<p>Hello!
I am a student at a very small private school in Maine. And to be frank, I am unhappy. I am receiving a “good” education with fairly good grades but due to isolation by my classmates, I find myself unable to focus in classes and just general antsy to be on campus. As it is such a small school, I feel like I have been ganged up on by people who I used to view as friends, and now it is just a whole mess. I visited my local public High School and I really loved it. As it was such a larger environment, I found myself more able to focus without caring about what one group of students was saying about me. But no matter how much I loved it, I am worried that colleges will see me “down-sizing” and view this as me not being able to keep up with the rigorous courses. If I did go to Public School, I would be in the Honors Program for every class (Maybe not math, though) and I feel that I can receive just as good an education. Do colleges care about switching from something more rigorous to something more lax, but with good grades?
Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Most people don’t choose where they go to school, so they won’t intentionally penalize you for switching. It could hurt you indirectly if you end up with a low class rank or mediocre teacher recommendations because you switched (or if the guidance counselors aren’t as good and they give you bad advice or something), but that’s about it. </p>
<p>Yes it will hurt you. Switching from private to public shows a lack of dedication in paying tuition and what college wants a student who doesn’t want to pay tuition. If you switch, only your state flagship will accept you. Which is University of Maine(?). </p>
<p>It’ll hurt your extracurriculars too. For example, if I switched HSs, I would lose my potential captainship in 5-6 activities. </p>
<p>Tuition isn’t an issue at all for my family and in fact, my parents want me to stay at my private school more than I do, and most of my extracurriculars are out of school anyway (USTA Tennis team, theatre in Boston, etc)</p>
<p>Bump!</p>
<p>No guarantee that you will be happy at a new public school. If you concern for your safety at your current school, then another school might be an option, but you can not run all your life from people who do not like you. As far as the colleges vie this transition, they might think that your parents wanted to cut down expenses, but your extracurricular leadership potential and your rank might suffer.</p>
<p>Check to see how the public school will transfer your credits. Other than that (class rank and GPA) the college will not care.</p>
<p>My friend (now a senior) switched from freshman to sophomore year and he said it was the best decision he made. He made so many connections and met so many people like him that he became class president, Intel ISEF Finalist, and got involved in tons of extracurriculars which eventually got him into every Ivy but Harvard.</p>