Swattie at heart, but never getting :(

<p>Swarthmore is my favorite school in America. My brother went to Swarthmore, graduated last year and he loved every minute of it. I am currently a student at Rutgers NB and do not like it. I crave a small LAC. My high school grades were average, and below average for swarthmore. 3.5 gpa, 550's across the board for the SAT's. But my EC's were excellent... pres of class, press of key club, governor's school scholar, and I hosted a lecture on Darfur at my school. Last year, i did not get into Swarthmore as expected. Now at Rutgers, I am looking to transfer to a small LAC. First semester I was in the hospital for the majority of it with compartment syndrome in my leg, so I took two incomplete's and I am finishing them up now. My cummalative GPA this year is looking like a 3.0 although I know I would have done better had I not been in the accident that messed up everything academically and life wise. Do I have any shot at Swarthmore as a transfer? If not, what other LAC's can I gain admission to as a transfer that are similar to Swarthmore?</p>

<p>Hi--unfortunately, your stats will not very likely gain you a spot in the transfer class for fall 2009, but if you can explain your difficulties this past year, complete your Incomplete coursework with very good grades, and get a 4.0 or very close for the next semester and have just as good grades when you send in your mid-semester report with your application, and you've taken a tough-ish courseload, Swarthmore MIGHT consider you for a junior transfer admittance. Excellent essays about your interests and goals, as well as a detailed Why Swat? essay will be key for your app. Also, you might want to consider getting in touch with professors in the department(s) you're interested in and sitting in on a session for any student clubs or organizations you might want to be a part of on campus--all this will boost your chances of getting in.
Of course, all that wouldn't insure anything. You should of course apply to schools that are less competitive.
These schools are all still very selective and have varying campus cultures, but you might want to check out Colgate (from where we just stole our new college president), Oberlin, Colby, Bates, Kenyon, Occidental, Franklin and Marshall, and Reed.
There are lots of good small LAC's out there where you can receive an excellent education and pursue whatever interests you. Don't get me wrong--I love Swat and wouldn't be happier anywhere else, and transferring here was the best decision I ever made (as well as the best decision the adcom ever made, lol)--but your undergraduate school won't completely determine your future. You can make great friends and get accepted to the best grad schools and start fantastic organizations at any decent liberal arts college.</p>

<p>Thank you swattransfer,
I appreciate your reply. I love Swarthmore with a passion, but understand that my chances are below minuscule because of my average grades. I am applying to F&M and Gettysburg. My father went to Oberlin, so I might check out Oberlin as it appears to have a very laid back student body. Also, Is Occidental in California? And have you ever been to Kenyon? Is it a nice campus, etc?</p>

<p>One last thing, where did you transfer from?</p>

<p>Depending on what part of Swat you liked, you also might consider some of the Quaker schools. Earlham in Indiana might be worth a look. There are actually a lot of midwestern LACs that share some of Swat's traits. Beloit outside of Chicago is another that gets high marks.</p>

<p>It's really hard without knowing more personalized detail.</p>

<p>Interesteddad,
Here are some personal traits that might help you help me :)</p>

<p>-19 years old from new jersey
-Philosophy major
-Humanitarian outlook on life(Hosted lecture on genocide in Darfur)
-Crave a small campus/tight knit community
-Hard worker in the humanities, do not thrive in the sciences and mathematics
-Like to party, but the Swat kind of party. (Ie. Have a beer outside the DU house while talking about political theories)</p>

<p>I don't know what Interesteddad will say but I don't think it is healthy to become fixated or obsessed with one particular college. Sounds almost like a fantasy for you. I don't think that's healthy for a young person especially. </p>

<p>My D applied to 11 colleges, all of them RD. She'd be perfectly happy going to the best one, with the best financial aid that will admit her. She's applied to LACs, private Us, and even a humongous flagship state U. She likes them all, not equally, but she does not have a favorite. I think that's a healthy attitude, because it will enable her to avoid crushing disappointment.</p>

<p>Plainsman,
I do agree with you somewhat. But I applied to 12 colleges last year RD in high school. All different in size, student body etc. I chose the best one for financial aid, most diverse student body, and prestige to some extent. I ended up at Rutgers and being here is not the undergrad experience that I was/am looking for. Your daughter might like all of them now but until you experience a school for a full semester one cannot judge just by a visit. Because I have spent my first year at Rutgers I can now narrow my choices to what I want in a college environment.</p>

<p>I'd check out Earlham.</p>

<p>Somebody who knows a lot more about colleges than I do has been very impressed with Beloit. The other schools you mentioned all sound plausible to me, too.</p>

<p>I have no idea what the student body is like (you would have to go visit and see for yourself), but I'm impressed with the way Dickinson is managed. I'm not sure that they have a "Swarthmore-like" student body, but their management is doing a solid job.</p>

<p>i actually live near dickinson.</p>

<p>i'm sure it's a good, well-run school, but it does not remind me of swarthmore in any way.</p>

<p>
[quote]
I don't know what Interesteddad will say but I don't think it is healthy to become fixated or obsessed with one particular college.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Just for the record, I don't think my daughter was "fixated" on Swarthmore. It was her clear first choice, but she was realistic about her odds of admission (white girls from the Boston area are not exactly rare in the applicant pool) and had plenty to like about the other schools on her list. I believe that she was the kind of applicant where ED can be a big boost. I'm very confident that the investment she made in multiple visits, getting to know people at the school, and so forth paid dividends in the quality of her application and, therefore, her acceptance. If she hadn't gotten into Swarthmore ED, she was going to roll the dice. She hadn't been able to identify a second choice school and had already decided against EDII.</p>

<p>BTW, I was reading your visit report and just wanted to comment on one thing. You opined that the FBI probably doesn't recruit at Swarthmore. I don't know about the FBI, but I know that the CIA does recruit publicly (and I suspect successfully) at Swarthmore.</p>

<p>Just a comment on Earlham for you. My niece and her husband both went to Earlham and loved it. The husband actually transferred to Earlham from Oberlin after his freshman year. The college is similar to Swarthmore, I have heard. He was very familiar with Swarthmore before college, as his mother is a professor at Haverford. Earlham is also a quaker school. I think the only downside I have heard them say is the location. It is in a very small town, not really near a metropolitan area.</p>

<p>I also suspect that Earlham is much less diverse than Swarthmore is.</p>

<p>Most schools are less diverse than Swarthmore. That doesn't mean they are not worth looking into. While diversity may be quite desirable, looking only for schools with Swarthmore's level of diversity may be too restrictive.</p>

<p>Beloit is often overlooked, but it is an excellent school. We have family and friends who attended Beloit many years ago. </p>

<p>Last year we suggested to a friend's child (who is very bright and creative but whose grades and scores were good but not stellar in hs), to take a look at Beloit. The kid visited, liked it and and is there now, extremely happy, enjoying it and thriving.</p>

<p>Well, it depends on how important diversity is to you. I did some research on Earlham when I was a junior and I think I decided not to apply because it wasn't diverse enough.</p>