<p>@Pizzagirl: What you said about the SAT is not necessarily true. It’s a very taxing test, and coming in healthy, energetic, and with a clear mind makes a HUGE difference in scores. </p>
<p>Anyway, I’m definitely not an authority on admissions and what not, but I think working to become a star in a local school like a couple others have said would help you tremendously when/if you decide to transfer. Gap years are tricky to manage, and unless you do something amazing, I’m not sure how much it would help. However, proving that you can do excellent work, getting the support of your professors, doing amazing things on campus, etc. would make transferring much easier imo.</p>