<p>are there any successful transfers to yale, stanford, or columbia here who could give me advice? I want to transfer to one of those schools, but my GPA is low (3.67), SAT was 2360, and I don't know my professors well enough to get amazing recommendations. My reasons for transferring are that I don't like the social life here, but as of now I am undecided so I have no real academic reason to transfer. I know this sounds really bad. But advice would really be appreciated anyway! Thanks.</p>
<p>I don't see anything wrong with that GPA from Cornell, and your SAT is great. I think you have a good chance at being accepted. You can focus on the strength of the academics of the "new" schools without picking a specific major. You can discuss the general intellectual environment you are seeking and why you feel the new school can offer something that Cornell can not.</p>
<p>Out of curiousity, what don't you like about the social life?</p>
<p>well its based around the fraternities and sororities. When I first came here I didn't think it would make a difference to my social life, but 35% of this school is involved in frats and sororities, so on the weekends thats mostly what goes on, since there is free alcohol, etc. If you like drinking, beer pong, all the regular college stuff you'll like the social life here, but since I don't drink I've found it hard to adjust, whereas my friends who don't drink at other schools have things like house parties, things their residential colleges organize, lots of Master's Teas and other stuff like that which I would really enjoy.</p>
<p>Cornell has weekly fellowship dinners down on west campus as well as residential college gatherings and so forth. Maybe you should just become a sophomore. </p>
<p>One thing that I've learned from admissions at Cornell ... if you're transfering from an elite college, you better have a damn good reason for wanting to.</p>
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if you're transfering from an elite college, you better have a damn good reason for wanting to.
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<p>That's not true at all. I've know many, many applicants who successfully transferred from here to higher ranked schools, and whose essays were not the most compelling in terms of providing reasons; they were astoundingly creative, but they did not present a compelling reason for wanting to transfer.</p>
<p>"That's not true at all"</p>
<p>so maybe admissions is fooling me? I do work for them at Cornell ... you don't, but I guess you may know what they're saying more than I do. I'm not here sharing my opinion (like you are judging your friends' essays), I'm just sharing what was told to me from admissons at an elite school regarding transfers. Though I would love to go into this much deeper, I have an obligation to not share certain aspects about admissions process. Does Yale care more about a creative essay than a reason to transfer? Maybe, but my guess is that with a solid 4% acceptance rate, you're going to need a stunningly creative essay about a damn good reason why you want to transfer. </p>
<p>"I've know many, many applicants who successfully transferred from here to higher ranked schools"</p>
<p>i didn't know 'many many' people transfered out of georgetown. Nice tidbit of info, though. Also, we're not just talking about 'higher ranked school' ... in your case, your friends could just be transfering to places like Chicago or Northwestern where the acceptance rates are quite high, yet the schools are "ranked higher." We're talking about 3 places where the acceptance rates are in the low single digits for transfers. Then again, you could always just say "ummm no, one went to Yale" as an attempt to prove me wrong...</p>
<p>gomestar- take a look at all the schools slipper1234 was accepted to transferring out of Columbia. There are LOTS of students who transfer out of elite schools for one reason or another and are accepted at other excellent schools.</p>
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well its based around the fraternities and sororities. When I first came here I didn't think it would make a difference to my social life, but 35% of this school is involved in frats and sororities, so on the weekends thats mostly what goes on, since there is free alcohol, etc. If you like drinking, beer pong, all the regular college stuff you'll like the social life here, but since I don't drink I've found it hard to adjust, whereas my friends who don't drink at other schools have things like house parties, things their residential colleges organize, lots of Master's Teas and other stuff like that which I would really enjoy.
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I'm not really a drinker either. I was intent on applying transfer to Cornell a few months ago but soured for the same reasons you did, even though I never actually attended. My experience with friends from high school who went off to Cornell and came back during homecoming was...well...a little short of shocking. One of my friends who was such a go-getter in high school said she was rushing and when I saw her in person again she seemed like entirely different person. All of a sudden she was wearing a mini skirt in 20 degree weather and putting on extra globs of makeup. I'm not against anyone who wants to do that, but it was quite a change. Another kid in from my high school was arrested, but I won't get into that. I guess the strong presence of Greek life at Cornell is fostered by it's remote location, but that's just a guess.</p>
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so maybe admissions is fooling me?
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<p>I don't know. Perhaps?</p>
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I do work for them at Cornell
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<p>Yeah... too bad you don't work for, oh I don't know, Harvard, Stanford and Yale, or other schools that typically receive applications from Cornell students.</p>
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you don't,
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<p>Well, that's pretty obvious and trivial. I don't go to Cornell..</p>
<p>Oh wait, are you asking whether I work with an admissions committee? I do, in fact, and I have extensive contact with admissions committees at other top 25 schools. Your point?</p>
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but I guess you may know what they're saying more than I do.
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<p>That's right. Exactly. You took the words right out of my mouth.</p>
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I'm not here sharing my opinion (like you are judging your friends' essays),
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<p>If someone's essay was just a hair's breadth short of saying "I'm transferring for the prestige," you would think it pretty pathetic in terms of providing reasons. At least I hope you would...</p>
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I'm just sharing what was told to me from admissons at an elite school regarding transfers.
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<p>Okay. Good for you. And I am sharing to you what was told to me from admissions officers from even more elite schools, personal experience, and from Georgetown (another elite school). </p>
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Though I would love to go into this much deeper,
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<p>But you will do us all a favor and won't.</p>
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I have an obligation to not share certain aspects about admissions process.
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<p>Thank god.</p>
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Does Yale care more about a creative essay than a reason to transfer? Maybe, but my guess is that with a solid 4% acceptance rate, you're going to need a stunningly creative essay about a damn good reason why you want to transfer.
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<p>...and that's what it comes down to. With your "experience" with the admissions office at Cornell, you can only guess how it is like at Yale. I, on the other hand, personally know more than five admits (some of which were admitted from my school), read their essays, and can tell you that their reasons were not that strong. They were brilliant creative pieces, but hardly substantive when it came to "I want to attend Yale because..."</p>
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i didn't know 'many many' people transfered out of georgetown.
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<p>Of course, it would only take a naive person to think that I only have friends at Georgetown, and that I only know students who transferred out of Georgetown. </p>
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Also, we're not just talking about 'higher ranked school' ... in your case, your friends could just be transfering to places like Chicago or Northwestern
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<p>Really? You can keep on conjecturing, but I will tell you the facts here and now: Columbia, Dartmouth, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Swarthmore, Amherst, and Caltech were among the schools that my friends were admitted (note an ambiguity: all of my friends where not admitted at all of those schools. All of my friends, however, were admittted in at least one of those schools).</p>
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where the acceptance rates are quite high, yet the schools are "ranked higher."
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<p>Huh? Northwestern's and Chicago's admit rate is not that high at all.</p>
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Then again, you could always just say "ummm no, one went to Yale" as an attempt to prove me wrong...
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<p>Well, there is an easier way to prove you wrong. I think all the schools I listed above have "e acceptance rates [...] in the low single digits for transfers."</p>
<p>I like when nspeds quotes every sentence and then refutes them with his own little style. It makes my day more interesting.</p>
<p>Really, I'm serious.</p>
<p>momofwildchild - please tell me when I doubted that students can transfer from one elite school to another. Slipper had his social reasons (and they were excellent reasons at that), and as a result he transfered to a school that was significantly different than Columbia. </p>
<p>I guess this is a little "shocking" for people to hear. Believe me, i was surprised to learn this as well. </p>
<p>I get pretty sick and tired of people telling me "no, you're wrong" when I'm simply stating things that I have learned after 2 years working alongside admissions at Cornell. I have even gone as far as to share information I probably shouldn't have thinking it could help people out, yet there are people out there that must think I'm making this stuff up as the resistance is just incredible. It would be easy for me to just agree with nspeds, but I don't think it's fair for those seeking important information on these boards for me to just agree with whatever people say just to avoid conflict. I came to these boards a while ago seeking help about the transfer process, and now I am here to share it with others both as a student whose transfered and as somebody whose been involved in working with admissions at my school. I try to give out information as I learn it from the source, but I guess it's just a little easier to go with the "yeah, well, I had this friend once who..." type of responce anyways. I'll be more than happy to stop sharing what I've learned if people aren't willing to receive it.</p>
<p>"I do, in fact, and I have extensive contact with admissions committees at other top 25 schools. Your point?"</p>
<p>I'm not talking about chatting on the phone with or even applying (and being rejected from) these schools, I'm talking about working with them ... actual work as well. </p>
<p>"And I am sharing to you what was told to me from admissions officers from even more elite schools"</p>
<p>so do you think that what cornell would tell you and what they would tell me is exactly the same? </p>
<p>"I've know many, many applicants who successfully transferred from here to higher ranked schools"</p>
<p>"i didn't know 'many many' people transfered out of georgetown."</p>
<p>"Of course, it would only take a naive person to think that I only have friends at Georgetown, and that I only know students who transferred out of Georgetown."</p>
<p>but that's what you said. </p>
<p>"Columbia, Dartmouth, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Swarthmore, Amherst, and Caltech were among the schools that my friends were admitted"</p>
<p>who do you hang out with? why are you all so transfer happy? (note: CC 'friends' doesn't count)</p>
<p>it has come pretty clear to me that the information I like to share isn't welcome here anymore. I did think that I had some reasonable sources for where I learned things, but I guess it doesn't matter. I have much more important things on hand, and I guess I can save some more of my personal time by just skipping threads that asks for tips or information. I always though it was worth it, but I'm not always right. </p>
<p>Nspeds, you win, I'll leave your points alone. Celebrate your online public college discussion forum victory well, I'll probably just stick to my academic work and stop wasting my time on places like this with people like you.</p>
<p>Northwestern's admit rates for transfers have been erratic:
2002: 90 out of 551 (16%)
2003: 186 out of 631 (29%)
2004: 212 out of 630 (34%)
2005: 139 out of 801 (17%)</p>
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why are you all so transfer happy?
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<p>Lol - that almost made me laugh out loud for real.</p>
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I'm not talking about chatting on the phone with or even applying (and being rejected from) these schools, I'm talking about working with them ... actual work as well.
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<p>I wasn't, either.</p>
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but I guess it's just a little easier to go with the "yeah, well, I had this friend once who..." type of responce anyways.
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<p>Yes, but I didn't say that in this thread. Your statement is a good strawman, but nothing more.</p>
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so do you think that what cornell would tell you and what they would tell me is exactly the same?
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<p>Sorry, I never spoke to Cornell. I guess it just never fell under my definition of a "more elite school," flawed as it may be.</p>
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but that's what you said.
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<p>My mistake. That was an error. Needless to say, those friends all originated from top 25 institutions.</p>
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who do you hang out with? why are you all so transfer happy? (note: CC 'friends' doesn't count)
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<p>As they shouldn't count. Whom I hang out with is none of your business.</p>
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I did think that I had some reasonable sources for where I learned things, but I guess it doesn't matter.
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<p>That is hyperbole. Stop being dramatic and think for just one second (I know you are capable of that, if nothing more): of course its a valuable source. The problem occurs when you try to extrapolate from Cornell to other schools. Have you communicated extensively with other schools' admissions office and students who were admitted there as transfers? Your comments do not lead me to believe so. The best you can post about those schools is speculation; you even admitted it when you said that you were guessing Yale's admissions methodology.</p>
<p>Of course one must provide decent reasons for wanting to transfer. But I haven't seen an ounce of evidence that there is a higher standard of reasons expected from students originating from elite schools, and I haven't seen an ounce of evidence that they have any more trouble transferring to more elite schools than students not applying from an elite school. In fact, the state of affairs turns out to be quite the opposite!</p>
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Celebrate your online public college discussion forum victory well,
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<p>Unlike some people here, I don't argue to win or to ground my self-worth/self-esteem. I am encouraging the rendering of accurate statements. Your experience definitely is valuable, but it is not nearly as all-encompassing as you make it out to be, and I think demonstrating this is helpful to students considering applying from elite schools to, say, Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and so on.</p>
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I'll probably just stick to my academic work and stop wasting my time on places like this with people like you.
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<p>You probably won't, but I don't really care. I just hope, for your sake, that your "academic work" is of better quality than what you post here.</p>
<p>so nspeds, strong social reasons are equally as valid as academic reasons? because cornell has basically every major academically, and what I miss here is the 'intellectual' atmosphere of schools like harvard and yale, and the qualities of the people, like creativity, good writing skills- things that at cornell it seems it is hard to find in people. also, while harvard and yale have many, many paid internship programs and funding, cornell forces you to look alone and does not provide stipends for internship work. it also has very little in the way of established programs the way princeton has an internship program with the international rescue committee and yale has with any number of organizations. are these reasons strong enough, do you think?</p>
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well its based around the fraternities and sororities. When I first came here I didn't think it would make a difference to my social life, but 35% of this school is involved in frats and sororities, so on the weekends thats mostly what goes on, since there is free alcohol, etc. If you like drinking, beer pong, all the regular college stuff you'll like the social life here, but since I don't drink I've found it hard to adjust, whereas my friends who don't drink at other schools have things like house parties, things their residential colleges organize, lots of Master's Teas and other stuff like that which I would really enjoy.
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<p>Wow, I would've never expected that from Cornell. Thanks for the warning. ;-)</p>
<p>"The problem occurs when you try to extrapolate from Cornell to other schools. Have you communicated extensively with other schools' admissions office and students who were admitted there as transfers? Your comments do not lead me to believe so."</p>
<p>do you think I would be able to tell others on this public forum if I or any other person in admissions does? That's one of the gray areas that I cannot discuss either way. </p>
<p>"you even admitted it when you said that you were guessing Yale's admissions methodology."
yes, I havn't had contact with Yale in particular. </p>
<p>"But I haven't seen an ounce of evidence that there is a higher standard of reasons expected from students originating from elite schools"</p>
<p>but I have, and that's what I wanted so share on this forum. yes, it goes against what people would normally believe, but it's something that I thought was rather interesting and wanted to give a little "heads up" to the OP. </p>
<p>"Unlike some people here, I don't argue to win or to ground my self-worth/self-esteem."</p>
<p>as soon as I said something, you attacked me and tore apart my arguments line by line ... even things that have nothing to do with the topic, you simply wanted to make me look like an idiot with witty lines and a "know it all" attitude (more so than mine). I don't know why else you would do that, surely you're smart enough to know that there's a different way to respond than the way you did ... I can only think that you're here to improve your self esteem (they have medication for that, I believe). </p>
<p>to "tempest in a teacup":</p>
<p>"while harvard and yale have many, many paid internship programs and funding, cornell forces you to look alone and does not provide stipends for internship work"</p>
<p>this won't work as a reason. Cornell does have many paid internships (I just did one), and those that they won't pay for are typically given substantial academic credit (and the argument that you would rather have a school that offers paid internships over credit may not work). In the best cases, you'll get both, one of my friends recently got 15 credits and $1500 a week for a Morgan Stanley internship. </p>
<p>Also, it's clear that you havn't noticed this, but they have personalized career advisors both at the main campus career center and at most individual college career centers. They helped me out a ton last year with internships, I just need to get my lazy butt over there this year. </p>
<p>"it also has very little in the way of established programs the way princeton has an internship program with the international rescue committee and yale has with any number of organizations. are these reasons strong enough, do you think?"</p>
<p>have you done a CornellTRAX search? Have you done the alumni contact? These two things alone should open up thousands and thousands of doors for you, I'm really wondering how you havn't had much luck with these resources. Go into career services and ask them about it, they'll show you exactly what you need to find stuff. </p>
<p>"Wow, I would've never expected that from Cornell. Thanks for the warning. ;-)"</p>
<p>I wouldn't have expected somebody to say that ... I havn't been to a dirty frat party yet this year. There's a thread on the Cornell forum that discusses this a bit more, check there.</p>