<p>micromom is correct. My son has a friend that was accepted to Cornell for the second semester. He chose not to accept that offer and he is going elsewhere. If you are willing to do a gap semester, why not try.</p>
<p>thanks for all the advice, still not sure what I should do... As far as going to Bing and transfering to Cornell, the truth is Cornell is not my number 1 choice. If I were to transfer to my ideal school, it would Columbia.</p>
<p>I second cloverdale7. Bing is a very good school and a year of decent grades there should get you into Cornell should you still want to transfer.</p>
<p>I am not sure a gap year is the best strategy. Binghamton is an excellent school --and all A's in difficult courses at Binghamton plus recommendations and activities like work with a prof there might speak more for you than anything you can contrive in a gap year. What would you do in the gap year that would improve your qualifications MORE than a very successful year at the top SUNY? I mean --these schools that rejected you are likely to reject you again without more behind you. I think there is sometimes a limit to what can be accomplished in a gap year --and the parents here who are dismissing Binghamton, I'm just curious, do they really know about SUNY? Are they from New York? Because I can tell you as a New Yorker who has lived in NY all my life --Binghamton is an excellent school, and you can really go from there to anywhere providing you do very well.</p>
<p>Does anyone think that if I am somehow able to get admitted to Fordham University at this point that would be a feasable option?</p>
<p>yes, it would be very feasible.</p>
<p>Why would you prefer Fordham to SUNY Bing?</p>
<p>I think you should go to Binghamton.</p>
<p>Your application list made it very clear that you really wanted to go to Binghamton. Or, if that was not the case, it was a very poorly thought out application list, not even considering the literally hundreds of fine schools in between "the Ivies" and SUNY selectivity.</p>
<p>In either case, Binghamton is a fine school. Probably the best in the SUNY system.</p>
<p>Geneseo is the best in the SUNY system</p>
<p>Why would you prefer Fordham to SUNY Bing?</p>
<p>its higher ranked, its not in the middle of nowhere</p>
<p>.... and costs $30,000 more.</p>
<p>Stich,
I agree with what a number of the NY posters have said. Perhaps folks who are advising a gap year are not New Yorkers. SUNY Binghamton is an excellent school, arguably the best in the SUNY system, and a lot of very smart kids go there, even kids who got into Ivy League schools, but could not afford them. I have many adult friends who graduated from Binghamton, and they are all "successful." My suggestion is to go to Binghamton, work hard, and if you still feel you would rather be elsewhere come next spring, put in transfer applications to Columbia or wherever.</p>
<p>Does it really matter which school I go to for fresh year if I'm taking the hardest courses anyway?</p>
<p>If you're going to transfer, it might be better to get a real high GPA taking not-overly-difficult courses rather than a lower one taking tough courses.</p>
<p>But if I were you, I'd save my resources and apply for spring admission or fall '07. Showing up at a school YOU REALLY WANT TO GO TO a year older and more mature than the others in fall '07 would be a recipe for success. Going to a school you really don't want to be at and having the pressure of having to do really well in order to transfer is a recipe for disaster. What would be worse than going to Bing and not doing very well (for whatever reason)?</p>
<p>I also think Fordham is a great place and a decent option if you visit it and really like it (and can afford it).</p>
<p>If you have visited SUNY Bing and are sure you could not be happy there, I say go for the Gap year. Carefully reconsider your college list--including snorky's suggestions. Maybe find a job and save money you earn towards college expenses. TourGuide is right about the recipe for disaster.</p>
<p>Way back when, I did something similar: was unhappy at my first LAC--wrong fit--dropped out after 8 weeks, moved back home, worked for that year and reapplied to different schools. Much happier the second time around--got a scholarship to LAC at the top of my list.</p>
<p>My guess is that we will be in a similar situation next year. Being NY residents we do appreciate and recognize the quality of both Binghamton and Geneseo. (And, of course, the price!) Here's our dilemna: how does one get past the dismal appearance of Binghamton? It's just so depressing with rarely a patch of grass in sight. I know the education should revolve around what goes on "inside" the classroom but the it sure helps to have some appealing surroundings. Also, how does the high per centage of downstate students flavor the overall campus feel? And , if Binghamton and Geneseo are so awesome and a great price for both instate and out of state students, WHY are there so few out of state students that apply and attend? I understand this post strays from the OP's issue but I hope shedding some more light on the Bimghamton and SUNY in general might be helpful. THANKS!</p>
<p>Bluejay --This is perhaps worthy of a new thread. It seems to me that in my day MANY more top students attended Bing and some other SUNYs --those were the days when Geneseo was a zero, by the way. I recall needing an A average to get into Albany and Stony Brook, as well. Today, Albany is third tier. What happened? --I think part of what happened is financial aid. The top but poor students who used to attend these schools simply no longer have to.</p>
<p>Bluejay, We would be oos for the Sunys, and I did read about some. I know someone from oos attending Bing. Frankly, I keep reading about the depressing surroundings, the cold weather, and unhappy students. For us, it just was not worth it. Suny is a good price for oos, but it is 3,000 less than the oos school that my son chose, where students seem to be happy, there is a beautiful campus, and the weather is a lot nicer.</p>
<p>Sorry about your results. Life is not fair! Reading through the thread, I don't think anyone else has this to offer--namely that you call admission offices of schools in which you are interested as second choices given the state of affairs in which you now find yourself. It may be that a top-ranked LAC or a very good university, say the University of Chicago or Washington University at Saint Louis, may find a place for you in view of your stellar scores. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>Bluejay - you might want to take a look at the parent thread "SUNY and its campuses" and put a post or two there!</p>