I’m a sophomore at a small liberal arts college in Los Angeles, CA starting my spring semester soon. My current school is academically strong but I’m trying to transfer to a larger university somewhere on the east coast.
My CGPA is 3.2 at the moment as my GPA for freshman year was 2.85 because I couldn’t adjust well and it was 3.8 for my third semester because I improved it as I settled in better.
I’m trying to transfer to a school:
With a mid sized student body (more than 3k undergraduates enrolled, preferably larger)
On the east coast (NY, MA, PA, DC, NJ)
Awards generous financial aid (need based)
Mid tier in terms of GPA and ranking, could also be lower tier
For example Lehigh University in Pennsylvania has around 5k enrolled and gives generous aid packages.
It can be very difficult to get generous aid packages as a transfer student, especially when your grades are not stellar and you would be lucky just to have admission. Have you considered studying abroad next year as a way to get away from your current college, yet still be enrolled there? Maybe after a year-long break having adventures in another country, you could finish up your final year there and graduate.
Yes, I fully acknowledge how difficult my chances are but I still want to try since the rest of my application is strong. I’ll have good recommendations, solid SATs and a good high school transcript.
I have considered studying abroad, but I just want to try exploring this option before that one. I’m only three semesters in and my family is moving to the east coast in the next few months as well, which is why I think I should transfer. Any other advice will be appreciated!
In addition to a study abroad, find out if your college participates in any domestic exchange programs. You might be able to spend your junior year at a college/university closer to where your family is.
Getting accepted and paying for colleges are two very different things when you’re out of state 
You want to make sure that the financial aid packages are generous enough to keep you from having to have your parents co-sign for additional student loans to pay for it. Private student loans are a very exploitative business, and a deal breaker in my opinion.
If you want to find good financial aid packages with a 3.2 GPA then you really have two choices. 1. 2nd tier private schools that want to attract decent students. 2. In-state public universities or out of state universities that have tuition exchange programs with your state.
Hmm I’m looking at schools to transfer to as well and realizing that schools that offer financial aid are hard to come by. University of Miami and Tulane both offer transfers up to 16k/year in merit but they might both be reaches with your GPA (though you definately have a shot)
Other suggestions: University of Vermont (public but pretty small student body) Elon, Belmont, University of Pittsburg, University of Tampa (pretty generous aid)