence the infinite number of threads on this forum regarding the social atmosphere of various colleges). I figured that some people who read my post would suggest that perhaps I was so miserable at Binghamton because I hadn’t really given it a chance, and I just wanted to clarify that I did. Hanging out with friends and going to parties—both a normality of college life—hardly render me a “social butterfly.”</p>

8

<p>@lulledbythetrain
Take it easy. drek’thar may just have a different point of view.
The most important thing is what you think about yourself first, regardless what other people are saying.
Just know that: Don’t ever let somebody tell you can’t do something.</p>

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<p>Well i feel bad. It stinks that you are not enjoying it. I keep hearing college is the best time of your life and i have yet to feel that way… I am sorry to hear about your experience at Bing. I am sorta in the same boat. I attend Oswego and want to transfer to Cortland to switch majors that Oswego does not have. Yet i feel my chances of getting into cortland are slim. They want students with over a 2.5 GPA… I have a 2.75. I work hard and i struggle sometimes but i am a hard worker. I am very nervous. I believe i will get rejected. I am currently a sophmore. I did the optional essay and had letters of reccomendation sent in but i feel i will not get in.</p>

10

<p>Yes, wait until next year to apply. You need to rehabilitate your GPA by adding 2 or 3 semesters of solid academic results. </p>

<p>Even so, it will be tough to transfer to an elite school without having your next 2 semesters (this spring and next fall) be at least a 3.7+ each time. You need to prove that the 2.8 was a blip of adjustment and nail the next two semesters. </p>

<p>If you really need to transfer because your current college is not a “social match” - you need to also get realistic and apply to 2 or 3 colleges that MATCH your GPA results as of the end of next fall/time of application. There are likely several colleges that are less selective that you would feel like you belong.</p>

11

<p>Sounds like you got lost. Been there. </p>

<p>Possible solutions. One, since you have a stellar background, work your ass off and bring your college scores up to your high school scores. When I pursued my first degree I came in to college as top of my high school class, but just didn’t want to be there. My grades spiraled downward and I became demoralized. Stayed anyway. Promised myself I would kick ass one semester just to prove to everyone that I could. Well I didn’t do it until my last semester. I had come in 4.0, fought to stay above 3.0, and in the final semester I went nuts on studying. Ended up 4.0 to finish it off. The weird thing was, that it was finally fun. </p>

<p>When I put in the effort the whole experience changed. The teachers changed too, although I found this hypocritical at the time, but they simply saw so many people waste away their talents, that they only responded to people who showed the effort. And then they really engaged. And of course, getting an exam back with a 100 is way more fun then a 67. Also with you demonstrating not only good past grades, but the ability to recover, and if you’re still unhappy, other schools will be much more willing to take you on - because you showed maturity and dedication.</p>

<p>Second solution. Walk away. Maybe you need to see the outside world a little. Talk to a counselor and see how you can take a semester off, maybe two. Check to see that you do not jeopardize any financial aid.</p>

<p>If you can, travel. Some friends found themselves on these kinds of trips and came back refreshed and anxious to get to work. Knew one guy that left as a tired, unhappy, business major, worked a Norwegian trawler across the ocean, traveled Europe on his thumb, and when he returned started down a successful path in Turkish Language studies. Huh? Who knows, worked for him though. </p>

<p>If you can’t travel, then community college. Take courses outside of your comfort zone. Explore. Depending on the cc you may end up surrounded with people fighting to get an education, not a party, and that gives you a different perspective on what you’re doing. Final option, and a life lesson, take a job with your high school degree. May not be fun, but it may focus you. Here too I had a friend that went from a terrible college experience to bag boy, found himself and now he’s just a few weeks away from his Paramedic credentials, and he loves it (six figure career path too).</p>

<p>Most importantly give yourself a break. No one solution will destroy or make your life. Feel free to try and fail. Actually if you study the writings of most of the most successful people out there, they got really good at failing, and picking themselves up again, until they were fearless. </p>

<p>And finally, to those responding. Yes different opinions are nice and should be welcome, but imagine putting yourself out there with this kind of request, probably a little scared and a little in pain and get back from the site - “college is not about feeling personal” and “your real academic performance sucks.” That kind of response is uncalled for and lulledbythetrain responded appropriately. The people come here looking for help, not to get slapped digitally. Simple rule, only write what you’d be willing to say to someone face to face.</p>

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<p>@Knight_HYM
I realize that I come off as easily offended in my last post. But since drek’thar’s post was edited to remove the inappropriate comments, you weren’t able to see that he or she suggested that perhaps I was “born for pole-dancing” instead of pursuing higher education and that I had a certain “attitude” that would probably prevent me from improving my GPA. Needless to say, I felt very insulted and just wanted to defend myself.</p>

<p>@Transferhopeful2
I can totally empathize; I hope college gets better for you. Best of luck on your application.</p>

<p>@annikasorrensen
Thank you for the advice.</p>

<p>@Lou Costello
Thank you very much for your insight. You’ve opened my eyes to a lot of options I hadn’t considered. While I can’t really see myself leaving school, you’ve shown me the kind of mindset I need to have in order to improve my grades. Thanks again.</p>

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<p>@lulledbythetrain
:slight_smile: So, now just concentrate on your academic field, if you really want to transfer. I think you want to go to the school that you really want to go, while you are still a high school student. So that you not accepted Bing academically and socially, right? I understand that. It happens often.
Lou Costello’s advices also are great. Taking a semester or year off, and go to experience the outside world.
Here this forum, sometimes, people’s comments can really hurt. But it might also give you another impetus sometimes. So let those comments become vain to you.
You are smart. I truely believe you can do anything you want, if you hardly push yourself! :)</p>

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<p>Thanks, Knight_HYM. I’ll be sure to keep your words in mind this semester.</p>