<p>This is kind of a two-part question. I have been pondering whether I should transfer to a better school for a while now, and would love to hear some advice from you all. </p>
<p>First, let me tell you about myself:
Grade/Level: freshman going on sophomore
Current School: University of Florida
Major: Nuclear Engineering (interested in Nuclear Fusion Research as a career path)
Minor: Physics
GPA: 3.84
ECs: A crap-load, but main ones: Founder, President- Motorcycle Association of Students and Staff, Treasurer of Atomic Gators (a theoretical physics club), Student Research Assistant @ University of Florida Nuclear Training Reactor, Director of Public Relations at an honors society, summer internship @ Los Alamos National Laboratory, summer internship @ a software company in Switzerland, also have held at least one part time job since I was 16 </p>
<p>Now, here are my questions: as of right now, I have a full ride at UF, as well as all of my expenses covered (mostly through FinAid, as my family is under the poverty line), so would it make fiscal sense to try to transfer to a better (read: more recognized) school? The reason why I am considering it is the simple fact that it would be easier to get into the very top grad schools, if you held an undergrad from a place like Berkeley or MIT on the other hand, these schools, especially out of state, are expensive, and, like I said before, I cant count on family support
The second question is a more straight-forward one. Do you think I would get in with my current stats? I plan on doing many more activities in the upcoming year. Keep in mind that all of this happened while I was a freshman.
Sorry for the lengthy post I would really appreciate some input.</p>
<p>Keep in mind transfer committees consider high school records as well.</p>
<p>According to the data on the college board website, MIT has a transfer acceptance rate of less than 4%. Put another way, they’re rejecting 96 out of every 100 applicants. So while you should definitely apply, it’s a tough school for pretty much ANYONE to transfer into.</p>
<p>Your extracurriculars are strong, but it’s difficult to give a reasonable estimation without some information about your high school career.</p>
<p>Of the three schools you listed, Texas A&M seems like a safety, Cal a high match-low reach, and MIT a super reach.</p>
<p>I can’t claim to be an expert on undergrad engineering programs. But while you’re considering really good/competitive schools, I’d look into Olin and Cal Tech.</p>
<p>A full ride generally refers to merit aid, your are receiving need based FA.</p>
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<p>There are major differences in need based FA between MIT and UCB/UT. First, MIT is a private school and therefore does not recognize IS and OOS students, everyone pays the same tuition. And FA is calculated the same for everyone, regardless of where your parents live. Publics do recognize OOS students and at UCB you will pay substantially more tuition and most likely be full pay since they are in a fiscal crisis and are not using state funds to support OOS students. UT is likely the same, the only 2 public colleges that are believed to offer good FA to OOS students are UVA & UNC-CH.</p>
<p>Thanks for quick replies!
Regarding my high-school career, I was above average but not outstanding (because of factors I won’t get into here) I had a 30 on my ACT and a decent GPA (I don’t remember exactly, but along 3.8 for un-weighted and 4.2 weighted…) I know MIT is kind of a big jump, but since I am thinking about top engineering schools, it HAD to make the list, right? As for Cal Tech, I do not believe they offer an NE degree. Also, Berkeley does not require transfers to submit their high-school transcripts or the standardized test scores, as far as I know, which is a huge advantage for me… The FinAid covers my living expenses, while merit-based scholarships cover my tuition, I am sorry I did not clarify this. </p>
<p>I have quite some time to still think about this. UF is not a bad school as far as my degree goes (ranked top-ten by US News…) but it does not provide the prestige that the abovementioned schools do. This is the only reason I am thinking about transferring. Like it or not, prestige goes a long way when it comes to your “market value” and grad school acceptance. So would you say it would be worth taking on, say, a 30k student debt to gain that added prestige? </p>
<p>I did a little research. Maybe take a look at the following schools:
Cornell
Penn State
University of Illinois UC
Rensselaer
University of Michigan Ann Arbor</p>
<p>it may not be what you want, but they have an independent study program for subjects not covered in the traditional curriculum. additionally, they are SLIGHTLY more forgiving for transfer students with an admit rate at around 7%</p>