<p>HI everyone! I applied to some US colleges this year and unfortunately i got rejected from all of my top choices. So now, I am weighing the possibilities I have left which are taking a gap year and transfer.
I was wondering is it easier to transfer into an university that you've been rejected from, from another school inside the US or from a prestigious university from another country?<br>
Or else, is it better to take a gap year and apply again next year as a new freshman?</p>
<p>Hey injunioryear.</p>
<p>I was in the same situation as you were till I received my last decision letter, which welcomed me the class of 2018 of Wesleyan. Either way, by the time I received it I had already drawn a plan for the eventuality of not being accepted.
I want to study Computer Science and, here in Portugal the course didn’t attract me very much. I also would like to have some classes of business, psychology and design and I know it wouldn’t be possible in the Portuguese education system. For this reason I started lining a program for a gap year, in which I would try to do the most things to both improve my CV and explore my interests. I finished with a great pack consisting of a 3-month internship abroad, fundraising, a 3-month journey to India, retaking the SAT, further participating in EYP and developing my design portfolio.
If you can take the gap year to increase your curriculum (and line your ideas as well), then it would be a better idea and would increase more your chances of getting in US university than to pursue studies in your country. If you opt for the latter, then try to achieve the highest grades possible, not neglecting other ECs.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>The short answer is, “it depends.” Here are the two deceisive variables:
- Do you need any form of financial assistance, or can you cover the full cost of college out of pocket?
- Which US universities are you hoping to attend eventually?</p>
<p>If you need financial aid, TAKE A GAP YEAR. There’s almost no financial aid for international transfer students.</p>
<p>If you are hoping to attend a highly-selective private university (Ivies, etc), take a gap year. They accept very few transfer students.</p>
<p>Otherwise, the choice of gap year vs going to college now is yours. If you do opt for college, I would strongly encourage you to enroll at an American institution. Most foreign universities really don’t give you the foundations that a successful transfer applicant needs. For example, when evaluating transfer applications, universities will be looking if the courses you have taken satisfy (most of) their general education requirements. However, foreign universities usually don’t offer the kind of broad education you would receive in the US. A typical foreign student would also struggle to get letters of recommendations from college professors, since first-year students in most countries don’t interact much with faculty. </p>
<p>If you do opt for college in the US, pick the college you attend strategically. For example, if you are hoping to transfer to a UC, your best bet is to attend a community college in California. The UCs hold spots specifically for in-state community college transfers. The same goes for most public universities: attend a communtiy college in-state.</p>