<p>Dear CC,</p>
<p>This past year I've been attending Sarah Lawrence and knew by the end of the year that I wanted to transfer -- I want to study neuroscience and cognitive science (and SLC can't "really" offer those subjects consistently enough), the social environment is horribly constraining, and I feel I'm not surrounded by students who are as intellectually and academically engaged and ambitious as I am.</p>
<p>I was rejected ED to Vassar and didn't get into/didn't get off the regular admission waitlist for Swarthmore/Haverford/Tufts/Kenyon, a few other schools. In HS my GPA was only 3.3-3.4ish, and my SATs never got higher than high 600s/low 700s (didn't study for them enough). Now that I'm in college I take my academics much more seriously but are still stuck with a 3.48 (which, I've calculated, I can raise only up to an average 3.66 or so with all As this coming fall term, that shouldn't be too hard but its a competitive bummer). I can write a mean essay and get great recs, I'm involved in a wide variety of literary/science/LGBT clubs, I have some volunteer/charity work under my belt and did four years of varsity fencing in HS (and was in USFA for one year but had to drop out because I broke my clavicle). I could go on with other details and merits but the point is that my application is decent, could be better, there isn't much I can do about it now, though.</p>
<p>Of the schools I've researched over the past fews months, Tufts, Wesleyan, Carnegie Mellon and Cornell look the most appealing, although transferring to those schools doesn't look at all easy. Normally I would consider adding some safeties to that list, but Sarah Lawrence itself was a safety for me in HS before and I'd rather stay at SLC than end up at a college with the same or similar type of students and academics. One option I do have is to not transfer at all as a junior and spend my junior year abroad at Oxford (SLC has a program at Wadham), which would give me a more conventional and solid grounding in undergraduate neuroscience.</p>
<p>I guess my question is half "chance-me-at-X-schools" and half "what do you think the best option for me now is?" I'm kind of stuck in limbo -- I don't want to stay at SLC for three more years (well technically two, if you include going to Oxford), but the only schools I want to go to are basically all reaches and I don't want to kill myself retaking SATs if my chances of getting into a school are low. In any case this coming year I'll be at SLC, so I have a good few months to keep thinking this over.</p>
<p>Any suggestions or advice is greatly appreciated, and feel free to ask any questions.</p>
<p>Woah, I’m sorta in a similar situation as you. Except I’m at USC and I’m a business and sociology major. Didn’t get into any of my schools except safeties (though USC was a weird situation, low GPA for USC, but high test score and sister went here). Could study abroad (though I think I can only do a semester) or transfer, but I don’t want to go to a lower school.</p>
<p>I’ve hear that U Rochester has a great neuroscience program.
Oberlin too, bit I don’t know about chances.
The ones you’ve targeted, I dont know, seems a little tough to me, but I’m no admissions officer.</p>
<p>Neuroscience and Cognitive Science are primarily fields for graduate study. A solid undergraduate degree in Biology or Psychology can set you up for either of these. If you are more interested in Cognitive Science, you could even do an undergraduate degree in Computer Science.</p>
<p>Think about the specific areas of Neuroscience/Cognitive Science you are interested in. Find out where the research groups that are publishing work in those areas are located. Then frame your undergraduate plans based on the coursework that is pre-requisite for the graduate work you are interested in. You may find that you have to leave SLC in order to take the coursework you need. You may also find out that SLC is just fine.</p>
<p>Wishing you all the best.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies!</p>
<p>@akalboy
That sucks, I also have who got rejected from her first few choices and is only “reasonably” happy at USC now.</p>
<p>@monydad
Thanks, those are two colleges that I’ve only done a little bit of research into but I’ll certainly take a closer look at them.</p>
<p>@happymomof1
I could potentially take more psychology and biology courses than I already have (I actually do plan on taking an accelerated computer science seminar this year), but all the colleges I’ve listed so far offer Neuroscience directly as an undergraduate major and only Wesleyan and Tufts don’t offer Cognitive Science majors (Wesleyan has it as a minor in their psychology department and Tufts has Biopsychology). Some might view what I’m trying to do as specializing too early, but I really don’t want to have to sit through any more general biology and general psychology courses than I already have or plan to this coming year at SLC. If I don’t end up transferring I will probably do exactly as you have described (that is taking pre-reqs for grad school and finding institutions that are doing research I’m interested in), but I won’t be having the kind of undergraduate experience I want and will be stuck in a school with an isolating social environment and with students who don’t really take the sciences as seriously as I do.</p>
<p>you should definitely transfer if you want an undergraduate neuroscience experience. more and more schools are adding them (Bowdoin is a good recent example)…</p>
<p>Wesleyan actually has a surprisingly high transfer acceptance rate. I cant remember off the top of my head, but it’s higher than most of the selective LACs. they have a solid neuro program, with the option for a free, 5th year M.A. degree if you get involved in research. do you have anything to lose (besides some possible disappointment) by trying to transfer?</p>
<p>Nothing to lose, really! It might be a bit more expensive because I’m aware that transfers have difficulty getting merit-based aid, but SLC is currently the most expensive school to attend in the U.S. so it probably doesn’t make much difference. I know that Wesleyan had a transfer rate of 19.6% in 2008 so that’s not “too” bad but its not great, either. That 5th year M.A. sounds cool, I’ll definitely read more about that now.</p>
<p>Hey – I was wondering if you could explain your experience in the sciences at SLC… I am a senior in high school & seriously looking at SLC but am worried about the lack of many sciences classes offered etc… so when I saw your post I had to reply.</p>
<p>I’m actually interested in Evolutionary-Developmental Biology, and ultimately, Paleontology or Paleobiology (on a graduate level though, so a Bio focus on an undergraduate level). Was it hard to find good science classes and prof’s? Thank you. </p>
<p>X</p>
<p>it’s not a safety for anyone, really, but NYU has a good neural science program:</p>
<p>[NYU/CNS</a> : Undergraduate Program : Overview](<a href=“http://www.cns.nyu.edu/undergrad/]NYU/CNS”>Undergraduate Program)</p>