This defines my kids at Alabama and College of Charleston - and neither are in Williams league.
This defines a lot of kids - and I think that’s kid issue and time management. This is not isolated to Williams. Sometimes it’s not always about the institution - and people do have to look int he mirror. But that’s a hard thing to do - even at 50, let alone 18. I’d suggest you put several irreplaceable blocks in your calendar. One for lunch, one for dinner. No screens. No books - and you clear your mind and nourish your body - because without nourishment (food), your study habits and knowledge retention will be worse. Many a kid suffers low blood sugar - which could also lead to anxiety etc. You can beat this - with some time management skills - setting up blocks of time to eat and get fresh air (walk) and don’t deviate from that!!!
You have a W; if you tell them why you have a W, you won’t get in to any tope private.
Perhaps college isn’t right for you now or perhaps the small school isn’t right for you.
If you want another small LAC, maybe a Trinity or Franklin & Marshall type (if they meet need for transfer)…but not sure why you’d want one.
Maybe a bigger school is better but I’m not sure how the $$ come out. For example, a Vanderbilt which meets need and is need blind for transfers…but again, with a W and if you mention depression, no one is likely to accept you. The reason is - you’d be a risk and a potential tax on resources they don’t have.
Southern Maine as it’s in Portland or U Maine (but is it urban enough?) might be better bets or community college which will likely be less rigid.
The issue is your EFC of course - and I feel for you. But if you go to community college and live home, that would be a cost save too.
I’m not sure why others think the OP needs to be in a city. She/he is from the area near Bates and states that they like this size. It is not isolated in the way that Williams, Dartmouth and Colby are. It’s in a small city.
OP, Bates is welcoming to locals and I believe it admits at least a couple of local kids each year. It has a non-competitive environment and it should not be hard for you to find a job, though you won’t be allowed to worked more than about 8-10 hours a week. It has been admitting more FGLI and URM people in the last several years. I suggest you call the FA office to ask about your situation.
I think Conn College, Tufts, Brown, and Bates sound like better fits for you than some of the others.
Would your in-state publics be affordable? Some of them may have course work for teacher preparation to supplement a major in the subject you want to teach (e.g. English), since some public universities historically were focused on educating teachers.
I don’t understand this comment at all. The student says he has medical and other issues that necessitated a withdrawal from ONE course. I do not think that is a coffin nailer in and of itself. But the schools presented are very competitive for admissions for transfers in most cases.
And the student will need to clearly articulate an ACADEMIC reason for wanting to transfer. Small town, etc…not academic reasons. @Mwfan1921
My mental health issues are not the primary cause of my withdrawal from a course; my physical health issues prevailed over that, which is what I intend to share with colleges if I must explain my withdrawal. I do not have to divulge my mental health struggles to the college as it is not on record as my reason for withdrawal with Williams. Again, I will be taking a course that is an intensive during j-term, aka one that does the full work of a semester within a month to supplement the course I have withdrawn from that will be given a 0-100 grade and factored into my GPA.
Suburbs and smaller cities are preferred over large cities.
I am trying to stay within the scope of New England due to my chronic health issues.
Again, my academic reasons for transfer pertain to the fact that I would like to attend a college in which an education major is available to me, with community engagement opportunities (for example, at my middle school I had Bates students as TAs who’d teach my courses on occasion); this is in conjunction with studying English (through a stronger English program than Williams’s) or earth and climate science/geosciences.
You need to check each of these colleges. If your primary goal is to become a certified teacher in some state, you will find that most of these colleges do NOT provide teacher certification programs, and some that do specifically require a fifth year of study.
If you want to teach in Maine with Maine educators certification, your best bet is to attend a college on Maine with a teacher certification program.
I am shocked that you have a W on your record when you withdrew from a class due to medical reasons. At Williams no less. I have a kid with medical conditions who went to a top Ivy, and got withdrawn with no W. I would seriously consider requesting that this W be taken off your record. Was a doctor or other professional involved in your withdrawal?
I understand that isolation in Williamstown could be a factor in your unhappiness, and also the divide between private boarding school kids and public school kids is something we have experienced. Do you think you have had time to “find your people.” Have you spoken with anyone about this? Socioeconomic diversity is big on these campuses but supposedly, so is attention to the consequences.
I would make darn sure you are going to get the financial support you need before applying anywhere and, if you can, get that W taken off.
because OP- defined what the issues were - and there’s a difference between stress/anxiety/mental health and say - having cancer.
Yes, kids withdrawal - both mine did. But they are not trying to transfer to an elite LAC - and I was simply noting as many do on the CC, you want to sell yourself and not bring up stumbling blocks.
And I do think that a lot of issues people have are self induced. I see it with my kid. But that’s what growing is about - managing your schedule, your diet, prioritizing. Even as an adult, these are things you have to work on everyday. It’s easy to say it’s the system - but it might be the system at Bates or Brown too.
I had a colleague once that said TS - why is it you and I always have the jobs where we are here til 8P and everyone else leaves at 5.
And I said to the person - sometimes it’s not the job…it’s the person.
And I hope OP can prioritize their diet, some free time even if it’s just 20 minutes to get fresh air, etc.
Otherwise, the same thing happening at Williams can happen again - whether it’s U Maine or Brown.
Vanderbilt might be a really good option given their excellent school for education. Further, the medical center is literally on the same campus as the university. The culture is known to be less cutthroat than schools that are comparable academically.
I looked up a bunch of those schools. Many provide theoretical education programs, or minors. Colby, Bates, Bowdoin, Haverford, BC and Skidmore provide a path to certification. The others don’t….so far as I can tell.
But very best to check yourself @sharpiesharpener . If your academic goal is a path to teacher certification as an undergrad, please check to be sure the schools actually provide that. I could be wrong about some of these…
Respectfully…if you read my initial post, I did have cancer…and my mental and physical ailments that I deal with today are directly correlated to my childhood cancer.
Thank you for this info.! I probably misspoke in one of my posts, but education majors and minors without certification are also fine. Williams has neither, so that’s where the issue is!
I saw these words in message 13 - complications with depression and anxiety.
I apologize for that and that is certainly fair to bring up that you’ve overcome, etc.
I think others are spot on - if you’re going for education, go to a school where you can get a teaching degree.
And I do think that - and it’s not just 18 year olds but you might not realize it yet - that many people aren’t “strong” in time management, handling stress, etc - and that includes myself - and this is something you have to work toward - hence I said make sure you put in blocks for meals where you take them, and 15 minute walks - because nothing is better to clear your mind.
Nourish yourself food wise - because if you don’t, it’s a hard hill to climb.
After seeing the link to Williams Education Portal, I’m really confused. This sounds similar to the programs offered at other schools the OP is considering.
@sharpiesharpener What is your ultimate career goal? Do you want to be a teacher? Do you have a preference for elem, middle or high school? Do you know where you want to live and have you researched the certification requirements for that state?