Unsure of what to do?

<p>So I was accepted as a transfer and am having a very hard time deciding if I should go or not. I'm at my state school getting a 3.9+ gpa with the prospect of going to med school. If I transfer, we will receive zero finaid. Originally I didn't want to go because of this, but now my parents are saying that they want me to transfer because they know I'll be happier. This means that they will have to take out the difference in loans, around 80-90k. I'm not sure what to do. On one side, I'll feel terribly guilty making my parents pay that money and am worried about the grade deflation but on the other hand, this is my only chance to have an incredible undergrad experience in a liberal arts college. The decision is killing me.</p>

<p>Very tough decision that only you and your parents can make. $80-90.000 in loans is huge, especially when you add on the costs of med school. Much as I favor Carleton, I think you can have an incredible undergrad experience anywhere, if you keep your eyes open for opportunities. Sit down with your parents and really discuss this. Good luck!</p>

<p>Carleton is a great place to be, but no college in the country is $90K in loans great. That is an absurd debt for anyone to bear for an undergraduate education. My financial aid situation worked out well for me at Carleton, but I definitely would not have come here if it meant my family taking out that much in loans.</p>

<p>I agree with fireflyscout and dietcokewithlime.</p>

<p>crixx, that's a huge amount of debt for your folks. One thing, however, that we don't know (and that may be factoring into your parents' willingness to take on this debt) is just how unhappy you are at your present school. Only you and your parents know that. </p>

<p>Have you talked to fin aid at Carleton? IMHO, it's worth talking to them about your situation.</p>

<p>Good luck, whatever you decide!</p>

<p>Boy, I feel like an idiot. I borrowed $85,000 to send son one to Harvard and am committing ~$70,000 for son three to Carleton. </p>

<p>However, I agree that transferring isn't the best idea unless you are really unhappy. Freshman year friend are typically the most sustaining.
It may be difficult for Carleton to match your expectations. Right now you know what you have and you have the opportunity to make it better. Large Universities have a tendency to "shrink" (smaller classes and research opportunities) considerably in the upper class years, especially for the best students. I went to a Big Ten U as did my brother and son two. We all knew faculty on first name basis and even socialized with them. </p>

<p>Try to be as clear as possible as to what you will gain out of the move</p>

<p>Whether or not to "borrow" for college is a matter of perspective. My view is that any family that does not get a "full-ride" is borrowing for college. Either one borrows from a third-party lender, or one "borrows" from savings. Some borrow from third parties because they (perhaps wisely) have sunk all of their savings into assets (usually their home equity). Some borrow from savings because they have elected to invest in liquid assets rather than home equity. In either event, the result is the same: the parent(s) financing the education are simply postponing retirement. As a parent, I believe this is a sacrifice worth making, and I'm willing to work those extra years in order to provide my children with the best possible springboard for entering adulthood.</p>

<p>pbr--I must agree with you, because that's what my husband and I seem to be doing! Two girls in college, minimal need-based aid, the equivalent of half of our annual income going toward school tuition/expenses. We're struggling and we'll owe, but we're happy to do it.</p>

<p>Alright, so there have been new developments. I was in a boating accident last summer and we're getting a large settlement and now expenses are not much of an issue. The one last apprehension I have for transferring is med school acceptance. I want to go into research, so are the professors willing to take the students on in their labs? Also, is there a hospital near campus that I could volunteer/work at during the school year? I'm nervous about the grade deflation as well having already maintained a high GPA at my current school. This opportunity just seems too great to pass up.</p>

<p>crixx, I'm really glad that your monetary worries have been alleviated. As for your other questions, I had pasted the links to several other threads on this list that had answers, but then I accidently went searching again from this post and lost them. :( </p>

<p>However, if you'll search "med school," "medical school," "lab, research, professors," you'll find threads to allay your concerns!</p>

<p>Your concerns raised some interesting questions. So, I went to the Carleton web site and looked up their Mission Statement Carleton</a> College: About Carleton: Our Mission</p>

<p>As I suspected, Carleton does not seek preferential admission to medical school or promote high GPAs. I recommend that you read it carefully. My advice is to stay put and graduate ASAP. Focus on getting a 32+ on the MCAT, and then apply to 15+ medical schools.</p>

<p>Save you money for medical school. If you don't go to an instate school, it will be very expensive.</p>

<p>sparkysdad - that was interesting reading the mission statement. Your post leaves me curious though - are there schools out there who state in their mission statements that they "seek preferential admission to medical school or promote high GPAs"? Not that med school is even a desire in our household, but I'm just curious about what schools would have a mission statement like that.</p>

<p>Mission statements are lofty, visionary aspirations for the entire institution. You're not going to find major-specific goals/tactics in a mission statement.</p>

<p>The College should be able to provide statistics/info on med school admittance by Carleton graduates. They track all kinds of academic outcome info. The % of Carleton alumni who go on to graduate school is pretty staggering.</p>

<p>From a thread here on med school admission posted by Shadowofanengima on 3/29/07:</p>

<p>"I just checked the admissions website for the statistics, and this is what it said: '70% of Carleton alumni who apply to medical school and maintained a grade point average of 3.0 or higher while at Carleton are accepted; the national acceptance rate is 40%.' "</p>

<p>Just to be thorough, I found the web page where the stat above can be found:</p>

<p>Carleton</a> College: Admissions: Life After Carleton</p>

<p>The above statement is correct--as it's stated on the web page. In addition to that one, here are some fun facts you can use at your next cocktail party:</p>

<p>• Carleton ranks first in the number of students receiving National Science Foundation Fellowships among primarily undergraduate institutions from 1996 through 1999.
• 70% of students go on to advanced study within five years of graduating.
• 70% of Carleton alumni who apply to medical school and maintained a grade point average of 3.0 or higher while at Carleton are accepted; the national acceptance rate is 40%.
• 10% of the 1997 entering cohort at the University of Minnesota Medical School was comprised of Carleton alumni.
• 100% of recent pre-law Carleton students have been accepted to law school.</p>

<p>Sorry,I tend to be too cryptic. My point was that Carleton, as a Libral Arts College is not a vocational oriented institution -- a vocation tends to naturally follow from a quality education. It does have a clear and specific mission, however. It is not suited for everyone. Students attending Carleton or any other quality Libral Arts College should understand what they are getting for their $50,000/year. The issues that concern Crixx make me question his fit with Carleton. How can someone whose greatest concern is grades be happy where there is a likely chance that he will not do as well as he is accustomed? I am sacrificing to send my S to one of the finest colleges in the country to get a first class education, both in and out of the classroom. He is excited to go, because he perceives that the students there will be as excited to learn and be engaged in the process as he is. There are significant trade offs when compared to a major university. For one thing, University course offerings and even the breath of research opportunities in the sciences are greater in number. </p>

<p>Unlike many European or Asian countries, the U.S. is a meritocracy. With few exceptions, no ones future is dependent on where they go to college. No one is going to get in or be denied admission to medical school simply because they went to Carleton. A premed going to State U main campus or even a lower tier branch campus can get into Medical school. He will probably need a higher GPA, but there is no doubt that that student will have a higher GPA than if he attended a very selective college. Neither does her "success" depend on what Medical school she attends. If she is motivated, driven, creative, etc., she will land great internship and residency opportunities. I suggest that the position you attain in life is primarily up to you. Check out the resumes of the Carleton faculty or the President of Dartmouth College a proud graduate of Wisconsin State University-Platteville.</p>

<p>Someone choosing a college hoping to get recognition or validation of their worth is going to end up both disappointed and unhappy.</p>