<p>Take a look at the SUNYs. For you, they’d be a bargain. Check out Buffalo and see what kind of fin aid they give transfers.</p>
<p>Get that degree and then look at some OOS programs that may offer stipends for your grad degree.</p>
<p>buffalo is my safety now lets stop talking about suny schools please.</p>
<p>Somebeast…what is your proposed undergrad major. Perhaps someone here will have an idea for you based on that.</p>
<p>Please understand, we are trying to give you realistic advice. I KNOW it isn’t what you want to hear. You want to hear about guaranteed money at out of state flagship schools for transfer students. Please understand, those awards are few and far between for out of state students.</p>
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<p>How will your parents qualify for a loan in the amount needed for an out of state public if their EFC is $0.</p>
<p>For dependent students, most states will consider your parents’ residency for tuition purposes and many will not grant state aid unless you graduated from high school in their state. It’s going to be tough to find a state with lower instate rates than NY that will also give you state grant aid. So you’ll likely need to find OOS schools that will give you significant merit aid based on your PTK membership and also will accept a substantial number of your CC credits. You should be aware that course articulation may take some time after you’re accepted and you may want that info before you make any final decisions since, if they don’t take as many of your credits as a SUNY would, you’ll be looking at extra classes/semesters in order to finish. How much extra would you be willing to spend to go to an OOS school if it was coming out of your pocket…$10K, $25K, $50K?</p>
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<p>We’ve found that internet student review sites are among the least accurate portrayals of a school. I think that they’re based on a very small sample size, tend to be frequented more by disgruntled/unhappy students who need to vent, often have outdated information, and really don’t give much of an idea what a smart, productive student can expect to find (with the exception of food/housing!) My advice would be to visit some of the dreaded SUNY’s, and a few of the OOS contenders, talk with current students you meet, and then decide what’s best for you. Good luck!</p>
<p>Somebeast, make a comprehensive list of the schools that interest you. Call their financial aid dept and get the stats on what they have to offer transfer students in terms of aid. Eliminate those that have little or nothing for transfer students.</p>
<p>Also check out Cornell. They do meet full need for transfers and are amenable to those who are transferring with good UG grades. Also three of their schools have quasi state tuition rates making them a veritable bargain.</p>
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<p>I agree with and would add … I have done survey work in the busines world and we found regional differences in customer service survey results … and people in the Northeast tend to grade things lower than other regions of the country … so I wouldn’t place too much emphasis on the on-line survey results.</p>
<p>If he doesn’t want to stay in NY, why would he consider Cornell?</p>
<p>Because Cornell is an ivy league school that carries name recognition and has a great reputation. There is a cache to going there. It also gets high marks on those reviews, I would bet. </p>
<p>The SUNYs are not ranked very high on most rating scales. NY just does not have a flagship school, splitting its resources among a multitude of schools. Though there has been an attempt to make Buffalo more of a flagship, it does not have the draw that schools like Penn State, UMD, Ohio State, have. I really don’t know why. Partly I think, it 's because of the heavy regional draw of the SUNY’s. Most of the kids going to even Buffalo, the biggest SUNY, are commuters. As a result campus life and housing are not as extensive as they are at many state schools that attract kids from all over. SUNYs are almost completely NY residents and international students. Very few out of staters even with low OOS premiums. </p>
<p>Top NY students tend to go to the private schools is another reason. When we lived in the midwest, everyone, it seemed wanted to to go “STATE”. Here, only a handful of my kids’ graduating classes end up at SUNYs and there is no enmasse group going to any one SUNY. This even goes for the public schools in our area. With the economy the way it is and families being hit with financial issues, I am finally seeing more interest and apps to the SUNYs. Last year was the first year that I knew of a half dozen kids actually going to a SUNY, Binghamton. A lot of apps to Geneseo, but I don’t know anyone who ended up there. Little activity around Buffalo, Albany, Stony Brook and the little SUNYs.</p>
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<p>Are you using the term commuter in reference to the number of students who live off campus, or with their parents? It doesn’t seem that most of UB’s students are commuters, in the traditional sense, although after the first year many choose to live off campus and, despite the large number of dorms and apartment complexes they have on campus, they seem to be filled to capacity every year. The sheer number of grad students, understandably, would skew the numbers as well.</p>
<p>From college board:
Total undergrads: 19,368
First-time degree-seeking freshmen: 3,428
Degree-seeking undergrads: 19,149
Graduate enrollment: 9,513 </p>
<p>72% of first-year students live in college housing
34% of all undergraduates live in college housing</p>
<p>I guess off campus is more accurate. However, it seemed to me that the vast, vast majority of kids lived in the Buffalo/Rochester area. Another noticeable group from Long Island. Not many from our area or NYC. Also with the North and South campus housing, there just isn’t the crucial mass of kids on campus that a school that size would ordinarily have.</p>
<p>The facilities are brand spanking new and first rate however, and the sky is the limit in terms of complexity and advance studies on the undergrad courses since there are grad courses in just about every discipline. Law School, med school, health services school, the university has it all. But not the atmosphere of many of the flagships. They are trying, however, to get there.</p>
<p>thank you cptofthehouse for understanding my issue and many others.
Psychology is my major + pre med core classes i plan to take.
I plan to apply to about 10 private schools and about 5 oos state schools and maybe 2 safety’s (list could go down or up).
buffalo is one of the only exceptions and seems to be more mid west like but still nowhere like that top state flagships.
2 questions ohio state has a transfer scholarship (7k per year) and ptk scholarship up to 9 k per year how hard would it be to get both scholarships?</p>
<p>You have to ask admissions or financial aid there. Even if someone had experience with those awards, things have changed. You do have to call or email every single school and ask for %s. Also make sure that the school accepts a decent number of transfers. There are schools that do not. You don’t want to waste your time and money. </p>
<p>Good luck and congratulation on that outstanding gpa.</p>
<p>cptofthehouse,</p>
<p>Like you, I’ve spent much of my adult life in the midwest and did my graduate work at UIUC. And I have noticed that there is a profound difference in attitude towards public universities here in the NE vs. what I saw in the midwest and at home in Va.</p>
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<p>As one who now lives in Buffalo and works at the “other little SUNY” in town, I know that UB is trying (desperately) to establish itself as the NY Flagship. It’s having a tough time convincing NYS high school students (and their parents) that it’s a “real” state flagship for a number of reasons—some really silly, and some not so silly.</p>
<p>First, for selectivity of admissions, Binghamton and Geneseo both run rings around UB.</p>
<p>Second, the architecture of North Campus is not at all to many parents’ and students’ tastes. North Campus does not in any way resemble a traditional campus: The Academic Spine surrounded by the sea of parking lots is not at all attractive compared to most other states’ flagship campuses. And among other things there is no traditional quad on North Campus to hang out on in good weather. You cannot easily walk or bike to off-campus stores, movie theaters, or even off-campus student housing complexes from North campus; students really are pretty dependent on either having their own car or riding the campus buses. South campus is actually gorgeous, but from an undergrad’s point of view, South campus is largely irrelevant. Except, of course, if you wind up being housed in one of South’s massive dorms and have to take the bus to North every day to get to class. [The “up side” to living on South is that you are closer to the frat parties that seem to dominate many a state flagship’s social scene.]</p>
<p>Third, silly as it sounds, UB’s athletics are not yet “BIG TIME” and it’s really amazing how much “BIG TIME” athletics affects and enhances the draw of the mid-western and southern flagships. [UB is in the same conference as Western Michigan University.]</p>
<p>Fourth, Buffalo is Buffalo is Buffalo. And most of NYS (and most of the US) regards us as an armpit of the universe. [Although, as someone who’s now lived in Buffalo for over 10 years, I can honestly say it’s one of the nicest places I’ve ever lived—including the weather!] Location has another problem too: Buffalo is fully 8 hours from NYC, and that means it’s like 9 or 10 hours away from many parts of LI. Most state flagships are not anywhere near as removed from their state’s main population center. [Yes, the Chicagoland kids complain that Champaign-Urbana is out in the middle of a cornfield and has little to do on the (non-football) weekends. But they’re also only 3 or 3 1/2 hours from home.]</p>
<p>Fifth, it has a reputation for being a commuter school that it’s finding hard to shake. Part of this is that a large percentage of its students do come from WNY. I believe that UB requires * all freshmen* to live on campus unless they are living with parents or are over 21. So the fact that only 72% of first year students live in the dorms does indicate that close to 30% of the student body have parents who live within commuting distance from campus.</p>
<p>Sixth, as with all the SUNYs, UB is * cheap * even for OOS students. You’d think this would be an * advantage*. But way too many teens equate * cheap * with * crappy* both when it consumer goods and colleges. It’s not just a coincidence that UVa, UMich, UIUC, and W&M keep raising OOS tuition much more than in-state tuition: That high $$ tuition for OOS students somehow makes them believe that those schools are more desirable. [And if only we, the parents, could convince the kids that * price * is not always a good indicator of * quality*.]</p>
<p>Finally, for those prestige chasers, UB has never cracked the top 100 on the USNRW national lists. [It’s currently ranked at #121 in the National Universities list.] In fact, it’s never been ranked as high as Binghamton, which currently comes in at #80.</p>
<p>But all-in-all, if NYS students would look at UB for what it really is and its strengths, they would find that it’s an incredibly affordable, high quality institution that can be an excellent fit for a student who wants a big school with lots and lots of choices for what to study. And if they’d look at the SUNY schools individually, they’d find that there really is a whole lot of variety to choose from.</p>
<p>You are ever so right, Robin. If S were still at UB, I’d meet you for lunch sometime during a visit. I went up there regularly for 4 years. I agree with all you have to say about the school. I was not really thrilled that my son picked it , to be honest, but it did very well by him. He finished in 4 years. The price was right. He was in a small department that really worked with him and gave him exactly what he wanted. There were always jobs so he could make a little extra money. The campus apt was absolutely wonderful–not their fault he preferred to have turf wars with the gangs and crack dens around South campus in a falling apart house with 6 guys. The campus bus was reliable and South Campus, though in a slightly shabby, not as safe as I would like area, is really typical of alot of student ghettos. Buffalo is a nice sized city. Not huge like Boston, NYC, PHilly, but a city that a kid can get to know well and yet find most of what he needs. </p>
<p>The campus facilities on North campus are spanking new and fresh and clean. I have not seen a school with better by those standards. My son was a Performing Arts Major, and the facilities for that were first rate with plenty of performance opportunities. Any academics he chose to take were available and were high quality, something that did take him a bit aback as he graduated from a very rigorous private high school and had sophomore standing with all of the AP credits he had gotten. He found that the literature and history courses that he took on an advanced level were challenging and in depth. I spent some time in the library during a longer visit one time, and found that the math/science offerings were every bit as good as one could get anywhere. Lots of international students, particularly Asians, I noticed, taking advantage of this treasure. </p>
<p>The university has just about every major a student could want. I feel the school is a gem that has not attracted the students that it could well handle. Not only is it incredibly affordable, for those kids with good but not necessarily top stats, there are some attainable merit awards available. Both of my boys who applied there got a nice little automatic scholarship. With the cost as low as it is, even that little bit makes a big impact. Also after, freshman year, if your student wants to live off campus in the South Campus student ghetto, it is possible to do so very cheaply. Yeah, my son’s house was slum quality, but so was my friend’s son’s house in Athens Ohio that was renting for 4X the cost or my other son’s teeny tiny row house that cost twice what this big generous house cost in Buffalo. </p>
<p>The smaller SUNYs are great choices for kids who really could do better in smaller schools. Geneseo is quite the gem. And Binghamton is a great sized school that can compete with many like sized unis and beat them out when it comes to value. My husband’s colleague has a set of twins, one at Brandeis and the other at Binghamton, and he wishes he had insisted both had gone to SUNYs. Likes Brandeis all right but at $50K+ a year, doesn’t like it enough, doesn’t think it was worth the price differential.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>The student is a transfer student, so those links won’t likely help.</p>
<p>Sk8mom, just spoke with my UB son. It’s not that the kids are mostly commuters. That was an error on my part. It’s that most of them live within a short distance of UB and often go home on weekends or whenever they wish. It gives the school more of a suitcase campus feel and is reflected in the facilities and activities available on weekends. It is not like the flagship schools that are the center of the students’ world. </p>
<p>Also the housing is spread out and much of it not within walking distance of the working campus, not to mention the split campus–North and South. There are very few traditional dorms at the school with most of the housing suite style, high rise and true apartments which make even those living on campus housing keep pretty much to themselves. The movement now is towards these apartments on campus which the kids prefer, but it does make mingling a bit more difficult.</p>
<p>Somebeast…just to weigh in a little…lots of great insight here and a dose of reality. OOS publics are typically the poorest financial choice IF finances are in issue!! Unless you’re a top 5% applicant at schools other than UNC or UVA, you will be stuck with a hefty bill and no way to borrow that amount of money if you’re at the $0EFC level. For example, Penn State is $40K!! Net of a stafford loan and work study totally maybe $8K, plus a max Pell (IF eligible) of $5500, can your parents swing $27K/year?</p>
<p>IF you insist on escaping NYS, privates are apparently your best bet…now you are entering the complex universe of figuring out which schools give lots of need-based aid and in your apparent situation, finding those that meet 100% of demonstrated need!</p>
<p>Some large privates that MAY be on your list like BU for example,may unfortunately not the best for your situation, unless a TOP applicant…</p>
<p>If you share the privates you are thinking about, we can help guide you, etc…</p>
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<p>Yes, and both Binghamton and Geneseo have excellent sciences and lots of premed majors.</p>
<p>I know the OP doesn’t want to hear this…but if you plan to go to medical school, it is imperative that you keep your undergraduate debt to an absolute minimum. Medical school costs a fortune and there is precious little aid available except loans. </p>
<p>So…apply to schools all around but keep the money you plan to spend in mind. If the money comes your way, fabulous. If not, going to one of those SUNY’s for undergrad isn’t the worst thing that could happen. Get a fabulous GPA and do well on the MCATs…then apply to medical school at Ohio State, or Michigan or one of the other midwest flagship schools.</p>
<p>^I don’t think this student is likely to get into Binghamton or Geneseo (and they wouldn’t fit his size criteria anyway). From reading his other posts, it seems there may be eligibility and other transfer issues:</p>
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Some schools have a credit requirement to waive the need to show high school diploma. Would pass fail classes count for this? </p>
<p>Its clep and the schools i want have to accept it or so it seems.
so say i have 14 credits from clep and 16 from normal school i would be ok for the 30 credit limit?
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Im taking all of my tough classes with cleps (precalc calc english and others) .
Would it matter if those are most of my strong classes and they only come with a pass faill grade?
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<p>*Psychology is my major + pre med core classes i plan to take.
I plan to apply to about 10 private schools and about 5 oos state schools and maybe 2 safety’s (list could go down or up).
buffalo is one of the only exceptions and seems to be more mid west like but still nowhere like that top state flagships.
*</p>
<p>You’re pre-med. Since that is the case, you need to minimize any loans for undergrad since you’ll need to save your borrowing power for med school. </p>
<p>Don’t make the mistake that some make and that is borrowing a bunch of money for undergrad, and then either be unable to borrow enough for med school or have waaaayyy too much debt once you graduate from med school.</p>
<p>Do NOT make the naive assumption that newish doctors can afford to pay off large loans.</p>
<p>2 questions ohio state has a transfer scholarship (7k per year) and ptk scholarship up to 9 k per year how hard would it be to get both scholarships?</p>
<p>Ohio State costs about $38k per year for OOS students for 2010-11 school year (costs rise ever year).</p>
<p>Even if you were lucky enough to get $9k per year in scholarships, you would still have about $30k to pay.</p>
<p>BTW…I’m not seeing any scholarships for transfer students on OSU’s website. Can you provide a link?</p>
<p>Is your issue that you just want to go to school elsewhere - but for a low cost? How about UMinn or Truman State?</p>