<p>Hi everyone, this is my very first "thread" that I've ever posted.</p>
<p>I just finished my first year of a b.s. arch program at Kent State University, in OH. When I started applying to schools and receiving acceptance letters and all that over a year ago, I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I didn't even know this forum existed. So I really only considered 3 schools - Kent, OSU (love the bucks, but this is a sad year for us fans...:[), and CalPoly SLO. CalPoly was a longshot, and I mean looooooonglonglonglong...shot. But somehow I was accepted. Buuuuuut, Cali is uber far away from OH and I didn't think I could handle that...also the price was outrageous, as was OSU's price, even though it's a state school. Hence my decision to attend Kent. Which everyone has told me is a great school for architecture, but I'm not so sure. I'd rather be in a ranked school, I think. But...I honestly got a really good price through scholarships (can't get any need-based FA).</p>
<p>But I really want to go somewhere else now. Kent is awesome, but I'm the type who wants to be the best of the best...and feel like I can't do that there, don't even have a chance at it. How hard would it be to transfer to a "better" school (preferably ranked) for architecture, and would it be worth it in the end?</p>
<p>As in, would I likely have to start all over and lose a whole year, would the cost to go OOS be worth it, would it give me a better chance at landing a great career?</p>
<p>Now that I've had some time to actually realize that I'm in the real world (for the most part), out of high school, able to make my own decisions.......I've been thinking about how dumb I was to just blindly apply to colleges without knowing anything about them, even visiting half of them or doing any research and now I'm kicking myself for it. Big time. Because I think I could've done better.</p>
<p>One thing that legitimately held me back, though, was the fact that most of the top schools required portfolios - which I didn't exactly have. But now I might have enough from studio to throw something together...would it be enough?</p>
<p>I don’t know where to begin with this one. You say Kent State is awesome, but you want to transfer because it is not ranked. Rankings reflect a general reputation that a school has achieved over a significant period of time, it may not reflect the current situation at the school. You need to do what you did not do coming out of high school; visit the schools, talk to the students and faculty, and look at the work. The reputation of a school matters because we keep going back to the schools that have produced good graduates for us in the past, however the quality of the individual portfolio matters more than the school. We are always reassessing the quality of the current graduates in our regional schools.</p>
<p>You say that Ohio State was outrageous in cost, but you have in-state tuition. It’s not going to get any cheaper than that, and if you transfer into a BArch program you probably will need to add another year into the equation (transferring studio credits is very difficult). You have two in state schools with good reputations in Ohio; Ohio State and UC. You will have to determine whether they are significantly better than Kent State, and worth the extra time and money. Any other private or out of state school is going to be significantly more money, and I have no idea how transfer students are treated when it comes to financial aid.</p>
<p>I would do my research and think hard before transferring for the sake of a higher ranking.</p>
<p>The reality is that OSU is an affordable school for in-state students. It is only slightly more expensive than Kent State. It does have name recognition and is considered a good state university. Cal Poly SLO would be at least another $10K per year (not counting travel costs).</p>
<p>Let me repeat Rick’s salient point for emphasis: “the quality of the individual portfolio matters more than the school”</p>
<p>I guess I was just having a bit of a panic attack after reading some of these other students’ posts - where they got into, how they got there, all the options they have, etc. It just makes me feel like I didn’t do well enough, or as good as I could’ve done.</p>
<p>I’m going to stay where I am and just work hard at it. By the time I get my bachelors, if I conclude that I’m still not satisfied, I could apply elsewhere for my masters. By then I’ll probably have a better idea of how the profession works and where I lie in the career equation as a student, and what exactly it is that I want out of the system.</p>
<p>I shadowed an architect for the first time in my life this week…I really learned a lot and am able to see things a bit more clearly now. The firm does some amazing things and has very successful architects - they enjoyed what they did and loved being there. It made me feel lot better about the choices I’ve made and the opportunities that will come my way, no matter what school I’m at, all it takes is some initiative to become a success.</p>
<p>Paraphrasing an old saying: the grass always looks greener on the other side until you get there.</p>
<p>Switching schools only because of ranking is a poor excuse for choosing a school or transferring to or from a school. College and what you learn there is based on what you make of it and what you put into it. Great individuals in any field come out of lesser know or ranked schools just as questionable individuals come out of the top ranked or known schools (that means knowledge AND character). This applies to any field!!!</p>
<p>That’s all I really need to hear from someone…to sort of keep me grounded. I seem to have a big problem with second guessing myself and my choices, or third, or fourth guessing them…it gets out of hand, and gets to me. It especially sucks in studio:p ha. I’m the type who has a completely different rough draft model, every single class, and my final product will look nothing like any of the roughs. But ik everyone goes through it. I just need to calm down and look at things from a more grounded perspective. Which, I am now! So woooooooo</p>