I am thinking of transferring to Bard, but because of their restrictive policy of which courses they will accept in transferring, I think I will essentially lose a year or slightly less of college.
No matter what, I am going to transfer, because I am at a community college now, but I am also debating between Bard or Chatham University which will accept all of my credits, and I would be less behind my peers there. I am aware I would be behind an average person my age for college anyways, because I am 21 and when I was 18 I took a gap year to work for a political campaign, which now I regret, honestly.
So basically, if I went to Bard, I’d be a sophomore, which means I’d probably be 24/25 when I graduate! Isn’t that old??
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I should mention, at Chatham, I would be a second semester sophomore but not a full junior because I took a light semester for medical reasons.
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Can you afford to pay for the extra year at Bard?
Don’t worry about your age. Your year on the political campaign gives you credible professional experience.
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I think it depends on what kind of experience you want outside the classroom. Bard really impressed me – it’s a real life of the mind place. It would be easy to become absorbed by your studies there. When we visited for accepted students, I thought my spouse was going to stay for the next 4 years. It appeals to mature intellectuals. With that said, you would be reliant on that community for social life. I suspect there are a lot of activities that could appeal, but you might have to work a bit to find your tribe because there is not going to be a huge group of students who are a bit older. If you are interested in getting involved with things there, that will help for sure.
Chatham would likely be less exciting in the classroom but would be a place where it would be possible to pursue a social life not related to school. In its own way, that’s hard, but possible. No guarantees unless you already have a friend group in the area.
I think if I were in your shoes, I would take the risk on Bard, realizing that it would not be the typical experience there. At either place, you will probably need to make the effort. Let us know what you decide.
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