<p>So, I'm in a pickle. I'm choosing between UMD ($400 deposit, 10k in loans per year) and a school named Towson ($650 deposit, 5.5k in loans per year).</p>
<p>While UMD is a great school, I'd rather not be in that much debt. Towson is obviously the better deal, but it's unranked, and I want to transfer to Dartmouth or UPenn..</p>
<p>I'm on the wait list for UPenn, but.. we all know how the chances of getting off of a wait list are. </p>
<p>(The reason I mentioned the deposits.. my parents aren't contributing anything to my education, so I only have around $700 unless I get a scholarship.. so if I go to Towson and get off of the Penn wait list, I probably won't find the money for the deposit)</p>
<p>I’m just worried about being able to transfer to where I really want to be for sophomore year. I’m willing to do very well freshman year, do interest-related ECs, etc… but… yeah.</p>
<p>Have you considered the what if you don’t get in as a transfer? The transfer acceptance rates for most top schools tends to be lower than regular freshman admissions. </p>
<p>If those are the only two schools you’ll be applying to transfer into, then pick the school which you wouldn’t mind graduating from because the odds aren’t necessarily increased by transferring.</p>
<p>i hope you realize that there are high chances of your transfer application being denied, in which case you would be stuck at the school you originally chose. </p>
<p>so it would be wise to pick a good school (Maryland is a little better than “top 100” BTW, they’re usually around top 50 and consistently one of the top 15 or so public schools).</p>
<p>Towson is a party school with joke academics. it might be more of a strain on your pockets, but if you can avoid going there for a semester or two it would be worth it.</p>
<p>Exactly. If you’re not getting into PENN when they accept 16 percent of their applicants, what makes you think they will accept you as a transfer when it drops to 10 percent? I’m not trying to douse your hopes per se just suggesting it will be far healthier to pick a school you can be happy with and adopt that mindset.</p>
<p>And best of luck to you. I appreciate your stick-to-it-ness. But not if it stops you from living in the now. </p>
<p>Now is the time for bonding and making friends, potentially for life. A ‘one and done’ approach isn’t going to endear you to many. Conversely, transferring to a school sophomore year may get you new friends but not the same experiences as those there from the get-go. Those guys will have already formed friendships and will be rooming together. </p>
<p>If you transfer and are lucky enough that they accept all of your credits you will still (likely) find that you will be taking other prerequisites. This kills your chance to earn a dual major, if you plan on getting out in four years. Not a big deal if you are simply going to medical school but a much bigger deal for other graduate schools of study. Then you will be competing against students who have earned a dual major (and perhaps another minor). </p>
<p>Doing well in Maryland can get you into law school or medical school, no problem. However, I get the sense that getting into med school is not enough, you want to get into the ‘right’ med school. Nothing wrong with that, but just realize you’re in the paper chase.</p>
<p>I think you better plan on two years at wherever you choose. Since Penn waitlisted you there’s a chance for a soph transfer, but if I’m recalling right that you were rejected by Dartmouth this year, a soph transfer is highly unlikely as it would be at it’s peer schools.</p>
<p>I would choose the school you can see yourself at for 2 years. I do think, however, Maryland will make you a more competitive transfer.</p>
I was rejected by Brown; I didn’t apply to Dartmouth. My ACT was very low (29) and I brought it up to a 32 (after I got decisions), which has to help some.</p>
<p>I’m not planning on transferring for prestige purposes… it’s just that these loans are too much. 10K in loans a year is quite ridiculous considering my less-than-3000 EFC. </p>
<p>I am leaning towards Maryland, though. They offered me 5.5k in loans, but I’d need a plus loan for 4k more to make it affordable. I’m using my mom (whom I don’t live with) to apply for a plus loan and get rejected so I get extra unsub stafford. I don’t know how my dad will respond to this. Also… I’d have to use half of my work study to pay tuition… and working without getting paid directly would take time away from working for putting money in my savings and/or extracurriculars. Well, I only have 9 days… better get thinking. :</p>
<p>It isn’t practical to use work study to pay tuition, so I’d advise against planning on it. At many schools there are not enough work study jobs to go around and freshmen are last in line. Since the money is so tight, Towson is probably the better bet. As long as you’re willing to also consider some schools less selective than Penn and Dartmouth, the 32 will help and you should be able to land somewhere soph year.</p>
<p>First post does have a interesting point, though include that when choosing a university ranked… especially if you plan to transfer/ attend a top graduate university. I would easily attend University of Maryland over a non ranked university.</p>