Transfer advice please

Currently I have a 3.92 gpa, I founded a club on campus and am a part of the leadership, I’m a tutor, hired through the college for an intro economics course, (which also happens to be one of my majors). I’ve been a part and have lead numerous social work events/trips. I’ve worked 4 separate jobs throughout high school as well. Following the summer course I am taking, I will most likely be a bookkeeper for the rest of the summer and/or work jobs similar to this just for exposure and experience.

In terms of courses, I took 16 credits my first semester:
Writing seminar- A
Intro Macroeconomics- A+
Calculus II- A
Philosophy- B+

And 20 credits my second semester:
Intro to American Government- A+
Accounting I- A+
Regulation of Business- A+
Intro Microeconomics- A
History of Political Thought- A

Currently taking an intensive 3 credit language course at my local CC and expect to earn an A.

If I were to stay at my current institution, I’d be taking 20 credits in the Fall:

Anatomy & Physiology I
Intermediate Microeconomics
Intermediate Macreconomics
Modern China
Statistical Analysis

In terms of my high school record, it’s not the sharpest you will find. I graduated with around a 3.2gpa and an SAT of 1290 with a 22/24 on the writing. This is clearly the weakest part of my application, and also one of my regrets-having not realized at the time not only the importance of doing well in school and applying myself, but of really taking the time to seek out what it is that I love to do. I’ve taking an interest in economics, and am also thinking about majoring in math because the two certainly complement each other. If economics didn’t work out, having a degree in math would enable me to apply for graduate studies in engineering, which is another interest of mine. The political science classes you see above was my experimentation with our college’s pre-law program as well as a political economics-type outlook, but I now don’t find this career path ideal for myself.

I have multiple reasons for wanting to transfer. One is that I don’t feel intellectually challenged per say at my current institution. I’d really like to reap the most out of my college experience, academically and socially, and I can say that both aspects, especially socially, haven’t been suitable for myself, to say the least. I don’t feel inspired at my current institution. The ideal college life for me would be living and learning amongst students much more intelligent, driven, empathetic, analytical, etc than myself.

I’m definitely looking for an institution that has a great reputation and a relatively open curriculum. I greatly appreciate that liberal arts education but I’d also like to experiment with a bit more flexibility in the curriculum. These are pretty general reasons, but a college with strong student organizations, a lively campus, strong academics, as well as an inclusive and, again, lively surrounding city/community would be ideal. I’d like there to be a large amount of opportunities to explore on-campus activities, as well as off-campus.

I have been considering applying to transfer in the Spring to the following, in no particular order with the exception of the first:

U of Rochester (Top choice), U of Michigan, Rutgers U, Davidson College, the College of William & Mary, Rice University (Fall Semester and a definite reach relative to the others according to the research I’ve done), Syracuse University, U of Richmond, and possibly a few others.

If this were the case, chancing me on these institutions would be great. Also, I’m still debating whether or not to attend the local community college for my sophomore year and then transfer to a different four-year than my current. Input here would be greatly appreciated as well.

Any kind of advice would be helpful, as well as possible chances for the institutions above.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this.

As you’ve noted, your academic background tells two different stories, so evaluating your actual transfer prospects could be difficult. However, your strong college performance, as well as your recent, associated priorities, indicate that it might not be frivolous to reach a little at this stage.

URochester from your list might be an excellent destination for an application.

Academically, LACs could be great for a combination of econ and math. Highly placed colleges from this analysis would be worth particular attention: https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.uslacecon.html. Review the common data sets for potential schools of interest, though, to check whether they indicate transfer friendly practices.

Thanks merc81. LACs are definitely of interest to me so that link helps a ton. I will be applying to Rochester, it’s just a matter of when–after I complete another year of college, whether it be at the local CC or my current institution… A lot to think about here, and I definitely appreciate your input. Thanks again

Other opinions would be really helpful… Especially in regard to reverse transferring, chancing me for these institutions, etc.