<p>I'm a freshmen at a top tier university right now, but I'm thinking of transferring to say...unc-ch. My current school isn't very suitable for premed ie. no hospital around, intense work load, essentially no time for volunteering or ec's etc. Because of all this and other reasons I'd like to transfer. I still have some hope of getting into a top med school later on, and I was wondering if this sort of transfer would look bad to med-schools? Do the med schools care why I'm transferring? Thanks a lot for any advice.</p>
<p>If you're unhappy in your current environment, a transfer is fine. (Be warned that multiple transfers is not good.) They will probably ask why, and your current reasoning ("too busy, no hospital") is probably not a satisfactory answer.</p>
<p>Oh I see, well my reason for transferring has actually nothing to do with premed so I didn't really bother to post it. It's because I'm seeking a broader education than what my school can provide and an environment that can support my ambitions outside of science. I'm also aware that my current GPA won't matter. Would Med schools be concerned for that. I'm actually not sure whether or not I'd like to transfer, and maybe this will factor into my decision. Thanks a lot, and btw, I don't think transferring more than one time will be an issue for me</p>
<p>Your current GPA will matter when applying to medical school. It will be included in your medical school GPA and WILL be a part of your application.</p>
<p>I think you should transfer if you feel you will be happier at UNC-CH. Three years is a long time to be stuck at some place you don't want to be. Transferring will definitely bring you some things that other student don't have to deal with, such as ordering transcripts from two schools and making new friends, but small price to pay for being happy for three years. I think the med schools will ask why you transferred, as long as you have a good reason it shouldn't hurt you. </p>
<p>Question to Bluedevilmike, do you think the med school will look at the two GPAs differently if the two schools are not in the same tier?</p>
<p>It depends. From what I've seen, some schools get a bit of a GPA forgiveness. So a 4.0 is a 4.0 no matter what; a 2.0 is a 2.0 no matter what; it doesn't matter what school you've earned them from. But we can see that a 3.3 from Penn can still get into medical school, while even a 3.5 from some schools would have a very hard time.</p>
<p>In other words, some schools seem to qualify for some GPA forgiveness if the rest of your application is very strong. Does UNC? I haven't the slightest idea.</p>