Hello!
I am a college freshman entering USC this fall. I am majoring in Computer Science and Computer Engineering.
I want to know how I can, if possible at all, manage to transfer to Stanford University in order to complete my degree.
Is there any specific thing I can do; or, what steps can I take in order to execute this dream. Any advice helps, thank you!! 
Hmm. If I were you, I’d get my degree at USC, and if you’re pursuing grad school, apply to Stanford’s grad school.
My reasoning behind this is due to Stanford’s exceedingly low transfer acceptance rate. Assuming you academically perform at USC, your chances are still slim.
I agree with @TransferStalker. Do as well as you possibly can at USC. Live as if you are going to stay at USC. If you want to, then apply as a transfer to Stanford but don’t expect anything to come from it. When the time comes, apply to Stanford for graduate school. USC is plenty strong enough to impress graduate school admissions anywhere if you can pull off straight A’s at USC.
Is there anything I can do to increase my chances of getting in as a transfer? I know that I will have to get good grades, but aside from that.
Agree with above posters. One of more of S’s engineering peers from USC got bachelor’s engineering degrees at USC and then went to Stanford, CalTech, UCBerkley and other great places for grad school.
Oh I see. Would you say that Stanford gets many of it’s graduate students from USC (as in they take many USC seniors)?
If that’s true, would that mean that if I applied as transfer, my chances of admission are higher?
“Would you say that Stanford gets many of it’s graduate students from USC”
The Master’s students at Stanford that I met had gotten their Bachelor’s degree from a very wide range of undergraduate schools. I don’t recall there being two from the same school for any school except for Rutgers (who were largely or entirely from a very good Bell Lab’s group – this was back when Bell Labs was a top applied research facility). However, USC is at least as strong as the average for the schools that had sent students to Stanford. The one thing that many Master’s level students at Stanford had in common in my experience was very good grades from undergrad (a lot of A’s).
@AriShmari Sorry to say, but if anything, your being at USC decreases your chance of transfer to Stanford.
By and large, the only students Stanford accepts for transfer admission come from A) a community college, or B) the United States military. And keeping in mind that of the ~2,000 applications for transfer Stanford receives each year they accept about 25-40, even a good chunk of those students get rejected.
I will never tell anyone to NOT apply somewhere they want to go. If you want to give it a go, by all means apply. Even with a 2.5 and 800, you won’t know for sure unless you do. I’m not on the Stanford AdCom, and wouldn’t I look stupid if I said “don’t bother applying”, you did, and got accepted?
But I will give you the advice of being realistic, and understanding the odds are tremendously low, even for the most qualified applicant.
You haven’t even started at USC. Make sure you give it a fair shot. Don’t go in with the idea that, “it’s not Stanford”, go in with the idea that “it’s MY college experience”. Have fun. SoCal is a hell of a place to be. And if it turns out you don’t like it after a year, or year and a half, then holistically look at transferring. But for now, relax, and enjoy your freshman year!
@AriShmari Keep in mind that what gets you to grad school are grades, not names. An applicant from a low-tier state school can (and will!) make themselves a compelling applicant for Stanford grad school.
I can sense that you’re trying to find some kind of edge against the stiff competition that you face as a transfer applicant / grad applicant. There’s no secret to “getting in.” Excellent grades, excellent extracurricular activities / experiences, and excellent character will get you anywhere and everywhere.
I wouldn’t worry too much about where you go your undergrad (especially if it’s USC!) since you’re considering grad school. If you care about prestige, that’s another story, but otherwise, I wouldn’t really concern myself with transferring.
As @DadTwoGirls stated, apply as a transfer to Stanford, but don’t expect anything to come of it.
Best of luck!
@AriShmari Whether you stay at USC or transfer you will need to develop your skills outside of the classroom if you want to be competitive. Participate in clubs, hackathons and internships. There are many networking opportunities at USC, which you will soon discover.
I should also mention that I know a student who did not like the illustrious ivy he initially attended. He transferred after one semester to USC where he was much happier (I think he initially turned down USC for the ivy). My point is that the reality of student life at Stanford may not be as rosy as it appears from the outside.
I’m going to be a little harsher than the other commenters because this just needs to be said.
USC is an incredible school with fantastic academics and social life. It’s reputation has grown significantly over the past couple decades. You have expressed ZERO reason for wanting to transfer to Stanford… leading much of us to believe that your one and only reason is that you think it is more prestigious.
Get the **** over it.
First, Stanford only accepts 2% of transfers. If you didn’t get accepted as a first-year, it is incredibly unlikely that you will get in as a transfer.
Second, you need to be able to articulate a good reason to transfer to Stanford. They accept only a few dozen. Generally, they are looking for outstanding candidates who have a very compelling reason. Most often, these reasons include (a) coming from a community college, (b) coming from military service, © recruited athlete, (d) transferring because current institution lacks a particular major (e.g. a liberal arts college student who wants to do engineering).
You clearly do not fit into any of those categories. Sure, I’m not going to rule out that maybe there are lateral transfers for no other reason who manage to get in… but don’t count on it.
Third, you haven’t even started your first year! Come on! This is ridiculous. Honestly, if you go into your first year with this attitude that you want/deserve to be at a “better” place, you are going to be miserable… and it will affect how you make friends, do in academics, etc. I went to Harvard. I had a roommate who was rejected by Stanford… he said it on the first day… he was insufferable… moping around… he didn’t make many friends his first year because no one wants to be around that negativity. Fortunately, he snapped out of it his second year and did very well and made many friends… but he basically ruined his first year, which he could never get back.
Throw yourself into USC… you are going to an absolutely fantastic, highly respected, academically strong university with amazing school spirit. Enjoy it.
Oh snap. Well said.