(A hopefully succinct) story:
–I’m looking to transfer from my state flagship to one of the aforementioned universities based on the strength of their programs in political science and international relations. Connections to certain high-profile internships are also on my mind with regards to transferring–I would hope for such connections to manifest in me being able to work with the U.S. State Department in the near future.
–After all, It’s my dream to see the U.S. become smarter and more astute with foreign policy so that we can reap the benefits that mutual cooperation, foreign aid, and a lack of militarism can bring.
–Soapbox moment aside, I’m very passionate what I study, my only worry is that a rough two semesters (with 2 C grades and a W in the subsequent one) and spotty EC history might make applying not worthwhile. I’ve struggled with depression and toxic personal elements throughout college so far–luckily I’m in a better place now.
Stats:
(if this matters): HS GPA: 3.7 (no idea if it’s weighted or not) - took 2 APs and some honors classes
SAT: 1990 (1400 after conversion)
College: (History/Poli Sci double major, International Relations minor)
- 3.8/4.0 GPA, 66 credits
- EC’s:
-volunteered at an NYC non-profit, various clubs, served as a research assistant for a history professor, interned at a local law firm (only for 2 months, mind)
–Is it worth it for me to apply to transfer?
These are three of the most expensive universities in the country; can you afford to pay full tuition ?
What is your state flagship university ?
Tuition should relatively ok for me.
Apologies, but I’d prefer if you PM me about my current uni, for my sake.
Hey! I just recently transferred from a CC in NYC to Georgetown University (which if you want to work in the state department I would highly recommend goes on your list b/c of our extremely strong ties to it and our Foreign service school being the template that state department used for its creation)
In terms of your W and GPA, I had three W’s in my transcript at the time of applying and a B with a few A- and i don’t think it hurt my chances at all. My gpa was also a 3.88. If you are worried about the C’s I would suggest including a brief explanation in your essays or a separate letter with information as to why.
Your EC’s depend, I was very involved on campus but I was involved in ways that reflected my career interest. Some ppl were less involved but had jobs, family to take care of, etc. So it depends on how u spin it honestly.
Your college GPA of 3.8 / 4.0 is strong with 66 credits completed. I think that you should be accepted to GWU & have above average liklihood of being accepted to at least one of your remaining two target schools.
Your reasons for wanting to transfer to each school will be important to the admissions officers.
Whether or not it is worthwhile for you to transfer is a separate issue.
Both cost of attendance (COA) & curriculum should be evaluated in light of your career goals.
Currently your annual COA should be about $30,000 including room & board. Your targeted schools all run about $70,000 per year. Consider remaining at your current university for the next two years & use the tuition savings to pay for a masters degree in international relations at Tufts or at Johns Hopkins University.
St. Andrews in Scotland is also quite strong in IR.
@polyscidreamer First off, big congratuations on Georgetown! your recommendation is duly noted and I’m honestly surprised it didn’t come into my mind before!
I might well mention the difficulties from that semester with regards to the Cs–I’ll have to mull over how I want to best word them, just as I’ll do with my current (and upcoming) EC experiences.
@cptofthehouse during fall 2018, what a ride that was
That’s definitely reassuring to hear, I’m glad to know I’ve got decent chances of getting into one or two of the schools mentioned previously.
And yes, I’ll definitely keep the idea of a master’s from a school with a strong IR program in mind!