vs1988

I am currently stuck between a rock and a hard place in deciding whether or not to transfer. I am going to apply to a transfer school anyway, but I will need to decide if I want to go if I get in. Here's my situation:

I currently go to a small, private, liberal arts college as an English major. I love the campus, the small class sizes (15 kids or less in upper levels), and the top notch professors. The two big issues that turn me off from my current school are the social culture (demographic is very wealthy/conservative, and a lot of students are rather culturally/socially ignorant and many downright prejudiced) and the price tag.

I am planning on applying to a state university to transfer in for the Spring 09 semester. The state school is much bigger and impersonal, but their English program is on par with my current school's. However, they will not evaluate transfer credits until after a prospective transfer student has enrolled, so I cannot find out beforehand if all my credits will transfer. The big advantages are that it's close to home, and it costs much less (to give an idea, even if the state university gave me NO financial aid, I'd still save over 6,000 dollars compared to what I'm paying for my current school, for which I received about 15,000 dollars in FA).

My biggest concern right now is credit transfer. I spoke on the phone to an admissions officer at the state university, and she said that courses from regionally accredited 4 year colleges/universities are usually accepted. I looked at my current school's degree audit and the state university's course catalog/program of study, and most of my courses seem to have a comparable course at the state school. However, the catalog states that the major concentration courses must be taken at that school, but exemptions can be granted by the dean. I currently have 9 credits in upper level courses, and will have 12 by the time I finish the Fall 08 semester. I don't know if these credits will be lost or if they will covered under the "exemption".

Any input is greatly appreciated.

ferryboat10

Many colleges in large universities have specific policies on transfer credit. Acceptable from certain schools (UMich Ross is notorious for this) or up to a certain limit.
I would look at the catalog for the university and the department's policies.