While certain aspects of the school that I was accepted to really excite me (i.e. more interesting & progressive education, smaller classes, learning for the sake of learning environment, etc.), I am worried that I will transfer and regret it. Though the schools are completely polarized, I cannot determine which school is the better social & academic fit for me. (They are comparable enough in terms of rank & cost).
One of my options would be to return to my current school in the fall and decide to transfer in spring, if I still want to. But I do not feel as though this is the best approach because I would probably become even more reluctant to take such a risk. My gut tells me that my acceptance happened for a reason and I have to risk it to get the biscuit it… but I just don’t know.
–> Why I want to transfer: new social opportunities, smaller school, ability to be challenged by peers and classes (I find my current school to lack academic challenge), and more “fun” education.
–> Why I am reluctant to transfer: social opportunities may not be better, might feel too different from student body, would upset friends/loved ones by leaving, and I am not sure which school offers better education given my interests.
If I were a freshman re-doing the process, I would pick the transfer option. But given that I have already (successfully?) acclimated to my current school, transferring seems egregious. My current school is pre-professional, while the transfer option is very liberal arts. While I know what profession I want to pursue, I am not sure which education would be more valuable.
Thank you parents for all the help/counseling/therapy (especially if you read all the way to here ).
P.S. If your kind heart desires to help guide my lost self, I welcome any/all messages. Thank you!! 
Would your major stay the same in either case? How does the strength of the major compare at the schools? At the new school, would your previously taken course work fulfill the prerequisites, or would you have to take many “catch up” courses, possibly delaying graduation?
Does cost differ significantly?
Most parents here would ask for more information.
- if your school is not academically challenging or too big now, are you in the honors program?
- what is it you don’t like about the current social scene? At a larger U there would be more options than at a small LACs when it comes to different social interests.
- if you don’t mind, it would be easier if you could share the name of the school you are at now and where you would like to transfer to.
It’s kind of too vague, yes. It seems you think that the transfer choice is a step up academically and getting you out of your comfort zone to new experiences in a good way. You did apply after all you must have been interested in the environment.
egrigious is a strong word. Why would friends and family be unsupportive of a good opportunity for you? Do they not believe in you or do they know you don’t handle change well or something?
I’d say it depends on whether doing well at a school that “lacks academic challenge” is better for you than possibly struggling or getting worse grades than you might want.
FA could be an issue - transfer students usually don’t have access to the same FA that freshmen get and usually retain for four years.
What are you studying? It sounds like you’re thinking of transferring from a large research university to a small liberal arts college. What is the impact on how you would pursue your chosen profession (pre-med? pre-law?) Do you have to change majors?
I also don’t understand the use of “egregious” to describe transferring to another school. This is a time to focus on you and your needs, not how others may feel in reaction to your decision. Are people saying you’re making a mistake because they will miss you or are they saying transferring is not going to solve whatever issuea you have in your college experience? If the former, focus on yourself; if the latter, listen to what they may say and see if that resonates.
I am going to refrain from naming the schools just for privacy reasons, though I would be happy to in private message. (I apologize for vagueness; I am sorry this makes it difficult).
The two schools essentially cost the same and I would not have any problem with catch up courses for my major.
For sake of clarity, my transfer option is not a LAC, but rather an ivy, where I would pursue my major from more of a liberal arts angle rather than the practical/pre-professional/technical curriculum that my current school offers. Both schools are essentially equal in terms of job placement for my field.
I know egregious is a strong word, but it is the exact word that describes how others will view my decision (for many reasons that would take paragraphs to explain and the source of a lot of my reluctance), but at the end of the day, they would all understand that it is about me and not them.
In short: I would enjoy the academic culture a lot more at the transfer option, but I don’t feel outrageously unhappy or brave (not sure which more so) enough to transfer.
I feel completely overwhelmed by the fact that whatever decision I make will completely change the entire course of my life… Transferring could be the best decision I ever make, or the worst… 
If I stay, I’ll always wonder what could’ve been, but if I go, I fear that I will constantly compare the two and regret leaving… boy this is tough.
What do you all think about returning for 1 semester then deciding? Thanks a ton for all the help! 
Will this be your second year?
I would go in the fall. Midyear seems too disruptive.
Other threads from the OP seem to indicate that he/she is planning to transfer to Brown.
To the OP…presumably you had good reasons for choosing this school for transfer purposes. What were they? Do they still apply? What makes you think you will be happier at school 2 than at school one.
Agree…go on the fall term if you go at all. In the fall, you won’t be the only new student. There are less new students in the spring terms. In addition, and full year sequences can be started at your new school.
If you are going to transfer, the sooner the better. There will always be an adjustment period so the more time you have at the new school the better for forming relationships. Also some course sequences are meant for a continuous year, or even at the Ivy sometimes the first part of a sequence is only offered in the fall and it will put you back. Also those schools foster close relations with faculty and research opportunities and it will help to get relationships established. Also if you be needing recommendation letters for grad school.
I would tell my kid to go especially if in a do over she would pick it. But I know how she is and she has a great deal of confidence. I’m not sure it is the right move for you simply based on your own reluctance and use of the word reluctance twice. If you were happy and eager and just getting opinions it would be clear.
Are you depressed or something? Your post is so passive and almost spineless. Then all of a sudden there is a dramatic declaration. And all this talk of constantly comparing and looking back–now is the time to fix that problem if that’s how you live because it doesn’t serve you well. And life is fairly random, you take advantage of opportunities presented that seem good at the time and it leads to interesting things or you move on. This one decision doesn’t change your life because the next choice will change it to something different. This will only temporarily change your life. If you stay the same place, you will make some other decision that will change your life. I’m about to read Life after Life so maybe that book is on my mind hehe.
Oh and are you business or something? You don’t need a business degree to work in business, especially if you went to a Ivy.
Regarding pursuing your major from a liberal arts angle vs technical. I actually made that switch my frshman year at Carnegie Mellon. I started off in computer engineering but switched to Logic and Computation, which was an interdisciplinary major offered out of the philosophy dept. There was no pure BS CS degree offered at the time, and L&C was the closest alternative way to get there.
I remember the CE dean looking at me in disbelief and asking several times if was sure I wanted to transfer to the philosophy dept. I was pretty naive at time and didn’t realize how incredibly competitive it was to get into CE (something like 50 freshman admits back then IIRC). Not that it would’ve made a difference, though. And my roommates had a good time poking fun at me after the switch too (one CE and two Math majors, all great guys).
Anyway, I was very happy with my decision and looking back on it, the transfer did not affect my job prospects in any way whatsoever. I was still heavily recruited and got a great starting job. I loved the interdisciplinary approach and as an adult feel like it really enriched me and made me a more well-rounded individual. I was able to take many classes in psychology, linguistics, and philosophy which were fascinating and fun, and still topical and relevant to my everyday life. Most importantly I was able to take all the heavy upper-level CS courses which was really what I wanted to do.
Liberal arts is perhaps mocked by some people for not offering the same job opportunities as STEM degrees. But if you can combine the two, I think it really gives you the best of both worlds.
There’s no right answer here, OP. My only advice is that if you are going to transfer, sooner is better. You need to start making new friends and developing relationships with the faculty at the new school so you are well-positioned to take advantage of whatever opportunities are available at the new school and after. Dragging on the debate for another semester keeps you from committing to your current school and to the next one - with an opportunity cost that is hard to measure but real nevertheless.
My own bias would be if the transfer school is the one you would have gone to in the first place, and you aren’t sold on your current school, then make the transfer. Friends at the current school will be sad to lose you - and its hard not to feel that your transfer is a negative statement about their decision to remain, so don’t be surprised if the communication dries up - but at this stage in your life, relationships are very fluid anyway and everyone is changing and trying new relationships on for size and fit. Since you were able to figure out how to function in your current environment, I’m sure the same will be true in the new one - you have already proven yourself adaptable.
This has to be your decision. Neither option will be perfect. You might regret the road not taken, either way, but it sounds as if you were sufficiently dissatisfied to apply for transfer admission. It sounds as if you are more attracted to the liberal arts environment than to a pre-professional focus. I am a great personal champion of education for its own sake: you’ll find a way to make rent one way or another, but there will never be another opportunity to immerse yourself in a “life of the mind” in quite the same way. If you can’t be idealistic and impractical now, then when can you?
From the description alone, I was thinking Brown, too. Then found OP named it yesterday, so it’s no secret
I’m not comfortable when a kid’s top reasons for a transfer on two threads (or an overwhelming concern when picking study abroad) are about the “social opportunities.” You say you are nestled into the current college, have friends, etc. I’m scratching my head here. Recently, I notice many posters advocate a transfer (on the face of it or maybe assuming any change is always positive and a “leap up,” I don’t know. You’re not the only OP considering this and getting feedback.) I’m not convinced it solves whatever the real problem is- or whether there is one. If you were my son, I’d say, you need to sit yourself down and decide what you are really searching for. Sort of find the Dorothy moment.
Which are you likely to regret more in the future? Not making the transfer and wondering what would have happened? Or making the transfer, having it turn out to be a mistake, and then possibly transferring back or ending up with a degree from the higher-ranked transfer institution but being a bit less happy? (Of course the best case scenario is transferring and being happy with no regrets). Speaking just personally, I would be more likely to regret not taking the chance in the first place. Thus I would choose to take it.
Another of the OP’s posts mentions business and economics.
If economics is the major, the typical major core includes intermediate microeconomics, intermediate macroeconomics, econometrics, and junior/senior level economics electives. Different schools have different levels of math intensity (Brown appears to have an average level of math intensity, requiring calculus 1 or 2 and a statistics course that requires calculus 2). Elective offerings vary between schools; Brown’s economics department does offer some “business”-type electives like corporate finance, investments, and accounting as well as more typical liberal arts type electives.
http://www.brown.edu/academics/economics/courses
Brown does have a regular economics track for the major as well as three tracks with more math (math / economics and applied math / economics advanced economics tracks for pre-PhD students, and mathematical finance track for pre-professional students aiming at Wall Street).
http://www.brown.edu/academics/economics/undergraduate
The OP may want to compare these aspects of the major at Brown with the current school.
I had a friend who transferred from Swarthmore to Harvard and then back to Swarthmore. I don’t think it hurt her in the long run and she didn’t end up with regrets about the road not taken.
So why do you want to transfer? It sounds like you don’t have a driving reason. Transfer because the grass is greener?
Some people never stop second guessing themselves. All those What Ifs can be a terrible burden. Some people need to break the cycle, end the crippling doubt.