<p>I'm looking to transfer from my current school (Cornell) to pretty much anywhere else, but my target is Brown. However, my reasons for transfering are not entirely academic. While I would appreciate the smaller class sizes and academic freedom offered at Brown, my main reason for transferring is to get back to my old network of support. My hometown (and friends and family) is 20 minutes from Brown. I really need them because aside from being homesick, I also have bipolar disorder, ocd, depression, and social anxiety, which makes it difficult for me to socialize and meet new people. Example: I only made one actual friend at Cornell, then he got suspended for poor grades half way through the year and I didn't meet any one else and was basically a complete loner for the entire second semester. Even if I don't socialize any better at Brown, I'll have my old acquaintances to help me get by (I started breaking down by the end of second semester, contemplating suicide, etc.). Would this be a compelling enough reason? My GPA is okay (3.5) and with a retake, my SATs can probably go over 2200, and I'm involved in a few meaningful extracurriculars. Do I stand a chance? Sorry for rambling, it's just that there's a lot on my mind right now and I need things cleared up a little.</p>
<p>It sounds like you indeed have compelling reasons for wanting to be closer to home; now is there another school besides Brown reasonably close to home?</p>
<p>Because your compelling reasons for leaving Cornell aren't necessarily going to make you a shoo-in to Brown.</p>
<p>Good luck! :)</p>
<p>Coincidentally, I was just coming back here to clarify why Brown: it offers a similar quality education to Cornell. They're both ivies and while there's a number of other colleges within the same distance (UMass Dartmouth, Providence College), my argument hinges on the point that Brown is the only comparable school that is close to my family; I don't want to trade down, in other words.</p>
<p>If you are definitely set on transferring, then apply to Brown, but apply to the other colleges as well just in case.</p>
<p>Your reasons are legitimate, but be sure to convey why Brown suits you aside from its proximity to home (e.g.: academically, socially, etc.). </p>
<p>As for your chances, I doubt very much if a 3.5 (even from Cornell) will help your case for Brown, whose admissions figures are dismal. Also, it is a grand assumption indeed to place your SATs above 2200 given that you will be studying for them on top of your academic work.</p>
<p>Yeah, Brown certainly won't be easy to transfer into from anywhere (less than 10% admitted).</p>
<p>Though, I could hardly think of a more compelling personal reason to transfer.</p>
<p>I thoroughly understand your reasons for wanting to transfer. But I think, depending on how they are presented, they could raise a red flag about mental health challenges that might harm your chances.</p>
<p>So, you will need to be careful about how you frame this. I could be wrong about this; but it would be a concern I would have.</p>
<p>Yes, be careful with your wording when explaining your reasons for transferring. Also the fact you haven't done much other than academically at Cornell could hurt, as one it will make it sound like you didn;t get involved and give it a chance, and two by coming to Brown will you socialize there and add something to the school soical life. Schools tend to like to admitted a range of different students to make a diverse student body with students bringing something to the student body. So if they tihnk you're going to go into a shell, they won;t like you.</p>
<p>Well, to be honest I kind of got lost in Cornell, I mean its so huge that I didn't really see the same people anywhere else except for classes and groups. I think Brown would make a more intimate setting where I would see the same people more often and have a chance to talk, get to know them on a personal level. I'll try to get out more this year and see if that works.</p>
<p>As for the mental health concerns, my psychiatrist wrote a note to Cornell saying that it would be a good idea if I had a single room (to make sure I got one). Also, I wasn't really planning on mentioning them, I just thought it put my whole situation in context.</p>
<p>And I have done some ecs at Cornell. I'm (ironically) training to be a student councillor, I should be certified by the end of the fall semester this year. I've also done debate, sierra club, and I'll be a chairperson on a student governing body in the fall (can't get much into it here, but its a part of the campus bureaucracy). Its not much, but I'm dedicated to each of them and I can say something intelligent about what they mean to me.</p>
<p>I had no idea it was so hard to transfer into Brown! People told me it was just the opposite, because kids go abroad and they need to fill the empty seats. Whatever, all I can do is just make a decent effort and hope for the best.</p>
<p>I emailed Brown and they told me Brown does NOT accept SAT results taken when you're already in college. You might double check with the adcoms to see retaking can help your chance.</p>