<p>I'm a long-time browser, first time poster looking for advice. As many of my fellow prospective transfers here, I was a "slacker" in high school, but am now an incredibly driven undergraduate student looking for something more. Here are my numbers:</p>
<p>Pre-HS
-asked to join a gifted program after scoring in the 98th percentile on the MEAP test (the program was disbanded before I could begin)</p>
<p>High School
-2.9 GPA
-22 ACT (didn't prepare, took it once)</p>
<p>Community College (one year)
-4.0 GPA</p>
<p>Tier-3 Public University (awful transfer decision on my part)
-3.92 GPA
-student government representative
-published articles
-about a dozen other assorted ECs, including two elected positions
-chosen as a preliminary McNair Scholar for Summer 2011
-accepted as an intern for a US House Representative on his re-election campaign (Fall 2010)</p>
<p>I'm a Political Science major and have come to the realization after this year that I'm craving a campus that is more active, driven, and concerned. The sad fact is that my current university is full of apathetic morons and I find myself wasting away here (they accept as low as a high school 2.0 and/or 17 ACT for good standing as a freshman. In my defense, I chose this university because of it's low tuition, location close to home, and relationship constraints.</p>
<p>I'm looking into schools located close to political centers and have so far considered UW-Madison (my parents are Wisconsin residents) and Michigan State. I know that I would be accepted easily into MSU, probably with a good deal of aid to boot, but I still feel that I want and deserve more, considering the great effort that I allot to my studies.</p>
<p>I’m in a similar boat with the whole never working up to my abilities through high school… Didn’t prepare for the SAT took it once got a 1470/2130 but with a 3.0… haha</p>
<p>I’m trying to transfer to UNC-CH (Tour it once, you’ll fall in love.) :)</p>
<p>@Sudden: Do you think my numbers would qualify me for admission to Georgetown?</p>
<p>@CNU: I know what you mean and I regret it every day, so my ambition over the past two years has been to realize my full potential - yet I feel myself hitting a very low ceiling in my current environment.</p>
<p>Also I should point out that I come from a pretty low income family, so it’s extremely hard to tour campuses far distances away from where I or my parents live… another factor in my decision to be where I am.</p>
<p>As you’ve noted, elite places like the Ivies and their peers are beyond your reach. Still there’s some good places out there. If your criteria is proximity to a political center, then there are some universities you might have a decent chance at that are also genuinely good schools. These are Boston University, Boston College, Tufts University, Wesleyan College, Colby College, George Washington University, Vanderbilt, UNC Chapel Hill, University of Michigan, and University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. The degree of difficulty you’d face getting into those places varies. Boston College, Tufts, Wesleyan, Colby, Vanderbilt, UNC Chapel Hill, and University of Michigan would all be reaches. The others though would be nice possibilities.</p>
<p>The biggest thing you can do to improve your profile would be to raise your ACT score, or take the SAT. I understand that finances would be a problem for you. If they’re a serious issue, you’ve got two options. One is to go to University of Wisconsin if that is where your residency is. The other is to sign up for a ROTC scholarship. Be warned, making a commitment to four years of military service, even as an officer, is a big deal. Really, you should only take this option if you’re willing to handle the rigidity, discipline, and danger of military life for four years after you graduate from college. Unfortunately, a lot of these places aren’t necessarily top notch when it comes to financial aid, so your ability to attend, independent of your academic record, may be affected.</p>
<p>One last thing, it sounds like you’ll have completed more than two years of college by the time you transfer. You should be aware that many schools will not let you apply if you’ll have completed more than two years by the time you’d transfer. I might be wrong about your status, but you should really check to make sure you’re eligible. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>Thanks! That’s a little discouraging, but it helps an immense amount.</p>
<p>I was actually hoping the UM, Boston, Wesleyan would have been a little better than reaches considering the incredible upward GPA trend and ECs + research, but I can’t exactly run out to Boston for a visit in the next few months anyway.</p>
<p>As for years in college, I’m considering taking the Fall 2010 semester off and applying to Madison as a transfer for Spring 2011. This would give me two years in. Would the empty semester hurt? And if so, how much?</p>
<p>Also, what about West Coast? UC system? Washington? </p>
<p>All great schools… but seriously, look into UNC (Sorry if I’m over stating that point. haha)</p>
<p>Heh, I’m lucky that I’ve gotten chances to tour some schools while visiting some friends in the area. My biggest issue right now is I’m waiting for UNC to get back to me and the only other schools I applied to are Clemson and UGA and while they both are great schools, I’m not sure if they’re worth the transfer… :/</p>
<p>Okay, I totally understand where you’re coming from.</p>
<p>I have one amazing suggestion:</p>
<p>Berkeley. </p>
<p>I clicked on this thread when I saw your sn. Broletariat - very nice. I used to be a Marxist, so the proletariat was a staple of my vocablary. All this being said, you cannot beat the politically-based, intellectually stimulating environment at Berkeley. It’s truly incredible. Please try and go visit. If you can’t afford OOS all the way to the west coast, then obviously that won’t be an option. However, I highly highly recommend Berkeley for what you described in your post.</p>
<p>Berkeley would be my hands down, no question first choice. However, I doubt that although my grades, the poor reputation of my current school would disqualify me straightaway.</p>
<p>The thing to keep in mind about the west coast is that very few universities are actually near state capitols, which I understand is important to you. Reed and The University of Washington are somewhat close to the state capitols, but it still is inconvenient to get to Olympia from Seattle or Salem fro Portland. Within California, Berkeley and UC Davis are somewhat close to Sacramento. It still is difficult to get out to those places though, so I’d be careful. Honestly the only place on the west coat really near a capitol is the University of Hawaii at Manoa. That’s of course not a good school, and definitely doesn’t have the environment I think you want. </p>
<p>Really, I’m not sure the type of place you want is a big state university. Were I you I’d consider liberal arts colleges. They tend to have very strong political science programs, great teaching, and surprisingly good alumni networks. It is true that getting financial aid as a transfer from them is difficult, but once you get it they tend to be very generous. I’m not sure you could get into a tip top program, but some more middling schools like Washington and Lee, Hamilton, Colgate, Oberlin, Bates, Reed, and Colby may well be within your reach. If being near a capitol isn’t as big an issue as it seems, then I’d give them serious thought.</p>
<p>Broletariat, my friend, I’ll tell you straight up that you have a great shot at Berkeley!</p>
<p>A) Berkeley does not look at hs grades for transfers whatsoever until after admitted (just for records).
B) Berkeley does not look at SAT scores for transfers at all. </p>
<p>C) With a 3.92 from a CCC, and as a poli-sci major, you have an excellent shot! Average GPA admitted is like a 3.75. You’re way above average, man.</p>
<p>D) They prefer CCC students over state-school kids.</p>
<p>E) I applied there for fall 2010, and I’ll be getting my admission decision in 1 month! I applied as a transfer (philosophy major).</p>
<p>I promise you would have a great shot, if not certain, if you applied. PM me or respond if you want any more info/advice.</p>
<p>Broletariat, the ivies and their peers are NOT out of your reach. I have met with many undergraduate admissions directors and they all said the same thing. Once you have completed 2 years of college they can care less what your ACT/SAT score is, or what your High School GPA was. That stuff is mainly just needed information that they have to report. Half the reason they ask for your high school diploma is to see if you graduated. The SAT/ACT is supposed to determine your academic success at college. If you already have a 3.9+ like you do, do you really think they care what your ACT score was?</p>
<p>Get some good recommendations, write some good essays and you have a decent shot at Georgetown, Hopkins, etc.</p>
<p>Soze; that’s an interesting outlook, and I tend to agree with that philosophy, but in actuality, how much do admissions departments look at HS records? Or softs like ECs for that matter?</p>
<p>Also, I am aware that I’ve missed application deadlines for Fall 2010 and am now considering taking a semester/year off of school to avoid being over the two-year limit for transfer. Right now the schools I’m considering are Madison, Northwestern, Georgetown/GW, Oberlin. Could anyone give me an idea if taking a semester/year off would be a wise idea, what the ramifications of doing to would be, and my chances at any of the aforementioned schools? Thanks a ton!</p>
<p>The SAT/ACT is used to predict how students will perform in college coursework. Thus, if a transfer applicant has two years worth of college coursework under their belt, why would standardized testing matter? </p>
<p>To the OP, you can apply to essentially any school you want and you have a decent chance. As a low-income applicant, schools like GWU and Georgetown are excellent choices because they will likely offer you substantial aid. I would also consider applying to schools like Cornell where the SAT/ACT is optional for CAS applicants. There are many top schools where you will find that standardized testing is optional, especially for junior-level transfer applicants. Be an informed transfer applicant and don’t take the opinion of any one person too seriously.</p>
(Sorry if I’m over stating that point. haha)</p>