<p>So yeah, I took the IB and pretty much bombed it (predicted 41, got 36). As a result I missed my firm UK college (Imperial) and instead got UCL. Now I heard that transferring to Imperial is out of the question since they don't allow any, so I can only look to cross the Atlantic. What should I do? </p>
<p>I haven't started college BTW. Yeah I know its pretty stupid looking to transfer even though you haven't even started, but I come from an Asian family and the parents are quite ****ed at my poor performance :(. So I'll be in the UK without any gaming instruments which will probably get me to work harder...hopefully</p>
<p>Basic stats:</p>
<p>College GPA: n/a.
College recommendations: n/a. But my HS recommendations were pretty awesome.
Essays: I have my extended essay which was nominated for the Concord Review, also my Common App/university of california essays which many people said were pretty solid.
High school record: Straight A's, top 10% but a small class (only about 100 people). 36 points IB which was pretty fail.
Test scores (SAT/ACT): SAT I: 2010 | Math II: 720, Physics 760
ECs/outside work experience: Internship at IBM, UK math competition top 10%, habitat for humanity, Duke of Edinburgh, ROTC, some other stuff.
Dean Statement of Good Standing (Dean Rec): n/a
Mid-term grade report: n/a
Subject: Computer Science, though more preferably Electric and Computer Engineering.
Unis of interest: Carnegie, U-Penn, Cornell, Berkeley (lol), Stanford (lol).</p>
<p>What should I do? Do you guys suggest that I retake exams and if so, which?</p>
<p>To my understanding, the deadline for transferring closes at March right? </p>
<p>Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Transferring to the elite schools is even more difficult than applying as a freshman, so you might want to consider taking a gap year. (Stanford rejects 98% of transfer applicants versus “only” 91% of freshmen applicants).</p>
<p>As an international student, your chances at schools besides MIT, Yale, Williams,
Middlebury, Dartmouth, and Amherst will improve if you don’t apply for financial aid. (The schools I listed are need blind for international freshmen students, so it may not be valid for international transfer students. More info can be found here: [Schools</a> Awarding International Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.internationalstudent.com/schools_awarding_aid/]Schools”>http://www.internationalstudent.com/schools_awarding_aid/)). </p>
<p>Retaking the SAT I/II might help you if you do better. The College Board website has the midrange SAT values for each college (and the acceptance rate for transfers). Colleges will only see your first semester grades, and maybe midterm second semester grades so you need to hit the ground running. Schools will also expect you to have letters of recommendation from college professors. If you use the common app, you will have to answer an entirely different question for the main essay. (Why transfer?) Generally, schools in the US consider “fuzzier” components of your application such as extracurriculars, geographical location, interviews, essays, etc.</p>
<p>Each school will have its own deadline. Many will have a date in March, but I’ve seen deadlines anywhere from February to July.</p>
<p>You might want to consider retaking the SAT I. If you’re applying to Cornell for ECE, you should know that a 2010 places you deep in the bottom 25%. The 760 Physics is pretty solid though.</p>
<p>Berkeley doesn’t look at SAT scores for transfer students. They also pick California residents over out-of-state, so it will be very difficult to transfer from another country. </p>
<p>You could come to California and enroll in community college for one or two years, since cc kids get priority admission for all the UC schools. Stanford also prefers community college transfers over others, but admission to S is less than 5%.</p>
<p>There are a lot of international students attending Santa Monica city college, and transfer rate to UCLA from Santa Monica is nearly 50%. </p>
<p>Just curious, why did you write “(lol)” next to Berkeley and S?</p>
<p>Isn’t UCL one of the top 10 colleges in the world?</p>
<p>Why transfer here when you got into UCL? It’s a fantastic university…</p>