I had a really tough time at the beginning of high school and struggled with depression, issues at home, and drug abuse and my grades were put on the back burner. Recently, I sobered up and I have gotten straight A’s and I really enjoy school now. My chances of getting into an Ivy League school at the moment are nonexistent. What could I do to help me get into one as a transfer student?
Also this change only happened in my senior year.
Why do you want to go to an Ivy? There are literally thousands of schools in the US.
Most students are limited by finances as well as stats. How much can your family pay per year without borrowing? You need to find an affordable option to start before you think about transfer options.
My parents do have enough saved for me to go to a private institution.
What’s your current GPA?
Test scores (SAT, ACT)?
What have you achieved outside of school?
What’s your budget?
For now you should find a Princeton Review’s Best Colleges and find 10-12 colleges you’ve NOT heard of* but like based on what you read. List them below and explain what they have in common.
*Most people haven’t heard of most colleges.
I have a 3.3 GPA, but that’s because I wasn’t necessarily a stellar student before. My SAT score is a 1570. I do varsity debate, krav maga, I volunteer for political campaigns, and now I tutor daca recipients.
Transferring as an undergraduate student to an Ivy League university is very difficult to do.
Your best bet of every attending an Ivy League or equally highly ranked university is to continue to do well in high school, and attend a good college or university that is a good fit for you and a good fit for what you want to do with your life. Get stellar grades in university, and look for coop, internship, and/or research opportunities. Then consider applying to highly ranked universities for graduate school.
The master’s program students at the top ranked universities come from a very wide range of undergraduate schools. What they have in common is that they did very well as undergraduate students wherever they were. Some but not all of them also have a bit of work experience.
The other good thing about this plan is that if you do very well as an undergraduate student at a good university, this will put you on a good path for your life even if you do not ever end up going to graduate school.
“I sobered up and I have gotten straight A’s and I really enjoy school now”
This is huge. Congratulations! Also congratulations on your great SAT score.
I guess you could attend Fingerlake community college or TC3 then transfer to Cornell CALS.
But the plan of attending a 4- year college now, aiming for a top university don the line, sounds like a better idea.