Should I forgo my full ride?

blevine
Sun, 10 Dec 2017 19:37:15 +0000

I agree you should discuss your concerns with your advisors. If they are any good, they will give you ideas on how to enrich your experience at UM, research, coops, internships. I can tell you that having 2 kids in really tough competitive schools, the opportunities for those things are super competitive. You will get those opportunities at UM, maybe not at Cornell (one of my kids is there now). Grades are definitely harder to get a high GPA at Cornell, and since grad school is in your plans, easy As with time to volunteer/intern/research in your field is a huge advantage. Money to pay for grad school is a huge advantage.

Socially, join clubs with your interests. Most college students spend a large portion of their time with a smaller group of friends. You just have to find the ones with common interests.

You to stay motivated, get As and think longer term. If you can’t be focused on your studies, then looking at other options is necessary. But are you sure you’ll be more focused elsewere ? Cornell is full of frats and drinking. You will not get all As.

As someone who transferred, while I was happy with my transfer, I realize in hindsight it was not necessary. But I didn’t have a full free ride like you so was not as painful to do it. In my case, I think either staying would have worked out fine if I had given it more of a chance, but then again, being a transfer student has it’s challenges. I had to (and did) overcome those challenges. You can do either as well.