<p>Sorry if this has been asked over and over, but..
Should the common app transfer essay be a personal essay, with an anecdote of a memorable experience (like in the non-transfer application essay), using descriptive language to inspire an answer to the "why do you want to transfer" question? Or, should we simply answer the question and directly say something like.."I'm currently not being challenged enough and want to get the best education available to me"? Also, what's the verdict on the word limit? The minimum is 250..what's a "good" amount? 300? 500?</p>
<p>just answer the question.</p>
<p>how can you possibly be creative in answering "why do you want to transfer?" </p>
<p>I hope your essay does not go like "I have a dream; my dream is to transfer to your school in order to inspire millions of children around the world." or something.</p>
<p>Hey thats how mine goes lol.... No i went for more of a personal account, and hope that my personality is what creates the creativity</p>
<p>Um, I shared an experience which described what I am missing from my current college experience, and then I went into why I want to transfer.</p>
<p>sachmoney, i think thats the best way to go. good job. I think that sharing your real reasons will resonate with admissions.</p>
<p>Mine was 756 words, including a bit of a personal anecdote. Its slightly more than two pages - but I had extensive academic reasons for wanting to transfer, so I spent quite a while deliniating them.</p>
<p>I like Sachmoney's approach, but it won't work for everyone.</p>
<p>Some schools have >1 transfer essay, so you can be more creative in the longer, personal statement-type essay and more "to the point" in why transfer and why to this school.</p>
<p>can i use an experience in which my friends all go drinking, leaving me alone, and then say i want a place with more serious students..i wont bash my current school..i think..</p>
<p>also, should it be tailored to a specific school? saying why i want to transfer there? and then i'd submit all my apps separately with different essays? or can it be general</p>
<p>I don't think going into the details of being left alone after drinking, or even mentioning drinking at all would add much to the essay, if not detract. Just skirt around descriptions of a rambunctious and non-contemplative student body.</p>
<p>
[quote]
also, should it be tailored to a specific school? saying why i want to transfer there?
[/quote]
I had a question about this too. Like should we mention specific clubs, events, buildings?</p>
<p>in the common application form the question is why do you wanna transfer, but i don't see how I could write a common essay for 10 differeent schools I'm applying to, because each school attracts me in different ways. any advice?</p>
<p>then that means that you are not being consistent with your school choices lol</p>
<p>i think u misunderstood what i was saying. i was trying to say that the commonapp essay just ask why u wanna transfer, but u know when u write that kind of essays u would want to say how u would fit in and contribute to the new school ( the ones u're applying to). sorry im international can't really explain very well lol</p>
<p>I had the same problem too and the best way to know how to do it is by asking the college itself. Some allow you to write a more-detailed-essay in the additional info/supplement section (although for me the spaces they provide in the supplement are too limited) or you can even send an extra email/essay (via mail) to the admission office. </p>
<p>However, others don't allow the applicants to write anything other than what is asked in the common app. And you have to stick with it.</p>
<p>Another way is by asking the college to send you the paper application (although maybe now is already too late), so you can write differently for each college. </p>
<p>BTW, I think you can still write an essay with detailed reasons on why you wnt to transfer without mentioning the name of the clubs, proffesor, or even the college name that you are attracted to. That way, you can send thhat essay to all of your colleges.</p>
<p>I think the key words were that they want an essay that addresses why you want to transfer. I wrote about the events in my life that led me to seek academic excellence in math. Of course, I'm clearly moving up by applying where I'm applying, so I didn't have to explain specifically why I'm leaving where I'm at.</p>
<p>I think that anything that addresses why you're transferring is fair game...though of course your application has to give good reasons for a move.</p>
<p>Mine was this really abstract extended metaphor about how my goals and aspirations are like a improv jazz band. It worked, and the words "transfer" or "college" never even came up in my essay.</p>
<p>Imo go for something no one else would write.</p>
<p>hopeful -- when's your app due? </p>
<p>pm me.</p>
<p>Don't bash your old school and be heavy on reasons why you want to transfer to THAT particular school. In my opinion, using the term "fit" is always a safe and appropriate way to approach the issue. Perhaps your academic goals and the course offerings of your previous school didn't "fit." Maybe it wasn't a good "fit" socially (much better than talking about drinking). Be specific about why the last school didn't fit and the reasons why the new school would be a much better fit!
Mal :)</p>
<p>ya but the thing is on the common application form you can't give reasons for specific schools cause you use that form for all the schools you're applying to.</p>
<p>you can make different versions for each college and change the essay for each one.</p>
<p>my essay was creative, personal and anecdotal. and it's 1,000 words. crap. is this just totally unreasonable? or is it ok if it's all fairly interesting to read?</p>