<p>Right now I'm a freshwoman at Bryn Mawr College. I'm having quite a few issues, and I'd appreciate some input because honestly I've been having a hard time figuring things out and deciding what to do.</p>
<p>The transition to BMC has not been entirely smooth for me. I don't hate it here, but I don't love it either. I haven't clicked with anyone here yet, and I tend to focus on all the things I dislike. Overall, I'm just not satisfied with my experience so far. The academics are stellar, but the social life isn't really my scene. I've convinced myself that everyone is constantly working, and anytime I let myself have fun or take a break, I feel guilty about it. Also, I'm a city person, and even though Philly is close it's just a hassle to take the train in. Next semester, I'm going to stick it out and stay because I want to give Bryn Mawr a fair shot, but I've been considering transferring and I have a few concerns.</p>
<p>I'm guessing my gpa will be around a 3.3, which I know is not bad, but I really want to go to grad school. I was thinking if I transferred to a slightly less challenging school (specifically, Temple U), it might benefit me. I guess this is the whole good school vs. good gpa dilemma. </p>
<p>I'm also really worried about transfer admissions. I want to be in a urban environment, so I've been looking into Temple University, Drexel, NYU, and Fordham. With a 3.3-3.4 from BMC after this year, would I be likely to be admitted as a transfer? </p>
<p>Another problem is that Bryn Mawr is allowing me to graduate in 3 years, which will save my family money and is a great opportunity for me. I might not be able to do this at another school. So that's just another negative aspect of transferring I suppose.</p>
<p>Just to let you know, Temple is no easy school, that’s for sure. I guess I would assume BMC is ‘tougher’, but I doubt TU is much easier. I think you’ll be able to get in, though.</p>
<p>As far as Philly being a hassle to get to from Bryn Mawr, as annoying as SEPTA is, it’s not really a big deal. I live a few minutes away from BMC, and go home for the weekend from Temple every now and then, and it’s really not a big deal.</p>
<p>I admire you. I hate city life so much that I want to rip my eyeballs off. I’d rather be in the middle of cornfield like how Purdue is… It’s so annoying have to deal with the noise late at nights. Just cause of money I am here… <em>sigh</em>…</p>
<p>I didn’t mean to imply that Temple was easy in any way. I have friends there, and they say it’s definately not easy, but it does seem like there might be less of the grade deflation that bmc is notorious for. I’ve taken the SEPTA into Philly, and it’s not a big deal, but really I just want to live IN the city. I love city life.</p>
<p>Don’t trick yourself into thinking that Temple will be a lot easier than Bryn Mawr. You might be a better student at Temple, but the grades at Temple are on average lower than those at Bryn Mawr.</p>
<p>A few numbers: At Bryn Mawr, 5% of each class graduate with a GPA of 3.9 or above. At Temple that’s 2%. At Temple 15% of students get a GPA of 3.6 or above. 30% of Bryn Mawr students have a 3.5 or above. </p>
<p>Some departments at Bryn Mawr are stricter with grades than others, but overall, there is no grade deflation at Bryn Mawr. If anything, we suffer from grade inflation. Compare our average GPA in the 3.3-3.4 range to the national average of 3.1.</p>
<p>That being said, if you think you might be happier at Temple, please do consider transferring. Average grades alone may not be worth a transfer, but your happiness most definitely is!</p>
<p>It’s hard to deal with unhappiness/finals/possible transfer details…</p>
<p>I know a similar situation where the girl was unhappy her first semester. She took a leave of absence at Christmas, moved home and went to her local community college for spring. She was glad to return to her original school [with new living situation] over the summer to get back in the swing of things and her parents were glad she accumulated some cheap community college credits for transfer.</p>
<p>I honestly think I’d be happier at Temple, Fordham, NYU, or any school in a city. I know it’s been only one semester, but I’m just not happy here. I will stick it out one more semester just to make sure it’s not the place for me. Although the idea of one more semester here is getting pretty overwhelming…</p>
<p>I know how you feel. I went to a more rural school and was not happy there at all. I transferred to NYU and loved it. It’s not for everyone but if you’re a city person, you kinda know it, and living in the city just makes you feel alive. I had to stay and work on getting my gpa up so I would definitely get accepted, but it was worth it. So, if you stay the extra semester and work hard at your gpa, you will up your chances of acceptance. It feels good to have a goal and helps to deal with the negative feelings you have about your present situation. If things do improve where you are, you can always change your mind. Good luck!</p>
<p>If you like the city, you could consider taking a class or two at Penn next semester. It’s not exactly like living in the city, but it does give you an excuse to go into Philly several times a week and an opportunity to meet more people. I didn’t think it would make much of a difference, but I have been much happier once I started taking classes at Penn. Now I go into Philly 4-5 times a day - 2 days for classes and a couple of times just to socialize.</p>
<p>In the long run it might be easier to transfer, but exploring Penn might help you get through next semester if you decide to come back to Bryn Mawr.</p>
<p>I think a lot of my unhappiness is unrelated to bryn mawr, although I really do wish I could live in an urban environment. I guess we’ll see how next semester goes…</p>
<p>Counting the number of students graduating with honors. The registrar publishes the GPA cutoff for each category, and the yearly graduation program contains a list of students graduating with honors.</p>
<p>Seems that I estimated our average GPA too low. 2/3 of our seniors graduate with honors, so our average graduating GPA is in the 3.4 - 3.5 range.</p>
<p>"Limited to the top 10 students in the class with GPAs of 3.800 or higher.</p>
<p>As with magna cum laude , eligibility for summa cum laude is based on a recalculated GPA that includes grades earned in courses that you have chosen to take CR/NC. In recent years, the cutoff between summa and magna has tended to be closer to 3.9 than to 3.8."</p>
<p>Has it been higher than 3.9 then? Because 10 students/300-350 is ~3% not 5%</p>
<p>From the college website" Summa cum laude: limited to the top 10 students in the class with GPAs of 3.800 or higher.As with magna cum laude , eligibility for summa cum laude is based on a recalculated GPA that includes grades earned in courses that you have chosen to take CR/NC. In recent years, the cutoff between summa and magna has tended to be closer to 3.9 than to 3.8."</p>
<p>Has it been higher than 3.9 then? Because 10 students/300-350 is ~3%.</p>
<p>Last year 14 students graduated summa cum laude (don’t ask me why, I am just reading the booklet they handed out).</p>
<p>I would not trust the website with numbers on graduation honors anyway. The Dean’s website also that between 1/3 and 1/2 of each class graduate with honors, but last year it was about 2/3. Maybe last year was an anomaly, but I would expect that their numbers are outdated. Over the past 10 years, GPAs nationwide have increased by about .15 points at private colleges. If Bryn Mawr has followed the national trend, the statistics on the Dean’s website are completely useless because they have not been updated for a while.</p>