I’m a freshman at UNC Chapel Hill on a full merit scholarship, really wanted to love the school but have realized it is not the best fit (for numerous reasons, but the biggest is that I want to live in a city, preferably closer to home). I would ideally like to transfer to somewhere in the New England area next year, but am hesitant because of the obvious financial change from paying nothing for school/room and board to paying a lot of money. I went to a New England prep school and graduated in the top 10% of my class, with many leadership roles in extracurriculars and a 2260 SAT superscore. Coming out of my first semester of college, my GPA should be around a 3.9, I’m a founding member of a new campus organization, and I’m planning to get more involved in extracurriculars next semester. Is it a lost cause to apply as a transfer student to other schools in the hopes of possibly getting significant merit aid? Are there any schools in particular I should look at? Right now I’m looking at Northeastern and NYU. Thanks in advance for any advice.