Transfer Help

Hi everyone, so I’m currently a freshman at PSU and have had prospects of transferring ever since entering. I love Penn State dearly but it just lacks in some places and the tuition is crazy expensive. However I just got back my grades and I’m really stressed right now because my GPA now stands at a 3.4 (my econ and calc class ended up being extremely difficult), which is a low GPA to transfer to some of the schools I’m looking at (UNC, U Michigan, etc.)
So my question is that if I were to apply as transfer for Fall 2017, would the colleges I look at not make a decision until after I completed the spring semester? I plan to work hard to get straight A’s during the spring semester and if things go as planned, I would have 3.7-3.8 cumulative gpa. I’m just worried that if I were to apply it would a straight rejection after looking at my fall grades. I also had a 96 grade point average in high school. I just need to hear some outside opinions on what I should do!

Are UNC and Michigan significantly cheaper for you?

@blossom I wouldn’t say significantly cheaper, but I don’t think PSU is worth the money I’m currently paying. Plus, UNC and Michigan were originally my top choices.

Read the transfer admissions pages of schools you are interested in. Generally no, they won’t see your second semester grades before deciding.

If you didn’t get in to your top choices as a high school senior, and your one semester of college isn’t a big improvement in your record of accomplishments, you need to aim for a bit less selective schools to transfer.

Are you an OOS student for ALL of these public universities?

Where do you have instate residency status?

It appears the OP is from NY.

Unfortunately your gamble by attending UPenn might backfire. The sad reality of transfer is that one tends to have lower grades after the first semester in college than they had in HS. There is an adjustment period. So your GPA is not the greatest. This then limits where you can transfer to. You are generally looking at schools that would be considered lower tier schools with high acceptance rates. As with all admissions you need to apply to see if you can get in. You never know unless you apply.

Secondly, the best merit aid scholarship money is generally given to freshman. They are not as generous to transfer in students. This means you really have to shoot towards local city schools which tend to be cheaper. Not knowing your finance picture makes it hard.

OP is a student at Penn State, not the University of Pennsylvania.