Transferring after First Year

Transfer Students
1

<p>Hello! Wall of text incoming. Bear with me, I've got (at least I think it is) a really weird situation.</p>

<p>**HS GPA: **3.1? 3.2? I don't remember.
**SAT/ACT: **1910(1970 superscored)/28)
**College GPA: **3.3
**Current Major: **Film
**ECs: **art/photography/film portfolio, art programs, clubs, internships/jobs.</p>

<p>I am attending a four-year, private Division I university to appease my family's legacy of going to these types of schools, and holy hell, I've made a huge mistake. I've only completed 15 credits at my current university, and took a medical leave of absence spring semester (yep, apparently that bad). So, I am a standing freshman.</p>

<p>I applied to this current university as an art major with the intention of switching to information technology after a semester or two in. Thing is, the school I'm at has a solid program in this field, and most schools don't really have the program. I'm not sure if I should apply to Computer Science program, or do what I did again (Say I'm into art since I have a "strong portfolio", switch to CS while I am attending the school). </p>

<p>The main reason I'm transferring is...well, the "vibe." I just don't see eye-to-eye with the majority of the student body, and the way the classes are taught is really not ideal. I thought I could deal with it for four years... but, that prospect is just looking weaker by the second. It's a really lame reason, I know, but for the sake of my well-being, I really can't remain here. I don't know how to express this in my essay without sounding really jaded and angsty.</p>

<p>I've never applied, or visited, a liberal arts college aside from SUNY Purchase. I have had no experience with it, but found it to be more relevant to my interests after talking to a couple people who attended these sort of programs. </p>

<p>So here's the list of ideal (and reasonable reach) colleges I compiled:
**
Bard College
Sarah Lawrence College
SUNY Purchase College
Muhlenberg College
Bryn Mawr College
Emerson College
Hampshire College
Occidental College
**
My plan is to complete this next fall semester at my current university, and transfer in spring semester 2014, if not, fall 2014. My issue is -- I'll only have 30 credits completed by that point. I don't know what my chances are really, but I'm hoping to write kick-ass essays and hope that makes the admissions office swoon, since my GPA isn't at its best. I'm also unsure about whether I should just apply as a "freshman," or apply as a transfer.</p>

2

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<p>You don’t decide whether you apply as a fr or transfer, each college has their own policy stating how you should apply based on the number of post-HS college credits/classes you have taken. Transfer status can range from taking 1 post-HS college class to less than a year of full time study; someone with a year of full time college after HS graduation will be considered a transfer applicant at any school.</p>

<p>You need to go to each college website and see how you should apply.</p>

3

<p>If you are serious about applying to Muhlenberg you need to go and make an official visit. You need to interview and be honest in your interview. Muhlenberg is a remarkably accepting school made up of amazing students. It is small, it is accepting, it is caring. They want to get to know you before accepting you into the school. It isn’t cheap but you will get a great education and an even better experience for your tuition dollars. It is a very interesting mix of premed/prelaw type students and theater students who all work hard and achieve great things. I hope, if you are still interested after you visit, that it all works out for you!</p>

4

<p>Bryn Mawr is feasible. I got in regular admission with a high school GPA of 3.12 and an SAT score of 2040 and I know quite a few current students with similar high school backgrounds. Transfer admission is harder, so if you had a college GPA of 3.1 or 3.2 I would discourage you from applying, but since you have a B+ GPA for college and a reasonable list of extracurriculars, it could happen. I think that it’s a reach, but you could get in! Sarah Lawrence, Emerson, and Hampshire also sound like decent options – certainly not safeties, but not enormous reaches either.</p>

<p>Interestingly, I want to transfer (from Bryn Mawr, lol) for many of the same reasons you laid out. Though I do have a few other reasons, my main reasons for disliking Bryn Mawr are “not seeing eye-to-eye” with the campus majority, not appreciating the classroom atmosphere or the interests/academic inclinations of the student body, and not feeling hopeful about finishing my four-year stint there. I’m just really, really unhappy at Bryn Mawr and I attribute this primarily to the social atmosphere, the general values and habits of those on campus, and the way that classes and the administration are structured.</p>

<p>I know that I would be 1,000x happier at another institution, such as Vassar, Amherst, UCBerkeley, or McGill. Those four colleges in particular are super different from one another, but so much rides on the vibe and how well you FEEL at a college, since that’s a big determinant in your success there.</p>

<p>All of that said, I definitely understand the struggle to find ways to express all of this in a college application essay – you can’t just say you don’t like the “vibe” of your old college. I’m applying for Spring 2014 transfer admission, so I have a couple months to think about this, but so far I’ve been planning to talk mostly about what traits at the FUTURE college(s) would inspire me to do great work. They say not to say anything negative about your original college, so I was thinking of talking about how, for instance, Amherst’s respectful, driven, and intellectual student body; open curriculum; and close relationships with faculty would create an atmosphere where I could further “blossom” as a student and produce meaningful work that would be more representative of my fullest potential.</p>

<p>Next, my job is to make that sound a little less clich</p>