I’m currently a freshman at Haverford College and while I like it a lot, it’s super expensive. I can afford it with no debt/loans, but I could graduate with a lot more money in the bank for grad school if I transferred to my state school, UConn. The semester ends this Friday so I don’t have my final grades yet, but the absolute lowest GPA I could get would be a 3.0 and the highest would be about a 3.6. My guess is that I will end the semester with about a 3.3 (though it could also easily end up as a 3.6, a 3.1, a 3.2, a 3.4, etc.); it just depends on how my finals turn out.
My high school stats that I applied with were a 31 composite single-sitting on the ACT and a ~3.75-3.8 GPA. I took 4 APs and got two 5s, a 4, and a 3 on the exams. I also had great extracurriculars. UConn was one of my top choices back in high school, but I ended up last minute deciding to apply ED to Haverford (not at all expecting to get in).
With this information, I ask two questions: First of all, would I be competitive as a transfer to UConn? If so, would I have a shot at getting into the honors college or getting merit aid? Second of all, does it make sense for me to even apply to UConn in the first place given that it is not as good as Haverford academically (UConn’s average ACT score is 27 and Haverford’s is 32, so a pretty big difference in terms of the students’ academic abilities). I want to get a good education and be challenged academically, but I also wouldn’t mind having money in the bank for grad school if I decide I want to go that route. Another consideration is that I really like Haverford and I’ve met some great people, so I also don’t know if it’s worth considering throwing that away on a whim.
Please let me know what you think!