<p>I'm a freshman at a reputable Southern university and I am absolutely at the wrong school. I chose this school because lf the financial aid and the "name," but it's absolutely terrible. I can either stay at this school for a full year and get good grades so I can transfer somewhere better for sophomore year, or I can transfer home to a community college for my second semester, and then transfer again for sophomore year. Is it better to stick it out for the whole year or leave after the semester? I absolutely cannot stand this university, and I really don't know how I'm going to make it through another semester. The vibe is "I'm cooler than you could ever hope to be." Most people are snobby, rich, they flaunt their money like crazy, live off their parents, and ALL anyone does is drink. There's no way to escape the drinking here, which isn't how a "normal" university is. Another thing is that my potential majors are all the weakest departments at this university (it's big on research and I'm interested in English/arts.) I really have no idea how this is considered a too school; academics are mostly a joke. I would never admit it in person but I'm scared about what's going to happen. If it helps at all, I want to transfer to Rice, it's closer to home and I love the campus/college in general. Even at orientation here I wasn't excited about college. I feel like no matter what my whole freshman year has been wasted. I hated high school and wanted things to get better in college, but college is worse. Will Rice look down on me for transferring to a community college? I don't want them to think I can't take the pressure of an academically challenging school. (Finals are next week and I expect A- and maybe B+ as my grade.) Should I get good grades next semester and continue hating college, or should I go home, work and get good grades there and then transfer to Rice?</p>
<p>There is nothing wrong with transferring home to your local community college. However, if you do that you should consider finishing your full associates degree before transferring. You will have better options and more time to plan for a successful transfer.</p>
<p>Were you admitted at Rice last year? If so, pick up the phone and ask if you can reactivate your application. Who knows, they may have space for January.</p>
<p>Have you run the Net Price Calculator on the Rice website? Why didn’t you consider Rice when you were applying earlier?</p>
<p>I think finishing the semester or year then transferring is ideal but you have to do what’s best for you. One thing I recommend however is delving more into the reasons school is so bad for you.</p>
<p>One thing about the issues you mentioned is that they are very broad generalizations and don’t realistically apply to 100% of the kids there. It only takes a few best friends to make it a great place. Also, you hated high school. At some point, you may have to face the truth that no school can make you happy. I only say this because I’ve heard your complaint many times before. Those kids almost always end up dropping out and never finishing college and blaming the college for their circumstances for many years afterward.</p>
<p>How sure are you about what you want to do 3,5,10 years from now? What will it take to get there? If your current school doesn’t have the juice to give you boost, it’s definitely the wrong school. If you don’t like the people, ask yourself this, have you ever been anywhere where you liked the people? That will help make your decision.</p>
<p>Stick it out for the rest of the year. Apply to transfer for your sophomore year as soon as Rice is accepting applications. </p>
<p>You have been at this campus for two months or so. What clubs have you joined? The culture you describe does sound very uninspiring, but it’s hard to believe that there isn’t anyone you can relate to. Spend some time in the library or wherever students spend time studying and try to meet a like-minded person or two. Look into the political clubs at your college, or join the school paper or literary magazine. It doesn’t take a large group of people to make you feel less isolated. A couple will do.</p>
<p>I do think you should wait and get the best grades you can. It might make a difference in your acceptance to Rice or other school. And I’d apply to several, including your state flagship, since you are wanting out. You can’t count on Rice, or any other school, to take transfer students. Good luck.</p>
<p>Did you receive merit aid? If so, that aid is generally only for freshman students. Now that you are enrolled, you will be considered a transfer student.
I am sorry that you are unhappy. If it is reputable, then your transcript as a transfer student will have more weight if you stay than if you leave and attend a CC. Your grades are good, and if you can focus mainly on keeping them up, you will have a good record to go with you.
There are all kinds of people who attend college, and drinking is everywhere. That’s not to say you won’t be happier at Rice, but you’ll still run into drinking and snobby people wherever you go.
Have you discussed this with your parents?
IMHO, not knowing the entire situation, I would say apply to Rice as a transfer while keeping on track where you are. You mentioned that you hated high school too. There;s no guarantee you will like CC or Rice better.
Every college has a counseling center. I think that it would be very helpful to you- it is helful to all students. They can discuss your interests, career choices, and also help with your adjustment. Even if you end up transfering, it would help you learn more about yourself and what you will be happy with. Last, they can simply be a support to you while you are feeling unhappy. If you make the decision to stay where you are while applying to Rice, they can hopefully help it be a better time as it is. If you are so unhappy that you need to leave after this semester, they can help you with that decision.</p>
<p>If financial aid was a factor, understand that transfer applicants are not normally offered the level of merit aid that is granted a freshman. </p>
<p>Stick it out for the rest of the year and take that time to meet new people, explore new clubs. Spend time volunteering in the community, take a part-time job. The purpose of college is to get your education. Next semester take classes that ARE excellent. If you have time to change registration for next semester look for a subject that IS good at your school.</p>
<p>If you are thinking of transferring, you should take “vanilla” classes that will definitely transfer - “Arnerican History” will transfer easily but “History of Basketweaving Elbonians in the American Civil War” may not.</p>
<p>One other thing I’d mention is to maybe take some time off completely. Taking a semester or year off is not the end of the world.</p>
<p>Why are you in college? Because you want to be there or because you feel like you have to be there? Do you have a best friend? Where is that person now? If not, Why not? And don’t despair? It takes time sometimes to figure all these things out. You don’t have to know it all at 18-19 yo.</p>
<p>I would do the following (which is a repeat of earlier posts):
If you applied and were accepted to rice, call admissions and tell them you are unhappy and can you attend Rice. They may reactivate your previous acceptance, they may tell you to reapply…who knows.
If money is a factor then i think you need to not commit to Rice (if they accept you) until you understand the finances and do the following:
If you were my kiddo and you think you can keep the A-/B+ level in classes next semester to stay and finish out the year (while you submit transfer apps) and appraise your situation after the holiday break.</p>
<p>Thanks to all of you for the advice.</p>
<p>Siliconvalleymom: I am from Texas, and I wrote off Texas schools when I was applying, which was stupid. </p>
<p>Madaboutx: Several things I said do not apply to all, but the vast majority of, students. I have made a great group of friends and I am very grateful for them, but the combination of student culture/values and less-than-stellar academics in my field are getting to me. This semester I’ve joined four clubs, and I’m looking at different activities to join next semester. And since you mentioned it, I chose this college for the financial aid and family pressure; my original intent was to take a year off after high school and do service work/traveling because I didn’t knwo what I wanted to do. Now that I have some direction, I want to go somewhere where I can develop that better.</p>
<p>If I were you I would stick out the year, and also do some transfer applications. However… I recall that someone else posted about being unhappy as a freshman at Rice this year because the school is quite STEM focused. I think that is not completely true after looking at the Common Data Set. But make sure there really is a strong program in your chosen major before applying to transfer. Also, unless Rice will just re-activate your application, you may want to apply to a couple of other transfer schools.</p>
<p>The more you can turn a negative experience into a positive, the stronger your transfer application will be. I don’t know how difficult it is to get into Rice as a transfer, but if your application conveys that you are running away from a bad situation instead of looking for something specific that Rice has to offer that will better your education, you may not do so well. In other words, IMO you would need to be able to explain a transfer to a CC in some light other than, “I couldn’t stand the school I was going to.” If you can, I think you’re better off sticking it out for the second semester.</p>
<p>Most of my daughter’s freshman dorm wanted to go home at this point in the year. It would be a shame to leave if you then miss out on the kind of thriving that many of those same kids found when they stayed.</p>
<p>That said, there is nothing wrong with going to the local community college. However, one of your complaints is about academic quality and it is hard to imagine that you will feel better about that at cc.</p>
<p>I think you need to explore the real reasons that you want to leave. Do you miss home, for instance? Are you depressed? The transition from home to college is a much bigger deal than many kids recognize and dorm life is stressful.</p>
<p>I would go to the counseling center asap so you don’t make abrupt decisions. More than 50% of college students go to counseling. It’s no big deal but can help a lot in this kind of situation, and freshman year is prime time.</p>
<p>And drinking seems to be everywhere.</p>