<p>My daughter is a freshman @ Pepperdine this fall. She was accepted to many top schools but for financial reasons chose Pepp. Her top school she was admitted to was UCLA but being an out of state student it was financially challenging. Now 6 weeks into school she’s miserable! She doesn’t feel connected to the school or the students/faculty at all. As a parent I’m worried about her! Bottom line…is there any way for her to get into UCLA at spring? I spoke with admissions and they said no, however I see different answers around the web. Any help is appreciated. I know many of you may think this is about being away from home, not the case! She just made the wrong decision on where to go.</p>
<p>Six weeks is very short time.
If you couldn’t afford it before, have things changed?</p>
<p>I think many MANY students take a while to adapt to change (you would know best if this is your kid). Is she getting involved in clubs/sports etc? She may have been homesick (out of state or actually homesick) and in the same boat at UCLA…not a small cozy school by any means.</p>
<p>I also seriously question the finances of transferring if UCLA was going to be challenging. That doesn’t get better. Also if she had scholarships offered I bet those are not still available…</p>
<p>I’d say give her a pep talk and tell her if she still feels that way in the spring you can discuss. Lots of kids are better after Thanksgiving. </p>
<p>Best. (X post with EK)</p>
<p>UCLA takes transfers at the junior level.</p>
<p>Would you be able to afford her to attend UCLA for the last two years if she transferred there as a junior?</p>
<p>Really, it seems that she fell in love with an unaffordable school and cannot let go. But why didn’t she just go to a big in-state public university that would be more like UCLA than Pepperdine is? Or even USC if she just had to go to school in California?</p>
<p>Six weeks is long enough for her to know its not where she belongs. Finances haven’t changed but we are willing to take loans now that we were not aware were available last April.</p>
<p>She is very involved in the school. She is an athlete, in multiple clubs, looking into research and even looked into going Greek. The situation isn’t about not being involved, being far from home or anything else. She knows where she should have gone and didn’t. </p>
<p>For her it’s not about going to a school in Ca or a going to a “big school”. There are schools that are a good fit and those that are not such a good fit. Unfortunately for her she made the wrong choice out of feeling like she was putting us in financial hardship and is now paying the consequences.</p>
<p>What is it about UCLA that she thinks she is missing/will be different?</p>
<p>Edited to add: Had she visited both before hand and felt both were a good match?</p>
<p>Well it’s your dime.
My D didn’t fit in to her school till she had been there much longer than six weeks.
Sometimes learning how to make your choices work for you is more valuable than second guessing yourself.</p>
<p>If the WA stands for Washington she could try transferring to UW in Seattle for a big public U atmosphere and good academics that should be much more affordable than UCLA. I know I never wanted to go to my UW (Madison, WI) because I was 8 miles from campus but went there, lived in dorms and loved it. Your UW has a nice campus in a great city. Suggest this as the alternative if she still feels like transferring at the end of the term.</p>
<p>The short answer is, ‘No’, no chance at Spring admission.</p>
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<p>I strongly disagree. But even if I buy your argument that six weeks is enough to know that she does not "belong’ in Malibu, it does not therefore conclude that she belongs in Westwood instead. </p>
<p>Second TempeMom’s q: what was it about UC-Southern Branch that is worth it to your family to pay OOS rates?</p>
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<p>I’m assuming then that she received a merit scholly from Pepperdine.</p>
<p>Echo #6: What is so uniquely better about UCLA for her?</p>
<p>Even if she does transfer, she could be setting herself up for a huge (as well as expensive) letdown if UCLA does not meet whatever inflated expectations she has for attending it.</p>
<p>@emeraldkity4 - we aren’t the parents who will make her stay somewhere she is unhappy. She made a wrong decision at 17. Should that be a punishment that affects the next 4 years? Is it more important to do the right thing or make them suffer because of one choice? Sorry, not that parent! </p>
<p>Tempemom - to answer your question I don’t know if there is “one” thing about UCLA. For her it’s about knowing that’s where she belonged and instead of going with that she was trying to so what was right for her family. And yes she did see both campuses and spent the day at both. </p>
<p>Wis75 - she was accepted to UW and I agree, it’s a fantastic school! She visited and said she didn’t feel it was where she belonged. </p>
<p>Blue bayou - your “No” answer is based off of??
Im sorry you disagree about 6 weeks being long enough but I know my child. How long would you say is long enough? Is it the same for all students or is it an individual thing like all students are individuals? It not about belonging in Malibu or Westwood. It about the school, not the geography.</p>
<p>OP: My guess is that this is a ploy on the part of your D to get what she wants, regardless of the debt burden it will mean for you…and you are falling for it!</p>
<p>She is “suffering” at Pepperdine! Horrors!</p>
<p>“She was accepted to many top schools”</p>
<p>Would I be correct in assuming that her other choices had more in common with UCLA than Pepperdine?</p>
<p>What makes UCLA worth it over attending a similar school instate?</p>
<p>Honestly, I can understand not fitting in at Pepperdine. It’s an unusual school, and small. It’s a rather conservative place, and if she doesn’t like it, that may not change. I can sympathize.<br>
I’m wondering too, if she could transfer to UW for spring, and then transfer to UCLA as a junior, if, she still wants to. I wouldn’t be surprised if she would be happy enough at UW that she won’t want to, come time. Unfortunately, UCLA is the most competitive school, along with UCB, in the UC system. Many, many qualified California kids are shut out. I’m sure they filled her spot in two seconds after she declined. 
But, they do take junior year transfers, and if she pursues it, she might get in at that point.</p>
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<p>UCLA accepts applications only for frosh (have not enrolled in any college after high school graduation, except for the summer session immediately after high school graduation) or junior level transfers (with 60-86 semester units or 90-129 quarter units completed):</p>
<p>[How</a> to Apply - UCLA Undergraduate Admissions](<a href=“http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/applying.htm]How”>http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/applying.htm)</p>
<p>If she really despises Pepperdine that much, she needs to find some other school (possibly a community college) to transfer to at the frosh/soph level.</p>
<p>Why did she choose Pepperdine in the first place? Was it the only affordable choice of the schools that admitted her? (If so, that means that she erred in making the application list.)</p>
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<p>This is rather harsh, and based on what? You don’t know this family. </p>
<p>I went to three different colleges back in the day. The first one was not a great fit- academics were lacking. I transferred to a CC for my sophomore year and then to a UC as a junior. It worked out just fine. I’m so glad I didn’t just stay at the first university when I wasn’t getting what I needed out of college at that time.</p>
<p>One thing that might be affecting your daughter’s opinion is that Pepperdine heavily sources from the SoCal region and I’d guess that a good percent of its students applied, but were rejected from UCLA. From my experience, many students, particularly freshmen, romanticize the schools they were rejected from because they haven’t yet settled into their new school. </p>
<p>What turned your daughter off about UW? Remember, it’s a BIG school with a huge diversity of students, opportunities, and interests. It could be that your daughter disliked the 1% of the school she saw but she could very well grow to love at least some aspects of the 99% of U Dub that she didn’t see.</p>
<p>Tomofboston - YOU ARE OUT OF LINE!!!
First of all I know she’s unhappy there because finally after weeks of knowing something was wrong and asking and asking an asking she finally broke down and told me. It took over an hour for her to say to me she was unhappy and that she regretted not going to UCLA. She shared that she “didn’t think it was fair” to us or her brother. This is a child who comes from a very modest home. We never finance anything and she knows that. She didn’t want to ask for more than what “she” thought we could afford. My daughter very rarely asks for anything. Her splurges she asks for during HS would be having loch of campus once or twice a month. I know you don’t know her and I’m sure there are plenty of spoiled, manipulative brats out there but I guarantee you that is NOT the situation here. </p>
<p>I say this respectfully…</p>
<p>When I posted this is was reaching out to a group asking for advice or input on the possibility of having her transfer to UCLA. I was hoping for helpful advice. Unfortunately it seems that all most (not all) of the responses have been anything but about my original question.</p>
<p>You got your answer, you’ve learned that people here like to kibbutz and speculate, and now your best bet is just to back away from the keyboard slowly.</p>
<p>@OP: What are the reasons your daughter does not like Pepperdine? I frequent the College Life form, and am a transfer myself, so I have seen that many students take a long time to adjust to college and they can’t see that some issues (such as having trouble making friends) can hinder their experience.</p>
<p>Some find out, after 6 weeks, that the school is fine (after making friends, or after adjusting to homesickness) and it was just a little bump in the road. Some find out that the school really isn’t for them (after realizing they like bigger schools or prefer a different student body).</p>